Exit 0

by Steve Earle & the Dukes, Steve Earle

Overview

Steve Earle once told a reporter that after listening to the final mix of 1987's Exit 0, he and his band hopped on their tour bus and played yet another gig that night, which is what they'd been doing during most of their time off from recording sessions. Exit 0 was recorded with Earle's road band, the Dukes, instead of the usual team of Nashville session pros, and as a consequence it boasts a leaner, tougher sound than his debut, Guitar Town, though the slightly slick cookie-cutter production by Tony Brown, Emory Gordy, Jr., and Richard Bennett saps a bit of the music's power. The album features a few great songs, including "I Ain't Never Satisfied" (which could practically be Earle's theme song), "The Week of Living Dangerously," "The Rain Came Down," and "Sweet Little '66," but there's a faint hint of sophomore slump to Exit 0 -- "No. 29" is far too sentimental for its own good, the Doug Sahm homage "San Antonio Girl" isn't nearly as good as the songs that clearly inspired it, and "Angry Young Man" feels like filler, something in short supply on most Steve Earle albums. Exit 0 is just uneven enough to qualify as a genuine disappointment, though that's within the context of Earle's body of work; this is still livelier stuff than nearly anyone in Nashville was cranking out at the time (short of Dwight Yoakam) and the high points confirm the guy who wrote "Guitar Town" had more fine tunes where that came from. ~ Mark Deming

Product Details

Release Date:	10/25/1990
Label:	Geffen / Island / Mca / Universal
UPC:	0076732599822

Tracks

1. Nowhere Road
2. Sweet Little '66
3. No. 29
4. Angry Young Man
5. San Antonio Girl
6. The Rain Came Down
7. I Ain't Ever Satisfied
8. The Week of Living Dangerously
9. I Love You Too Much
10. It's All Up to You

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Steve Earle & the Dukes   Primary Artist
Steve Earle   Primary Artist,Harmonica,Lead Vocals,Guitar (Electric),Guitar,Vocals
Ken Moore   Organ,Vocals,Keyboards,Synthesizer,Vocals (Background)
John Jarvis   Piano
Emory Gordy Jr.   Mandolin
Richard Bennett   Guitar,6-String Bass,Guitar (Electric)
Bucky Baxter   Vocals,Guitar (Steel),Vocals (Background)
Harry Stinson   Drums,Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Mike McAdam   Vocals (Background),Guitar,Vocals,Guitar (Electric),Guitar (12 String)
Reno Kling   Bass
K-Meaux Boudin   Accordion

Technical Credits

Steve Earle   Composer
Steve Earle & the Dukes   Composer,Performer
Andy Byrd   Pre-Production
Chuck Ainlay   Mixing,Engineer,Mastering
Emory Gordy Jr.   Producer
John Porter McMeans   Composer
Richard Bennett   Producer
James Van Heusen   Composer
Milan Bogdan   Digital Editing
Michael Woody   Composer
Tim Kish   Assistant Engineer
Stevie Wonder   Composer
Glenn Meadows   Mastering
Harry Stinson   Composer
Russ Martin   Overdubs,Assistant Engineer
Simon Levy   Art Direction
Katie Gillon   Coordination
Ron Keith   Photography
Mark J. Coddington   Assistant Engineer
Reno Kling   Composer
Jessie Noble   Coordination
Tony Brown   Producer
Scott Bonner   Photography
Jim DeVault   Photography
Sherri Halford   Coordination
Mickey Braithwaite   Design
John Porter McMears   Composer