I had thought the Steve

I had thought the Steve Earle controversy had come and gone quickly–mostly because hardly anyone has heard of him–but this morning the Wall Street Journal has another article on the subject. I have nothing particular to say about the controversy, but it does have a slight personal angle since I would know nothing at all about Earle had the Trunk, whose knowledge of popular music is much broader than mine, not taken me to a concert of his a year or two ago. Having heard Earle in person, I can say that his chief obstacle to broader public acceptance is not his heroin addiction, his incarceration or any politically stupid songs he may write. The biggest obstacle is that–sorry, Trunk–he can’t sing. I will say in the Trunk’s defense that he also introduced me to Lyle Lovett and Alison Krauss early in their careers. Two out of three ain’t bad.