Steve Earle

Blending rock's raw energy with country's passionate twang, Steve Earle's music has won him a fiercely loyal fan base. In 1986, his acclaimed debut, Guitar Town, had all of Nashville listening. But Earle's demons doomed any prospects for mainstream success, and two hard-rocking records later, he pawned his guitars and disappeared into a drug-abusing underworld.

Clean and sober after a brief jail stint, Steve Earle threw himself into work like a man returned from the dead. Subsequent albums combined acoustic folk, bluegrass, roots rock, and Beatles-esque pop to distinctive effect. With his musical eclecticism and outlaw persona, Earle became one of the alt-country movement's chief inspirations.

From the beginning, Steve Earle's portraits of blue-collar discontent had a social conscience. Since then, his songwriting and activism are increasingly linked. Political songs attract critics and admirers in almost equal measure, but in spite of all the controversy, Earle remains his fiery, outspoken self.

Throughout his trailblazing career, Steve Earle has refused to conform to Nashville's norms, or anyone else's. The gritty, rock-tinged sound of Guitar Town seemed to position him as country music's next great hope, but he became something even more interesting: an American original. Post-recovery, Earle has staked out his own territory in the no-man's-land between country, rock, and folk, staying true to the ideals that power both his politics and his music.