The Life And Times
“Justin Townes Earle may have had a top-notch pedigree, but his music connected with people precisely because he came across as one of them. The son of one alt-country trailblazer (Steve Earle) and the namesake of another (Townes Van Zandt), he imbued his artful narratives with humility and deep empathy. While his well-crafted songs are inseparable from his own story, what mattered most was that his characters’ desolation felt real,” Marc Hogan writes for Pitchfork.
“Ranging freely across country, folk, Americana, Western swing, Memphis soul, and more, he built up a prolific discography as a rootsy, down-to-earth songwriter’s songwriter. He sang with a gentle rasp that made commanding a stage seem as no-big-deal as bumming a cigarette outside the venue. Upon the heartbreaking news of Earle’s passing, here are five songs that can serve as an introduction to his humble gravitas.”
Click through to get started.
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JTE was once on Chicago’s Bloodshot Records. Here’s owner Rob Miller’s remembrance.
It is with a sadness I fear will take some time to settle into the concrete reality of loss, that we learn of the passing of our dear, dear friend Justin Townes Earle. [1/8] pic.twitter.com/moItG4bQyC
— Bloodshot Records (@BSHQ) August 24, 2020
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The hearts of the entire Bloodshot family go out to his immediate family–especially his wife and daughter–as well as his vast and close network of friends. [2/8]
— Bloodshot Records (@BSHQ) August 24, 2020
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From the first time I saw Justin perform, I wanted to work with him. I could not take my eyes off of him as he commanded the stage. He always seemed to be staring–or glaring–at something off in the middle distance… [3/8]
— Bloodshot Records (@BSHQ) August 24, 2020
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…it was a drive, a goal, a determination that translated into riveting performances. When he stayed at my house in the early days–before hotel rooms or tour buses were an option–he’d rummage through my records… [4/8]
— Bloodshot Records (@BSHQ) August 24, 2020
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…and we’d end up listening to Meade Lux Lewis albums until entirely too late. Or too early. Time became rather fluid.
That he entrusted his first few stellar recordings to us is a source of continual pride. [5/8]
— Bloodshot Records (@BSHQ) August 24, 2020
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To be up close and watch his confidence and his talent grow at that stage of his career was a thrill that never diminished. That he was able to move between styles so effortlessly never failed to hold my interest and my admiration. [6/8]
— Bloodshot Records (@BSHQ) August 24, 2020
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I, and so many others, was looking forward to a long career of compelling music, to watching a craftsman ply his trade at a higher and higher level. We are so saddened at the music we will now never get to hear. [7/8]
— Bloodshot Records (@BSHQ) August 24, 2020
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Let us all appreciate and reflect that we were able to partake in his talents while we could and hope for peace and comfort to those closest to him during this awful, difficult time.
Be well and stay safe.
Rob Miller
Bloodshot Records[8/8]
— Bloodshot Records (@BSHQ) August 24, 2020
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Justin Townes Earle in the Beachwood over the years.
June 5, 2009
Beachwood Briefing: Justin Townes Earle
Beachwood Music: You lived in Chicago years ago. Where did you live, and what are your memories?
Justin Townes Earle: I was there when I was 17 for maybe a little over a year. I’d hang around the Old Town School of Folk Music. It was a bunch of really artistic people attempting to live this artistic life. I stayed on the east side of Rogers Park on Touhy and Greenleaf. At the time, it was a perfect neighborhood for me. It was rough, and there was a lot of dope. All the trouble was all right there.
Beachwood Music: I’m a former Rogers Park resident. Which places did you favor in the neighborhood?
Justin Townes Earle: Red Line Tap. Morseland. But my whole life revolved around whatever it is you call Bucktown now. On Western Avenue there was this bar that I don’t even want to talk about now.
Beachwood Music: How was Chicago good to you? What made you leave?
Justin Townes Earle: For me, it was about being on my own. The friends I had in Nashville, I grew up with. Chicago was my first chance to be somewhere that no one really knew anything about me. I was able to get friends on my own terms.
But I got into a lot of trouble in such a short period of time, like a lightning flash, and all of a sudden I’m back South.
Beachwood Music: You self-released your debut, Yuma. Talk about your relationship with Bloodshot Records, which has released The Good Life and Midnight at the Movies.
Justin Townes Earle: A friend of a friend gave me an address for some guy’s house, Rob. I must admit when I went over there it took me a few hours to figure out it was Rob Miller (co-founder of the label). He came and saw me play, and it all kind of happened from there. It all fell together.
Bloodshot’s been nothing but good to me. Never once did they hear any of my records before I sent them to be pressed. No advance tracks, nothing. They sign people because they trust them. That’s the beautiful part.
These bigger labels . . . They don’t give a fuck about music anymore. Everybody who works at Bloodshot Records, especially Rob and Nan Warshaw, are huge music fans. They absolutely love what they do.
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September 25, 2009
Bloodshot Briefing: Exene’s Back
Good fortune for music lovers in Southern Illinois.
Both the Bottle Rockets and Jason Isbell, formerly of the Drive-By Truckers, happen to be in Carbondale this Sunday. Brian Henneman’s never played this town before. No better person to share your virginity with than Isbell, who played with Bloodshotter Justin Townes Earle in Chicago this summer.
Speaking of Earle, he won the New & Emerging Artist of the Year award at last week’s Americana Music Festival. The GQ-modeling country crooner sported a maroon suit with a bow tie.
Next up for Earle is a Grammy nomination. He’s fastly becoming the Main Street face of Bloodshot, and for all the right reasons.
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January 24, 2010
Bloodshot Briefing
Artist: Justin Townes Earle
Album: Midnight at the Movies
Review: “On his 2008 debut, Justin Townes Earle, son of rebel troubadour Steve Earle, seemed like he was getting up to speed with classic country and folk forms,” Rolling Stone wrote [link dead; no replacement found]. “But he sounds like a natural-born honky-tonker on his new album.”
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January 7, 2011
Justin Townes Earle Hearts NY
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May 31, 2011
The Weekend In Chicago Rock
At Millennium Park.
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May 14, 2012
The Weekend In Chicago Rock
At Park West
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August 7 2015
The Week In Chicago Rock
At City Winery.
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Comments welcome.
Posted on August 27, 2020