Success is a fickle thing, particularly in the music industry. Some artists flame out spectacularly; others steadily dim to a flicker until history forgets them. And then there are those like Steve Earle—born on this day (Jan. 17) in 1955—who simply will not go gentle into that good night. Raging against the dying of the light with albums like 1996’s I Feel Alright and 2000’s Transcendental Blues, the three-time Grammy Award winner experienced “one of the biggest moments of my life” at age 70. That’s when country superstar Vince Gill surprised Earle with an official invitation to the Grand Ole Opry.
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“They would not let me near their place for years,” Earle told the San Antonio Current last July.
Steve Earle’s Winding Path to Stardom
Born in Fort Monroe, Virginia, Steve Earle grew up in Schertz, Texas, roughly 17 miles northeast of San Antonio. First picking up a guitar at age 11, Earle’s bohemian spirit surfaced early on when he left home at age 14. He moved to Houston with his uncle, also a musician—and also just 19 years old at the time.
Dropping out of school at 16, the “Copperhead Road” belter eventually met his idol, Townes Van Zandt—whom he deemed “a real good teacher and a real bad role model.” In 1974, a 19-year-old Earle made his way to Nashville. There, he worked blue-collar jobs by day, trying to get his music career off the ground by night.
[RELATED: 4 Country Songs That Nashville Icon Steve Earle Wrote for Other Artists]
Still, Earle’s career didn’t start gaining traction until the ’80s, writing songs for artists like Johnny Lee and Carl Perkins. After an initial contract fell through, he managed to finagle a seven-record deal with MCA Records. Earle’s 1986 album, Guitar Town, established his presence, topping the country album charts and yielding a Top 10 single in the title track.
“I’d been in town for a decade and more and everybody had kind of given up on me,” Earle recalled in a Billboard interview last May. He added, “Most people didn’t like my voice. I don’t think I consistently wrote well enough at that time. Noel Fox [of the Oak Ridge Boys] told me, ‘Don’t worry about getting songs cut, just write for you, write what you want to write, write yourself a record,’ and I heard him.”
The Comeback
With 1988’s seminal Copperhead Road, Steve Earle had begun moving away from the traditional country sound of his first two albums. As his sound grew heavier, so did his substance use. In 1991, MCA Records did not renew his contract.
By 1993, Earle had committed to sobriety and was writing new material. Three years later, he released Train a Comin’, his first album in five years. To this day, at 71, Earle continues to release music and tour, unburdened by genre.
Beyond his historic music career, Earle has also flaunted his artistic talents as an actor. Earle’s most notable role came as Walon, Bubbless’ NA sponsor in the HBO critically acclaimed series The Wire.
Featured image by Tibrina Hobson/Getty
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