WHENEVER Justin Townes Earle graced the stage of his Lambton theatre, Brian Lizotte always noted the high number of fellow musicians in the audience.
Musos know a talented songwriter when they hear one.
"How many musicians came to his show was the biggest thing, I would probably say," Lizotte says.
"You'd have people like Shane Nicholson and lots of different musicians would always be in the crowd. He was a musician's musician."
Earle performed at Lizotte's four times over the past decade, regaling fans with his most famous cuts like Harlem River Blues, Mama's Eyes and Can't Hardly Wait.
The Nashville artist's most recent visit was September last year on his The Saint Of Lost Causes tour, where he bizarrely performed half the set shirtless.
Last week Earle, who was the son of country-rock legend Steve Earle, died from a "probable drug overdose" according to the Metro Nashville Police Department. He was 38.
Earle had battled addiction from the age of 12 and Lizotte says he saw a noticeable change in the Americana troubadour on his last visit to Newcastle.
"The last time he came back I reckon he was probably dabbling again," he says. "The time before [2015], he was definitely trying to get back on the straight and narrow."
Over the years Lizotte had the opportunity to get to know Earle and describes him as an "eccentric" personality."You'd have wacko conversations with him," he says. "He'd take you on a journey somewhere.
"Sometimes you'd go, 'Wow, I wasn't expecting to discuss that'. He was quite unusual and hard to get started, but once you did he'd take you on bit of a journey.
"It was always interesting and it was never a dull moment backstage with him."
