"Guitar Town" is a song written and recorded by American singer-songwriter Steve Earle. It was released in June 1986 as the second single and title track from the album Guitar Town. The song reached number 7 on both the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart and the Canadian RPM Country Tracks chart. It was Earle's highest-peaking song to date on the country charts in both the U.S. and Canada. The album version mentions a "Jap guitar", which the radio edit changes to "cheap guitar".
Critical reception
Kip Kirby, of Billboard magazine reviewed the song favorably, saying that Earle "revives the tremolo-laden guitar sound of the early '60s for this song about music and love on the road."
In 2024, Rolling Stone ranked the song at #146 on its 200 Greatest Country Songs of All Time ranking.
Music video
The music video was directed by Gerry Wenner and premiered in mid-1986.
Chart performance
References
