Townes (album)

For other uses, see Townes (disambiguation).

Townes
Studio album by Steve Earle
Released	May 12, 2009
Genre	Folk [1]
Length	54:05
Label	New West
Producer	Steve Earle
Steve Earle chronology
Washington Square Serenade (2007) Townes (2009) I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive (2011)

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	82/100 [2]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
The Austin Chronicle	[3]
The A.V. Club	B+ [4]
Entertainment Weekly	A [5]
Mojo	[6]
PopMatters	9/10 [7]
Q	[8]
Rolling Stone	[9]
Spin	[10]
Uncut	[11]

Townes is the 13th studio album by American singer-songwriter Steve Earle, released in 2009. It is an album on which he pays tribute to his friend and mentor, the late singer-songwriter Townes Van Zandt by covering his songs. ^[12] According to a New West Records press release, "The songs selected for Townes were the ones that meant the most to Earle and the ones he personally connected to (not including selections featured on previous Earle albums). Some of the selections chosen were songs that Earle has played his entire career ("Pancho & Lefty", "Lungs" and "White Freightliner Blues") and others he had to learn specifically for recording. ^[13]

Notable guest appearances on the album include Tom Morello (of Rage Against the Machine/Audioslave/Street Sweeper Social Club) playing electric guitar on "Lungs", and Earle's wife Allison Moorer singing backing vocals on "Loretta" and "To Live Is to Fly". Earle and his son, Justin Townes Earle trade verses on "Mr. Mudd & Mr. Gold". ^[13] He is backed by The Bluegrass Dukes on "White Freightliner Blues" and "Delta Momma Blues".

This album won Best Contemporary Folk Album at the 52nd Grammy Awards. ^[14]

A two disc CD version included a subset of the songs performed solo by Earle. This bonus set was also released on vinyl for Record Store Day. ^[15]

Track listing

Disc One: Townes

All tracks are written by Townes Van Zandt (except where noted)

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Pancho & Lefty"		4:02
2.	"White Freightliner Blues"		3:28
3.	"Colorado Girl"		3:35
4.	"Where I Lead Me"		3:30
5.	"Lungs"		2:19
6.	"No Place To Fall"		2:53
7.	"Loretta"		3:14
8.	"Brand New Companion"		5:12
9.	"Rake"		3:23
10.	"Delta Momma Blues"	Van Zandt, Matthew Moore, Caddo Parish Studdard	5:14
11.	"Marie"		4:53
12.	"Don't Take It Too Bad"		3:12
13.	"Mr. Mudd & Mr. Gold"		2:18
14.	"(Quicksilver Daydreams of) Maria"		3:20
15.	"To Live Is To Fly"		3:40

Disc Two: The Basics

(included in 2-CD version)

All tracks are written by Townes Van Zandt

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Pancho And Lefty"	4:02
2.	"Where I Lead Me"	3:37
3.	"Lungs"	2:22
4.	"No Place To Fall"	2:56
5.	"Loretta"	3:14
6.	"Brand New Companion"	5:12
7.	"Rake"	3:22
8.	"Marie"	4:49
9.	"Mr. Mudd And Mr. Gold"	2:34
10.	"(Quicksilver Daydreams Of) Maria"	3:15
11.	"To Live Is To Fly"	3:36

Personnel

• Steve Christensen - percussion, audio engineer
• Shad Cobb - fiddle
• Dennis Crouch - bass
• Justin Townes Earle - guitar, vocals
• Allison Moorer - vocals
• Tom Morello - electric guitar
• Greg Morrow - drums
• Tim O'Brien - mandolin
• Darrell Scott - banjo, resonator guitar
• John Spiker - electric bass
• Steve Earle - vocals, guitar, mandola, harmonica, harmonium

Chart performance

Chart (2009)	Peak position
U.S. Billboard Top Country Albums	6
U.S. Billboard 200	19
U.S. Billboard Top Independent Albums	2

References

1. AllMusic review
2. "Townes by Steve Earle" . Retrieved 1 October 2016.
3. Freeman, Doug (May 15, 2009). "Steve Earle - Townes". The Austin Chronicle . Retrieved May 10, 2025.
4. Murray, Noel (May 12, 2009). "Steve Earle: Townes". The A.V. Club . Retrieved May 10, 2025.
5. Kot, Greg (May 6, 2009). "Townes". Entertainment Weekly . Retrieved May 10, 2025.
6. The overall effect is more inline with how Townes made his early albums. [Jun 2009, p.96]
7. Harsin, Jayson (10 May 2009). "Steve Earle: Townes". PopMatters . Retrieved 10 May 2025.
8. Earle believes this is one of his best albums; he's not wrong. [Jun 2009, p.132]
9. Hermes, Will (May 12, 2009). "Steve Earle - Townes". Rolling Stone . Retrieved May 10, 2025.
10. Young, Jon (April 16, 2009). "Steve Earle, 'Townes' (New West)". Spin . Retrieved May 10, 2025.
11. Hughes, Rob (May 19, 2011). "ALBUM REVIEW: STEVE EARLE - TOWNES". Uncut . Retrieved May 10, 2025.
12. "Freeing a Mentor From His Mythology". The New York Times. 10 May 2009. Retrieved 1 October 2016.
13. Blackstock, Peter, "Details on Steve Earle's album of Townes Van Zandt covers", NoDepression.com, March 9, 2009
14. Steve Earle, Encyclopædia Britannica
15. "Record Store Day 2014 > Steve Earle - Townes: The Basics". Record Store Day. Retrieved July 5, 2017.