Goodbye Guitar Town - Steve Earle at Town Hall in New York City

Steve Earle began his concert at New York's legendary Town Hall paying homage to one of the venue's most famous denizens, Bob Dylan. Calling himself a "recovering folkie," Earle demonstrated his distinctive finger-picking style while noting he was once a neighbor (in Mexico, no less) of Eric Von Schmidt, the man responsible for teaching Dylan "Baby Let Me Follow You Down."

Earle admitted he learned the tune from Dylan. It was an acknowledged nod to the one-time bard of Greenwich Village, but another, more tenuous link could be heard mid-way through Earle's set. While no one yelled "Judas," many fans (or at least casual ones) were heard heading toward the exits, or snickering, as Earle began picking the melody to "Tennessee Blues," from the just-released Washington Square Serenade, to a loop provided by an on-stage DJ. It was the first of a mini-set that found Earle interpreting songs from his new album with the help of pre-recorded loops, the harmony vocals of his wife, singer-songwriter Alison Moorer, or alone with his guitar. It proved that, true to his reputation, Earle can never be counted on to repeat himself. While layering beat- and folk-inspired paeans to New York City and marriage over trip-hop-inspired rhythms is not exactly going electric at Newport, many in the crowd seemed dismayed enough to skip out before a rousing encore that included a stirring take on "Rich Man's War" and an inspiring sing-a-long version of "Christmas in Washington."