Steve Earle (born Stephen Fain Earle on January 17, 1955 in San Antonio, Te… Read Full Bio ↴Steve Earle (born Stephen Fain Earle on January 17, 1955 in San Antonio, Texas) is a singer-songwriter best known for his country music and rock 'n roll tinged "alt-country." He is also a published writer, a keen political activist (particularly in protesting against the death penalty in the U.S., as in his song "Ellis Unit One" from the movie Dead Man Walking), and has written and directed a play. Earle also had small roles on the HBO television shows "The Wire" and "Treme". His sister Stacey Earle is also an acclaimed singer-songwriter, as is his most recent wife, Allison Moorer, whom he wed in 2005. His first son from an earlier marriage is the singer-songwriter Justin Townes Earle, named for Earle's hero Townes Van Zandt.

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.

I Still Carry You Around
Steve Earle Lyrics

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Sweetheart last night I dreamed of you
You loved me like you used to do
Mornin' come and I woke up and found
I still carry you around

I still carry you around
Everywhere I travel now
No matter how I try to put you down

I still carry you around

I still just can't believe you're gone
Your memory haunts me from now on
I walk the streets of this old lonely town
I still carry you around

I still carry you around
Everywhere I travel now
No matter how I try to put you down
I still carry you around

You're with me everywhere I go
In my heart and in my soul
Down every road, no matter where I'm bound
I still carry you around

I still carry you around
Everywhere I travel now

No matter how I try to put you down
I still carry you around

Overall Meaning

The song "I'll Still Carry You" by Steve Earle and the Del McCoury Band is a heartfelt ballad about a man who can't let go of his lost love. The lyrics begin with the singer dreaming of his beloved, and when he wakes up, he still feels her presence and carries her memory with him wherever he goes. The chorus reinforces this sentiment, claiming that regardless of how hard he tries to put her out of his mind, he just can't shake her off. The second verse continues this imagery, with the man walking the streets of his lonely town, still haunted by his memories of her.

The song's title embodies the theme of the song, as the man declares that he will "still carry" his lost love with him into the future, implying that he will never forget her and that she will always be a part of him. The emotional toll of losing someone who was once deeply cherished is captured expertly in the lyrics, with the singer acknowledging that his memory of his loved one "haunts" him.

The song's poignant lyrics are backed up by a traditional bluegrass sound, with mandolins, banjos and fiddles providing a mournful and contemplative musical backdrop. The combination of Earle's rough-hewn vocals and the McCoury Band's expert instrumentation creates a moving musical experience that is sure to resonate with anyone who has ever loved and lost.

Line by Line Meaning

Sweetheart last night I dreamed of you
Last night I had a dream about you, my dear

You loved me like you used to do
In the dream, you loved me the way you used to

Mornin' come and I woke up and found
But when morning came and I woke up, I realized

I still carry you around
That I still carry you around with me

I still carry you around
Everywhere I travel now

No matter how I try to put you down
Even when I try to forget about you