Justin Townes Earle's new album looks back on being 'Kids In The Street'
by Bill DeVille and Simone Cazares
May 28, 2017
In his new album, Kids In The Street, Justin Townes Earle looks back on his childhood growing up in Nashville, Tenn. — with light-hearted moments in songs like "Champagne Corolla," inspired by a teacher's pink car, and "Maybe A Moment," where he tells the tale of a time he tried to convince a girl to come with him on a joyride to Memphis. The album also focuses on some not-so-happy events in his life, like the gentrification that tore his childhood neighborhood apart.
"They like to call it Twelve South now, but it was called Sevier Park-Sunnyside Neighborhood when I was a kid," he said. "It was a very racially mixed neighborhood, it was a very poor neighborhood, and now it's million-dollar homes and nothing but lily-white children running around on those damn streets and it don't look right. It ain't the neighborhood I grew up in."
Even though Earle now lives in Portland, growing up with the sound of the blues influenced his own musical style. "You know what kind of player you are when you pick up a guitar and you start playing. Like what do you automatically go to?"
Even though his hometown was a big influence on his music, Earle isn't planning on moving back to Nashville anytime soon.
"Nashville did away with my home," he said. "Nashville definitely took a turn where it hasn't anywhere else, where they don't want to just get the people out of the building and gut the building, they wanna rip that building completely down no matter how old, how historic it is, who lived in it, whatever... It's definitely not my home anymore, other than the fact that my mom's there."
Use the audio player below to listen to Justin Townes Earle's full session with Bill DeVille and hear three songs from his new album, Kids in the Street.
Songs Performed
"Champagne Corolla"
"Gold Watch and Chain"
"Maybe A Moment"
Hosted by Bill DeVille
Produced by Lindsay Kimball
Engineered by Michael DeMark and Matt Lentz
Visuals by Nate Ryan
Web feature by Simone Cazares
Resources
Justin Townes Earle - official site
