2/9/14
Westbury
has a new venue for concerts. The Space
is another concert venue for Long Island, which has Huntington’s Paramount,
Amityville’s Revolution Bar, Rocky Point’s Suffolk Theater, the Bolton Center
in Bay Shore and while we are at it, NYCB Westbury theater, Landmark, Port
Washington, and some others which means all of us on Long Island can see a
decent show almost every weekend. Last
night was the first show I saw at The Space which I understand is a converted
movie theater. It’s an odd theater
Before Mr. Earle, was Brooklyn
based Dawn Landes who had a pitch perfect voice which reverberated between the
walls. I’m not that familiar with her
work, but am kicking myself for not buying a copy of her new album, Blue. Her last song was Blue which was different
from her other standard country folk jangles.
She also had the crowd singing
Pete Seeger’s Turn, Turn, Turn which surprised her – the response from the audience.
After a brief intermission and
without an introduction Earle slowly walked onto the stage, wearing a baggy
shirt, chains dangled from a wallet in his back pocket, a red bandanna wrapped
around his right wrist and his thinning greyish hair and long disheveled beard
gave the illusion this man was a pondering soul who was lost. He picked up a guitar and started playing,
actually didn’t really stop till he described having an 8th grade
education and researching by reading different topics. “If I didn’t know why something was happening,
I’d read. I’m always reading.” Mr. Earle did not sound like a man with a
limited education. At times in the
first half of the show I felt he was tapping in Tom Wait territory. His ability to write songs which kept tapping
at scars and exposing their pains which is what Mr. Earle has had a lot of pain in
his life, battled addictions, broken marriages, time in jail, the tortured
soul, his youngest son diagnosed with autism...rehab...the sound of his lone boot thumping in cadence echoed from hollow stage floor, an isolated performance from a dim stage. One song which resonated was his
take on God. God is God, “We can learn
to play the songs the angels play.” I
believe in God and God ain’t me…” The Devil’s Right Hand is an anti-gun song
although he denied it when it was first recorded, since he was raised with
guns. When an ex-wife told him that he
need to raise his rebellious son, Justin Townes Earle found a 9 mm which his
father kept under the mattress, but Justin denied finding it. Steve described getting him in the truck,
like tackling a deer and dragging him in, and took his son to a labor camp for
juveniles. After one day at the camp;
Justin called and told him where he could find the gun. There were other stories like playing and
recording with Pete Seeger and close the end of the show an obnoxious woman,
maybe she was drunk and frustrated, but she demanded he play a certain song, I
think it was Copperhead Road. He told
her he had a plan and, “Hold onto to your knickers.” She went back at him, the audience started
booing her and Earle went back to his songs and the show continued.
Steve
is passionate about his progressive causes and he was clear, he will always be passionate
and not give up the hope for peace and social justice in the world. He saw the change take place in Northern Ireland,
from when he first toured there and saw tanks in the roads to these days which
is a peaceful place without barbed wires the roving tanks. He hopes the same can take place in
Jerusalem. He described recording with
an Israeli musician which took place is a studio owned by a Palestinian, a Muslim engineers the controls in the
studio and he said as long as he can, he will always play his song Jerusalem.
