Justin Townes Earle Midnight At The Movies CD

MIDNIGHT AT THE MOVIES being Justin Townes Earle's second album, it's still early enough in his career that it's hard to talk about him without mentioning his father, Steve Earle. But for the sake of the obligatory comparison, the younger Earle's second release makes the differences between him and his father all the more apparent. Justin's actually more of an Americana traditionalist; he offers a faithful rendition of folk song "They Killed John Henry," shows off his acoustic fingerpicking skills on "Dirty Rag," and generally hews close to a rootsy country/folk orientation, eschewing the stylistic experiments in which his father often engages. Even when J.T. covers the Replacements' "Can't Hardly Wait," he turns it into an earthy, mandolin-laden affair, asserting his continuing commitment to his roots in both Americana and rock & roll.

Recording information: House Of David.

Photographer: Joshua Black Wilkins.

Personnel: Justin Townes Earle (vocals, guitars, acoustic guitar); Cory Younts (whistling, banjo, mandolin, harmonica, piano); Pete Finney (steel guitar, dobro); Cory Younts (banjo, mandolin, whistle, harmonica, piano); Skylar Wilson (piano, organ, Wurlitzer organ, vibraphone); Steve Poulton (vibraphone); Bryn Davies (bass guitar); Bryan Owings (drums).

Audio Mixer: Richard McLaurin.

Rolling Stone (p.76) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "Bad-news love songs get slowed to morphine drips; the country-blues number about John Henry showcases Earle's hot fingerpicking."
Q (Magazine) (p.107) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "[A] mix of old-time country as if played through a Randy Newman filter lent to him by Will Oldham. Classic lived-in country."
Mojo (Publisher) (p.109) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "The sepia-toned, Opry retro remains and there's excellent 'now' Americana..."