TORONTO -- Early in his sold-out show last night at Convocation Hall, singer-songwriter Steve Earle brought up ZZ Top -- another Texas act.

 The reference was to Earle's first road trip when he was 16-years-old to see the band in Houston.

 But judging from the volume of Earle's recently recruited touring guitarist, Eric "Roscoe" Ambel, he wasn't the only one thinking about loud rock and roll.

 Unfortunately, what should have been an intimate concert with one of today's top country-rock troubadours, turned into a struggle to hear the vocals and other instruments on many of his songs.

 Given last night's performance was being filmed for an upcoming TV special in the U.S. through Music Choice, which will syndicate the program to about 25 million households (negotiations are underway to air the show in Canada), it was all the more unfortunate.

 Speaking of which, the presence of cameras, along with the turned-up lights, seemed to restrain the normally chatty Earle.

 Sometimes it seemed as if he just wanted to get through each song as quickly as possible in order get off the stage.

 The exception was his long tirade against the death penalty in the U.S., which was loudly applauded.

 Otherwise, Earle got a bit cranky when one audience member shouted out a request for Ellis Unit One, written for the Dead Man Walking soundtrack.

 "I appreciate that," responded Earle. "But this is my job and I know how the show goes -- trust me."

 Earle and the Dukes, rounded out by Kelley Looney on bass and Will Rigby on drums, kicked off the two-hour show with the first three songs off Transcendental Blues, his latest, mostly excellent, album.

 But they didn't really hit their early stride until Taneytown, off 1997's El Corazon, one of my two favourite Earle albums. (The other is 1996's I Feel Alright).

 Otherwise, given the sound mix problems, it was many of Earle's pretty acoustic ballads that came off best last night -- My Old Friend The Blues, Lonelier Than This, Goodbye and Over Yonder (Jonathan's Song).

 Still, people got up and danced in the aisles to many songs including the new Celtic tune, The Galway Girl, which included Earle's manager of the whistle.

 Of the upbeat material, I enjoyed Hard-Core Troubadour, Telephone Road (along with a group of fans who carried a banner that said, 'Trenton, Ont., Telephone Road'), I Don't Wanna Lose You Yet, Wherever I Go and Copperhead Road.

Set List

Transcendental Blues

 Everyone's In Love With You

 Another Town

 Taneytown

 Hard-Core Troubadour

 My Old Friend The Blues

 Someday

 Telephone Road

 More Than I Can Do

 I Can Wait

 The Boy Who Never Cried

 Steve's Last Ramble

 Lonelier Than This

 I Don't Wanna Lose You Yet

 Wherever I Go

 Fearless Heart

 Devil's Right Hand

 Satisfied

 Goodbye

 Halo Around The Moon

 Billy And Bonnie

 The Galway Girl

 Copperhead Road

 Over Yonder (Jonathan's Song)

 All Of My Life

 N.Y.C.

 Unrepentant

JAM! Rating: 3.5 out of 5