In 1974 at the age of 19 Steve Earle moved to Nashville, Tennessee, and began working blue-collar jobs during the day and playing music at night. During this period Earle wrote songs and played bass guitar in Guy Clark’s band and on Clark’s 1975 album Old No. 1. Earle appeared in the 1975 film Heartworn Highways, a documentary on the Nashville music scene which included David Allan Coe, Guy Clark, Townes van Zandt and Rodney Crowell. Earle lived in Nashville for several years and assumed the position of staff songwriter at the publishing company Sunbury Dunbar. Later Earle grew tired of Nashville and returned to Texas where he started a band called The Dukes.

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For the last seven years, The Mastersons have kept up a supremely inexorable touring schedule, performing as both the openers for Steve Earle and as members of his band, The Dukes, in addition to playing their own relentless slate of headline shows and festivals. It was Earle, in fact, who pushed the duo to record their acclaimed debut, Birds Fly South, in the first place.

“Before we hit the road with him in 2010, Steve said, ‘You’d better have a record ready because I’m going to feature you guys during the show,'” remembers fiddler/tenor guitarist/singer Eleanor Whitmore. “We didn’t even have a band name at the time. We were going through all these ideas and Steve suggested, ‘Why don’t you just be The Mastersons, and that was that.”

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Michael Paul Lawson will be opening up for Steve Earle & The Dukes.

Michael Paul Lawson was born into a deeply musical family, with generations of band leaders, classically trained academics, and brass band legends before him. His music has been described as “Visceral Americana, blending prose and raw realities into folk songs that recall the early work of Jason Isbell and John Prine” (Northern Transmissions), and “Poignant, emotive, and well-crafted” (The AU Review). Since 2016, Lawson has been building a reputation as one of the most prolific writers and performers in the area, and quickly began securing notable slots at the Norfolk Folk Festival and providing opening support for The Steel Wheels, and Sons of Bill. Lawson’s debut record, Some Fights You’ll Never Win, was recorded in Austin, Texas and produced by Daniel Mendez (Noah Gundersen, The Native Sibling). Some Fights You’ll Never Win will be released on July 12, 2019.

“Michael Paul Lawson is on our 2019 artist watch list and should be on yours as well.” - Nashville Music Guide