The Four Horsemen Tour

While promoters may have dubbed the tour featuring Guy Clark, Lyle Lovett, Joe Ely, and John Hiatt "The Four Horsemen Tour," a better name might have been "Three Texans and a Midwesterner." Or perhaps "The Founding Fathers Tour," as these four singer-songwriters should be considered among the founding fathersof the Americana movement. Each has the ability to produce country-tinged tales of angst and desperation with uncommon depth and acuity, but, stylistically, the comparison ends here. Clark's insightful folk ballads have made him the Bob Dylan of Texas, while country ballads and Texas waltzes dominate Lovett's repertoire. Former Flatlander Ely incorporates the most rock 'n' roll in his music, drawing on the roadhouse anthems and old-school rock of his native Lubbock. Hiatt is the odd man out in this group, with an Indiana upbringing and blues and pop influences in spades. Ironically, it is heartbreak and desolation — not murder and mayhem — that act as a unifying force for "the four horsemen."