Earle was born in Fort Monroe, Virginia, and grew up near San Antonio, Texas. His father, Jack Earle, was an air traffic controller. Although he was born in Virginia where his father was stationed, the family returned to Texas before Earle's second birthday. They moved several times but Earle grew up primarily in the San Antonio area.
Earle began learning the guitar at the age of 11 and placed in a talent contest at his school at age 13. He is reported to have run away from home at age 14 to follow his idol, singer-songwriter Townes Van Zandt around Texas. Earle was "rebellious" as a youngster and dropped out of school at the age of 16. He moved to Houston with his 19-year-old uncle, who was also a musician, where he married and worked odd jobs. While in Houston Earle finally met Van Zandt, who became his hero and role model.
In 1975, at the age of 20, Earle moved to Nashville and began working as a songwriter. In these early days, he recorded with Guy Clark and Emmylou Harris. He finally scored a country hit in 1981, writing Johnny Lee's top ten cut "When You Fall in Love." Earle's early work as a performer tended towards the rockabilly sound, popular at the time. In 1986, his first proper album Guitar Town was a critical and commercial success. It sold over 300,000 copies and led some to herald him as a saviour of country music.
Earle long struggled with drug abuse. His addiction eventually caused a departure from performing and recording after he was dropped by MCA in 1991. Whilst in jail on drug and firearm charges, he kicked the habit and returned to music after his release in 1994.
Earle's "second, post-jail, musical career" has been more stylistically diverse than his early material, dipping in acoustic, bluegrass, and roots rock sounds. I Feel Alright and Transcendental Blues met with good reviews and decent sales. 2002's somewhat controversial Jerusalem was one of the first albums to directly address the September 11 attacks. It brought Earle's leftist views to media attention, especially the song "John Walker's Blues."
His latest album of original material I'll Never Get Out Of This World Alive was released in 2011. Songfacts reports that one of the tracks, This City, got played on HBO’s New Orleans based show Treme several months before the album‘s release. Earle, who plays a recurring street musician, composed the song especially for the drama series.
Earle has also released a tribute album of material written by friend and mentor Townes Van Zandt, entitled Townes.
For more information and photographs of Steve Earle go to his official website, www.SteveEarle.com.
Dixieland
Steve Earle Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And I come from County Clare
And the brits would hang me for a fenian
So I took me leave of there
And I crossed the ocean in the "Arrianne"
The vilest tub afloat
And the captain's brother was a railroad man and he met us at the boat
Like I said my friend I'm a fighting man
And we're marchin' south in the pouring rain
And we're all goin' down to dixieland
I am Kilrain of the 20th Maine
And we fight for Chamberlain
'Cause he stood right with us
When the johnnies came like a banshee on the wind
When the smoke cleared out of Gettysburg many a mother wept
For many a good boy died there, sure
And the air smelted just like death
[Chorus]
I am Kilrain of the 20th Maine
And I'd march to hell and back again
For colonel Joshua Chamberlain
We're all goin' down to dixieland
I am Kilrain of the 20th Maine
And I damn all gentlemen
Whose only worth is their father's name
And the sweat of a workin' man
Well we come from the farms
And the city streets and a hundred foreign lands
And we spilled our blood in the battle's heat
Now we're all Americans
[Chorus]
The above lyrics are from the song "Dixieland" by Steve Earle and the Del McCoury Band. The song is about Kilrain, a fighting man from County Clare, Ireland, who crossed the ocean on a vile ship to fight in the American Civil War. The British would have hanged him for being a Fenian, so he took his leave of there. Kilrain joined the 20th Maine regiment and fought under Colonel Joshua Chamberlain. The regiment is marching down to Dixieland, where they will fight the Confederacy.
The second verse of the song talks about how Kilrain and his fellow soldiers fought under Chamberlain during the Battle of Gettysburg. Many good boys died there, but they fought for Chamberlain. Kilrain also speaks about his disdain for gentlemen who only care about their father's name and not the sweat of a working man. He notes that the soldiers in the regiment come from farms, city streets, and various foreign lands, but they have all spilled their blood in battle and are now Americans.
Overall, the song "Dixieland" is a tribute to the bravery and sacrifice of the soldiers who fought in the Civil War. It highlights the diversity of the soldiers and their shared goal of fighting for their country, regardless of their background or upbringing.
Line by Line Meaning
I am Kilrain and I'm a fightin' man
I am Kilrain, a warrior by nature
And I come from County Clare
I hail from County Clare, Ireland
And the brits would hang me for a fenian
The British would punish me as a Fenian for my political beliefs
So I took me leave of there
Therefore, I had to leave
And I crossed the ocean in the 'Arrianne'
I crossed the ocean in a ship named 'Arrianne'
The vilest tub afloat
It was the worst-kept ship
And the captain's brother was a railroad man and he met us at the boat
The captain's brother, a railroad worker, greeted us at the landing
So I joined up with the 20th Maine
Then, I signed up for the 20th Maine regiment
Like I said my friend I'm a fighting man
As I mentioned earlier, I am a born warrior
And we're marchin' south in the pouring rain
We are heading south in heavy rain
And we're all goin' down to dixieland
We are marching to the South
I am Kilrain of the 20th Maine
I am Kilrain, a member of the 20th Maine regiment
And we fight for Chamberlain
We fight under the leadership of Chamberlain
'Cause he stood right with us
Because he fought on the front lines with us
When the johnnies came like a banshee on the wind
During the time the Confederate army attacked us like a ghostly scream
When the smoke cleared out of Gettysburg many a mother wept
After the Battle of Gettysburg, many mothers mourned their lost sons
For many a good boy died there, sure
A lot of innocent boys lost their lives in the war
And the air smelted just like death
The atmosphere was filled with the stench of death
I am Kilrain of the 20th Maine
Again, I am Kilrain, a member of the 20th Maine
And I'd march to hell and back again
I'm willing to travel to the depths of hell and back
For colonel Joshua Chamberlain
All for the sake of Colonel Joshua Chamberlain
We're all goin' down to dixieland
We're marching to the South
I am Kilrain of the 20th Maine
Once again, I am Kilrain, a member of the 20th Maine
And I damn all gentlemen
I curse all aristocrats
Whose only worth is their father's name
Whose value is solely traced to their family name
And the sweat of a workin' man
The hard work of the laborers
Well we come from the farms
We originate from agriculture lands
And the city streets and a hundred foreign lands
And the urban areas and different countries
And we spilled our blood in the battle's heat
We fought and shed blood in the heat of the war
Now we're all Americans
But now we are all comrades in the new land of America
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: STEVE EARLE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind