A certain duke and duchess are hogging the limelight here at the minute. But while William may hope one day to be monarch, Steve Earle, with his loyal Dukes and Duchess in tow, has long been the king of his domain.
He may not have quite the same zip of old but the hardcore troubadour is still a formidable performer. At the Enmore on Thursday night he ran the gamut of country music – from truckstop stomp to story ballads, and from bluegrass to swing.
No one channels the traditions of Americana with such authority and virtuosity. Opening with the title track of his most recent album, The Low Highway, he's on a Woody Guthrie-style journey across the “wild rivers and lonesome plains” to find the Americans left behind by recession. Next up he's rocking with Calico County, joking that he hoped Nashville hat act Toby Keith might cover it and make him a fortune so he could stop working.
But luckily for us he's got to keep going. Earle has a restless spirit and it's difficult to imagine him ever packing it in. His ability to convey great emotional range means his songs have catalogued his loves and bad habits in brutal detail, no more so than when he announces that his seventh marriage is over and launches into I Thought You Should Know. “If you're thinkin' 'bout breakin' my heart, you might as well just pick up your little black dress and go,” he sings.
Emphasising his versatility, he showcases a couple of the songs written for the TV show Treme, which is set in New Orleans. Cue a quick change into that swingy sound and he gets into character by leading Pocket Full of Rain from the piano.
He eulogises the band as he goes along and it's easy to see why he's so pleased to have them on the trip. The Duchess, aka Eleanor Whitmore, switches easily from fiddle to vocals on the lovely duet, I'm Still in Love With You, while Chris Masterson provides great guitar licks throughout.
After what seemed like a lot of solo tours, it's great to hear him with a full band and they hit their stride with a string of classics from the 80s songbook – Hillbilly Highway, Someday and Guitar Town. The crowd do their part too, suddenly becoming more vocal and taking to their feet to dance.
The air crackles with anticipation when the keyboard intro to Copperhead Road drifts out over the crowd and the famous tale of soldier-turned-drug runner is spun to great delight. What is it about Australia and songs about Vietnam vets?
The mandolin – Australia makes the best in the world, he says – stays out for a few more tracks, including for a memorable Galway Girl where he combines beautifully again with Whitmore's fiddle.
Kasey Chambers, who earlier gave an entertaining opening set featuring some songs from her first new album for a few years, is enlisted for an encore, taking the female vocal on You're Still Standing There. Her forthcoming shows promise to be a pick-me-up after the king has gone.
