Steve Earle & The Dukes: Ghosts of West Virginia | Country. de

Current images from the USA show it more and more clearly: America is divided, it threatens to fall apart. The president of the United States is not concerned with protecting the health of his population, but sees the coronavirus pandemic exclusively from the point of view of “re-election” and “the economy must return to making profits”. As her Heartland supporters protest militantly anti-infection regulations, the poor and people of color are disproportionately dying. A disaster for the once most powerful country in the world.

Self Steve Earl his new album West Virginia Gosts processed and recorded, the Corona catastrophe was not yet to think about. But the division was there. Steve Earle, leftist country singer-songwriter, didn’t want to accept that the miners, who played such a large part in the history of progressive America through hard-working struggles like the “Harlan County War” in Kentucky in the 1930s, were now in the fields opposing politicians.

West Virginia, like Kentucky, is one of the coal districts of the United States. Once vital to the US economic system, the industry is now a dying industry. The result: Unemployment and lack of prospects prevail where proud miners lived in relative social security after successful labor disputes. And while Trump is a representative of the ruling business elite, most of the region’s residents are his constituents and hope for his “America First” policies.

That’s where Earle started. He didn’t want to insult these Trump voters as racist or right-wing, but rather take their concerns seriously: the miners’ dwindling pride, unemployment, worries about “being worthless,” poverty and lack of prospects. . Mining company practices: Poor safety standards in mines and anti-union behavior when miners try to represent their interests, which they often avoid for fear of unemployment.

The socialist count is concerned about entering into dialogue with these people. So he took up a topic that has stuck in the minds of people in West Virginia: the “Upper Big Branch disaster” of April 5, 2010, one of the largest mining accidents in US history, in which 29 miners lost their life. He wrote some of the songs for the “Coal Country” stage show, as well as other pieces about the people and the region as well as the traditional John Henry.

In Union, God And Country, he takes on the challenging task of embracing these people’s perspectives, and while he doesn’t share their political views, he still treats them with respect. With lively bluegrass folk he succeeds credibly and honestly. “Devil Put The Coal In The Ground” is a dark lament about the harsh working conditions in the mine. Of course, “John Henry”, the ancient folk song about the struggle between man and machine, fits very well into the context of the content. Other highlights from the album are “It’s About Blood”, “Black Lung” and “The Mine”, all of which ruthlessly depict the realities of life in the mining area.

Seldom since Merle Travis’ groundbreaking album ‘Folksongs Of The Hills’ has the life of the miners been depicted so vividly and musically compelling by a country musician. Again it is supported on the long player by his “Dukes”. In particular, Eleanor Whitmore’s crystalline vocals on “Heaven Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere” or “If I Could See Your Face Again” set the appropriate melancholic mood.

Conclusion: Even if commercial laurels cannot be expected from this album and in view of the Corona crisis it will not receive the attention it deserves, it underlines Steve Earle’s outstanding position as a socially empathetic and committed country songwriter who always combines his concerns with loud music.

Steve Earle & The Dukes – Ghosts of West Virginia: The Album

title: Ghosts of West Virginia
Artist: Steve Earle and the Dukes
release date: May 22, 2020
Label: New West Records (Rough Trade)
Format: CD, vinyl and digital
Duration: 29:46 mins
Tracks: 10
Genre: american

Tracklists: (The Ghosts of West Virginia)

01. Heaven is going nowhere
02. Union, God and Fatherland
03. The devil put coal in the ground
04. John Henry was a man who drove steel
05. Time is never on our side
06. It’s all about blood
07. If I Could See Your Face Again – feat. Eleanor Whitmore
08. Black lung
09. The fastest man alive
10. The mine