Guitar Town

Guitar Town
Studio album by Steve Earle
Released	March 5, 1986
Recorded	Sound Stage Studio, Nashville, Tennessee
Genre	Country rock, Country
Length	34:35
Label	MCA
Producer	Emory Gordy, Jr., Tony Brown Associate Producer: Richard Bennett
Steve Earle chronology
Guitar Town (1986) Exit 0 (1987)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]
Robert Christgau	A− [2]

Guitar Town is the debut album from singer-songwriter Steve Earle, released on March 5, 1986. It topped the Billboard country album charts, and the title song reached #7 on the country singles charts. Earle was also nominated for two 1987 Grammy Awards, Best Male Country Vocalist and Best Country Song, for the title track.

The album was recorded in late 1985 and early 1986 in Nashville, Tennessee, at Sound Stage Studio. Overdubs were later recorded at Nashville's Emerald Studios. It was one of the first country music albums to be recorded digitally, utilizing the Mitsubishi X-800. Each of the album's ten tracks was either written or co-written by Earle.

In 2003, the album was ranked number 489 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. In 2012, the album ranked at #482 on a revised list. In 2006, it ranked 27th on CMT's 40 Greatest Albums in Country Music.

The title track was later covered by Emmylou Harris.

Track listing

All songs written by Steve Earle unless otherwise noted

1. "Guitar Town" – 2:33
2. "Goodbye's All We've Got Left" – 3:16
3. "Hillbilly Highway" (Earle, Jimbeau Hinson) – 3:38
4. "Good Ol' Boy (Gettin' Tough)" (Earle, Richard Bennett) – 3:58
5. "My Old Friend the Blues" – 3:07
6. "Someday" – 3:46
7. "Think It Over" (Bennett, Earle) – 2:13
8. "Fearless Heart" – 4:04
9. "Little Rock 'n' Roller" – 4:49
10. "Down the Road" (Tony Brown, Earle, Hinson) – 2:37

Bonus track on 2002 Remastered CD

1. "State Trooper" [live] (Bruce Springsteen)

Personnel

• Steve Earle – guitar, vocals

The Dukes

• Bucky Baxter – pedal steel guitar, guitar on "State Trooper"
• Richard Bennett – guitar, 6-string bass, slap bass, associate producer
• Ken Moore – organ, synthesizer, keyboards on "State Trooper"
• Emory Gordy, Jr. – bass, mandolin, producer
• Harry Stinson – drums, vocals
• Reno Kling - bass on "State Trooper"
• Michael McAdam - guitar on "State Trooper"

Additional musicians

• Paul Franklin – pedal steel guitar on "Fearless Heart" and "Someday"
• John Barlow Jarvis – synthesizer, piano
• Steve Nathan – synthesizer

Chart performance

Album

Chart (1986)	Peak position
U.S. Billboard Top Country Albums	1
U.S. Billboard 200	89
Canadian RPM Top Albums	82

Singles

Year	Single	Peak chart positions
		US Country	US Main	CAN Country
1986	"Hillbilly Highway"	37	—	46
	"Guitar Town"	7	20	7
	"Someday"	28	—	31
1987	"Goodbye's All We Got Left"	8	—	10

Certifications

Organization	Level	Date
RIAA – USA	Gold	March 29, 1999

References

1. Deming, Mark. "Guitar Town - Steve Earle". AllMusic. Retrieved 2012-02-05.
2. "CG: Steve Earle". Robert Christgau. 2007-10-04. Retrieved 2012-02-05.

External links

• Guitar Town (Adobe Flash) at Radio3Net (streamed copy where licensed)