In 1986, he got the change he was looking for and then some. He didn't head off to Denver, but instead took an assignment from the environmental engineering firm for which he worked and left Atlanta, Georgia and his life of the past five years and started a new office for them in upstate New York.
The funny thing, though, is that with the move, he stubbornly became more entrenched in southern culture than ever before. He was frustrated by his inability to get sweet tea and proper barbecue at northern restaurants, and he bewildered New York drivers by proudly displaying a plate on the front of his car reading Pocahontas Road Church of God, Bessemer, Alabama.
He probably never listened to more country music in his life than he had that first year upstate. He favored western swing bands like Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys and Asleep At The Wheel (who actually came through Albany a surprising number of times). He listened to Top 40 country artists like George Strait and Randy Travis, as well as old-school stuff like Merle Haggard and Ernest Tubb. Friends back in Georgia would mail him cassette tapes of WRAS Album 88's Cowtipper's Delight radio show and WRFG's Sagebrush Boogie to keep him current on the latest redneck trends.
1986 was the year that the first Steve Earle record, Guitar Town, came out, and while it was more country rock than country, its twangy sound was still one of his favorites of that year.
He probably never listened to more country music in his life than he had that first year upstate. He favored western swing bands like Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys and Asleep At The Wheel (who actually came through Albany a surprising number of times). He listened to Top 40 country artists like George Strait and Randy Travis, as well as old-school stuff like Merle Haggard and Ernest Tubb. Friends back in Georgia would mail him cassette tapes of WRAS Album 88's Cowtipper's Delight radio show and WRFG's Sagebrush Boogie to keep him current on the latest redneck trends.
1986 was the year that the first Steve Earle record, Guitar Town, came out, and while it was more country rock than country, its twangy sound was still one of his favorites of that year.
He was starting over, making a new beginning, hitting the reset button. A new location for a new life. He could identify with Earle's lines, "When my boots hit the boards I'm a brand new man, with my back to the riser I'll make my stand." He was now in his 30s. It was time for the brand-new him to make his stand.
The problem with this kind of retrospective, however, is that it creates the impression that each selected song is ALL he listened to that particular year. Yes, when he looks back on 1986, he remembers country music in general, and yes, Steve Earle sort of stands out in his memory. but that's not all that he listened to by any means. While he was listening to Earle's twangy sound in 1986, he was also still following The Art of Noise, who were also exploring twang as well that year and released their mix of the classic Peter Gunn, featuring twangmaster Duane Eddy on guitar.
The problem with this kind of retrospective, however, is that it creates the impression that each selected song is ALL he listened to that particular year. Yes, when he looks back on 1986, he remembers country music in general, and yes, Steve Earle sort of stands out in his memory. but that's not all that he listened to by any means. While he was listening to Earle's twangy sound in 1986, he was also still following The Art of Noise, who were also exploring twang as well that year and released their mix of the classic Peter Gunn, featuring twangmaster Duane Eddy on guitar.
You crack me up.
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