Steve Earle is a model of durability and creativity. This is Earle's 15th album and he retains the same infectious enthusiasm for his beloved Americana as he does for trying to say and do the right thing. Having bathed in the acclaim that greeted his recent literary efforts, he returns renewed to the day job with a bunch of songs that seep into your affections and inspire serious toe-tapping. The Low Highway is not shot through with innovation; we've heard songs like the fiddle-drenched Invisible and the gritty rocker Calico County before and equally we know that he and his band can flex considerable musical muscle. But this is no weary rehash of past glories. The "21st Century Blues" have driven him back to the barricades for more visceral personal reflection and jaundiced observation of the American condition. Steveearle.com
Download: 21st Century Blues, Calico County,The Low Highway