Steve Earle & The Dukes’ New Tracks Are Tough But Tender

Membership ticker

Right now is no time to come up short.

It's time to fight like hell for a democracy where minority rule cannot impose an extreme and cruel agenda, where the Big Lie is called a Big Lie, where facts matter, and where accountability at the polls and in the press has a fighting chance. We have our work cut out for us, and we urgently need to raise about 400,000 by Thursday, June 30, to finish our fiscal year on track and give it everything we possibly can. Please help us get there with a donation if you can right now.

$1,150,000

$1,350,000

Right now is no time to come up short. It's time to fight like hell for a democracy where minority rule cannot impose an extreme and cruel agenda, where facts matter, and where accountability at the polls and in the press has a fighting chance. We have our work cut out for us, and we still need to raise upwards of 400,000 by June 30 to give it everything we can. Please help:

Steve Earle & The Dukes

So You Wannabe an Outlaw

Warner Bros.

Steve Earle’s music echoes so many timeless sources that it’s tempting to reduce him to shorthand descriptions—he could be Hank Williams fronting the Stones, or a cross between Merle Haggard and Bruce Springsteen. But mainly he sounds like himself on the rousing So You Wannabe an Outlaw, chugging through a two-fisted set of tough-but-tender songs about struggle, heartbreak and occasional hope. From the stomping title track, guest starring Willie Nelson, to the lilting “This Is How It Ends,” featuring Miranda Lambert, to the honky-tonk swing of “Walkin’ in LA,” these songs crackle with rowdy energy and rueful wit, providing the perfect backdrop for his scuffed-up, seen-it-all vocals. The only thing boring about Steve Earle is his consistency: He’s always terrific.