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.
Everyone's In Love With You
Steve Earle Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Everyone's in love with you
But you don't seem to mind
But it must be tough when you're cleanin' up
Them broken hearts sometimes
Or maybe you just struggle through
And leave 'em where they lie
But everyone's in love with you
Everyone's in love with you
They fall down at your feet
And impale themselves knowin' full well
You'll only watch 'em bleed
And they won't stop 'til the final drop
Cause they think it's what you need
And everyone's in love
In love with you
You want everyone to want you
But you don't want anyone to need you
Cause baby you don't need to
Everyone's in love with you
Or don't you think I know
The way they all light up when you show up
And you're baskin' in the glow
I'd like to say that I ain't that way
Like all your other fools
But everyone's in love with you
And I am, too
I am, too
In Steve Earle's song "Everyone's In Love With You," he sings about a person who is the object of everyone's affection. The lyrics suggest that this person may not care about their admirers' feelings and could be leaving a trail of broken hearts behind them. The singer imagines that it must be tough to deal with the aftermath of not reciprocating these feelings. While the person seems to bask in the glow of everyone's attention, the singer also acknowledges that they too are in love with this elusive object of desire.
Earle's lyrics examine the idea of wanting to be wanted, but not needing anyone. This person seems to crave attention and adoration, but when it comes to needing someone on a deeper level, they may not be interested. The imagery of people impaling themselves at the person's feet suggests that they are willing to go to extremes for the slightest bit of attention. The singer seems to be aware of this dynamic but acknowledges that they are also a willing participant in this one-sided love affair.
The song highlights the universal desire to be loved and desired while exploring the darker side of unrequited love. Earle's lyrics are an insightful examination of the complexities of human relationships and the often-complicated emotions that drive them.
Line by Line Meaning
Everyone's in love with You
All the people have an intense romantic attachment to you.
Everyone's in love with you
There's no one who doesn't cherish a profound feeling of love for you.
But you don't seem to mind
However, you don't appear to be bothered about it.
But it must be tough when you're cleanin' up them broken hearts sometimes
Still, it could be a challenging task when you need to fix the shatters of all those hearts that you've broken before.
Or maybe you just struggle through
And leave 'em where they lie
Or maybe you try hard to cope through, and leave those hearts lying right where they've fallen.
But everyone's in love with you
In love with you
But regardless of how you act or handle the situation, everyone keeps loving you.
They fall down at your feet
And impale themselves knowin' full well
You'll only watch 'em bleed
People submit to you, knowing full well that you'll only watch them suffer without offering any assistance.
And they won't stop 'til the final drop
Cause they think it's what you need
They continue to do that until the very end, thinking that it's exactly what you want from them.
You want everyone to want you
But you don't want anyone to need you
Cause baby you don't need to
You wish for people to desire you, but you don't want anyone to rely on you because you don't need it.
Or don't you think I know
The way they all light up when you show up
And you're baskin' in the glow
Don't you think I'm aware of the way they all become happy and delighted when you enter, and you revel in that attention.
I'd like to say that I ain't that way
Like all your other fools
I'd prefer to declare that I'm not like your other admirers or flatterers.
But everyone's in love with you
And I am, too
I am, too
Yet, even though, I'm just like everyone else, In love with you.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: STEVE EARLE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind