Classic Rewind: Dwight Yoakam – ‘Window Shopping’

A rare cover of one of Hank Williams’ lesser-known songs:

Album Review: Dwight Yoakam – ‘Blame The Vain’

Dwight’s last album of original material to date was this 2005 release on independent label New West, recorded in California. He dispensed with the services of longtime producer Pete Anderson, taking the reins himself, while Keith Gattis (a former RCA recording artist himself) takes Anderson’s role as lead guitarist. The end result is not that different from Dwight’s earlier work, although it is not as traditional as his first few albums. He wrote every song. He sounds energized and committed throughout, despite the overwhelming downbeat nature of the lyrics, with not a happy song in the selection. Mainly they concentrate on the aftermath of failed relationships, with an overarching theme of trying to conceal pain.

The up-tempo ‘Intentional Heartache’ is a story song with a muscular beat about a woman driving away from her cheating man after an assault on his Chevrolet. This is more than a little reminiscent of the following year’s Carrie Underwood hit ‘Before He Cheats’. Interestingly, in both songs the action is moved by the woman’s emotional pain, but the revenge she takes (and sees as having more impact than her heartbreak) is on the man’s possessions, particularly his car. It ends with a spoken outro with Dwight voicing the husband over a thrashing backing, which feels unnecessary. It was a fairly unsuccessful single for Dwight, as was the title track, a rather ironic exploration of the practice of blaming others for one’s problems:

Til there’s nobody left
Then I’ll just blame me…

Blame is always never enough
It just keeps you in the game
Until you’ve only got yourself to bluff

This is a strong and memorable song, but independent labels rarely have the resources to support singles at radio, and like its predecessor it faltered outside the top 50.

The wistful desire to relive the beginnings of a love affair which is coming to an end is expounded in the mid-tempo ‘I Wanna Love Again’, which was the final single. This too is better than its failure to chart would suggest. On a similar theme, ‘When I First Came Here’ initially seems to strikes a rare positive note with its tribute to love, but even this song has a depressing undertow, as it is yet another relationship to have failed leaving the protagonist to face “endless moments alone”.

My favorite track is the slow and lonesome ‘Lucky That Way’, a steel-led number with a faintly familiar tune and perfectly judged phrasing. The title belies the despairing tone of the lyrics as Dwight clings to a new woman while imagining the relationship’s inevitable demise:

Have you ever heard a voice start to moanin’
After despair’s choked its last words away?
Well, any worse sound defies your ears even knowing’
And Lord I’ve heard plenty –
I’m lucky that way

So wrap your warm arms around me
And let our weak hands deal out love’s sad fate

Also excellent is ‘Does It Show’, a restrained yet intense picture of a man trying to hide his heartbreak and continuing love for the woman who has left “love’s biggest clown”, with effective close harmony from Jonathan Clark. The protagonist is equally determined not to admit to pain in the mid-tempo ‘I’ll Pretend’, but the vocal is so agonized perhaps what he is really pretending to himself is that he is even capable of pretending he doesn’t care. In the lowkey and pretty-sounding ‘Just Passin’ Time’ (another highlight), he is beyond pretending, and forlornly wanders the streets and his empty house.

Classic Rewind: George Morgan – ‘Room Full Of Roses’

Week ending 1/29/11: #1 singles this week in country music history

1951: The Shotgun Boogie — Tennessee Ernie Ford (Capitol)

1961: North To Alaska — Johnny Horton (Columbia)

1971: Flesh and Blood — Johnny Cash (Columbia)

1981: 9 to 5 — Dolly Parton (RCA)

1991: Forever’s As Far As I’ll Go — Alabama (RCA)

2001: Without You — Dixie Chicks (Monument)

2011: Somewhere With You — Kenny Chesney (BNA)

Week ending 1/29/11: #1 albums this week in country music history

1966: Eddy Arnold – My World (RCA Victor)

1971: Ray Price – For The Good Times (Columbia)

1976: C.W. McCall – Black Bear Road (MGM)

1981: Kenny Rogers – Greatest Hits (Liberty)

1986: Kenny Rogers – The Heart Of The Matter (RCA)

1991: Clint Black – Put Yourself In My Shoes (RCA)

1996: Shania Twain – The Woman In Me (Mercury)

2001: Tim McGraw – Greatest Hits (Curb)

2006: Carrie Underwood – Some Hearts (Arista)

2011:Taylor Swift – Speak Now (Big Machine)

Classic Rewind: Dwight Yoakam ft Ralph Stanley – ‘I’ll Be Gone’

Classic Rewind: Johnny Cash – ‘Old Shep’

Album Review: Dwight Yoakam – ‘Population Me’

The end of the major-label phase of an artist’s career is often characterized by a change in musical direction, as the artist is often freed from the restraints imposed by commercial considerations and allowed to experiment a bit more. Dwight Yoakam is one of those rare artists who was not only allowed to experiment while on a major label, but also managed to be successful in the process. As such, his indie debut is not the radical departure from his earlier work, as one might inspect. On the contrary, Population Me is vintage Yoakam and an almost seamless progression from his earlier work at Reprise.

Released in 2003 on the Audium label, Population Me, like all of Dwight’s earlier work, was produced by Pete Anderson. The album’s two singles, both of which peaked at #52 and were written by outside songwriters, open and close the album. Sandwiched in between are seven original Yoakam compositions and an interesting, banjo-infused cover of the 1960s pop hit “Trains and Boats and Planes”, which was written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David.

First up is “The Late Great Golden State”, an uptempo number with decidedly downbeat lyrics that perhaps prophesize the financial problems California is currently experiencing, though the lyrics themselves never specify why it is referred to as the “late” great Golden State. It deserved to chart higher than it did, and probably would have had it been released a few years earlier when Dwight still had a major label to promote him, and before radio lost interest in his music. Next up is the more traditional “No Such Thing”, a honky-tonker which would have sounded right at home on any of Yoakam’s 80s albums.

“Fair To Midland” borrows its title from the name of a progressive metal band. The mostly acoustic ballad is a reflective play on words about a man who regrets leaving his love behind, and wishes he had the “fare” to Midland to return to her. “An Exception To The Rule” is very much in the same vein as “Things Change” from 1998′s A Long Way Home, so much so that I suspect that it may have been written around the same time. Following “Fair To Midland” is the Dixieland jazz–infused title track, an excellent number in which Dwight is coming to terms with the bleakness, loneliness and bitterness that accompany a breakup. “If Teardrops Were Diamonds” is another standout track that finds Yoakam joining the long, long list of performers to have recorded a duet with Willie Nelson.

Population Me is excellent throughout, but Dwight saved the best for last. The closing track, “The Back Of Your Hand”, which was released as the album’s second and final single is a beautiful folk-flavored ballad. The mostly acoustic arrangement includes a tasteful string section. Written by Gregg Lee Henry, it is one of the best recordings of Dwight’s career.

There is not a weak song to be found in this collection; the album’s only fault is that it is too short, clocking in at about 32 minutes, which definitely leaves the listener wanting more. There are no big hits to be found on Popluation Me, but it’s definitely worth adding to your collection.

Grade: A

It’s no longer widely available, but it can be purchased through third-party sellers at Amazon. New copies are expensive, but used copies are reasonably priced.

Classic Rewind: Dwight Yoakam – ‘Ain’t That Lonely Yet’

Random playlist 3

After all the mental inventory-taking of the end of the year lists was finally over, I began to cruise through my media library again. Ballads have been in higher rotation than anything else right now, and that’s partly because of that nostalgia feeling that comes from having a fresh snowfall each morning. But it’s also because ballads are usually my favorites anyway. Here’s a few I’ve really been enjoying lately.

Zac Brown Band – ‘Colder Weather’ … Wanderlust drives the narrator in the Zac Brown Band’s current single, and he readily admits it to this lady. ‘And I love you but I’ll leave you, I don’t want you but I need you‘, he confesses. Still, some relationships are too complicated to follow the rules. These two keep it together when he’s in town; otherwise, not so much. The swaying melody is brought to life here with the help of a gentle piano track and Alabama-ish harmonies from the group.

Sara Evans – ‘Three Chords And The Truth’ … Her first album was a lesson in 90s new traditionalism, and though none of the songs were hits, the title track to the set has taken on a life of its own. Evans’ Missouri drawl wrings out every ounce of emotion in this conflicted woman’s day of events, as she sings of the music doing just the same for the character in her own song.

Martina McBride – ‘Strangers’ … This track from Martina’s second album was included on her Greatest Hits album, listed as a fan favorite and concert staple; and for good reason. Songwriter Bobby Braddock penned a telling tale of two people and their journey from, and back to, being strangers to each other. Martina’s bigger-than-your-house voice hammers it home.

Mark McGuinn – ‘She Doesn’t Dance’ … This guy’s got the perfect gal at home. So what’s she doing in this smoky bar in that black dress, and in another man’s arms? But wait, that couldn’t be her. She doesn’t own a dress like that, and besides, she doesn’t even dance. Especially like that. McGuinn hit bigger with that infuriating ‘Mrs. Steven Rudy’ song. But not only was ‘She Doesn’t Dance’ tolerable, this 90s-style country ballad proved better at showcasing his dry wit without even trying.

Sunny Sweeney – ‘Amy’ … Just like her breakthrough single, Sweeney’s self-penned ‘Amy’ is a confessional from the other woman. This time it’s directed at the wife and she’s asking her to please stand aside, if that’s at all convenient. Tight and light, the acoustic-driven production is the perfect score for the story unfolding before us.

Johnny Cash – ‘Cry, Cry, Cry’ … Maybe it’s Cash’s deadpan delivery of these scathing lyrics, or maybe it’s the Signature Cash dominating back beat. Either way, I can’t get enough of Johnny’s first single.

Alan Jackson – ‘I’ll Try’ … Warm, traditional sounds complimenting Jackson’s crooning vocals make the song a real pleasure to the ears, but it’s the no-frills message in this song I like best. No promises of forever or of good times to come, this guy takes a realistic approach. Sweetly optimistic in all he does, he’s aiming for the long haul. Here’s hoping.

So, what’s your pleasure these days?  Are you spinning the ballads in the colder weather?  Share your current favorites with us in the comments.

Classic Rewind: Charlie Louvin, Emmylou Harris and Vern Gosdin sing the Louvin Brothers’ ‘Love & Wealth’

RIP Charlie Louvin.

Here he is singing an old Louvin Brothers’ classic with Emmylou Harris and the late Vern Gosdin:

Classic Rewind: Dwight Yoakam – ‘What I Don’t Know’

Single Review: Star de Azlan – ‘A Man Who Can Dance’

Curb artist Star de Azlan made an immediate impression on me with her debut single ‘She’s Pretty’ a few years back. The Hispanic singer followed that up with the pretty ‘Like A Rose’, but neither single performed as well as they deserved. She was one of the artists I mentioned at the beginning of January as someone I was hoping to hear from this year, and sooner than I expected, her latest single has emerged.

It opens nicely as rather a charming story song about a girl who moves from Texas to California. The beautiful Carmelita wants a man who can dance (and mostly Latin styled dance at that). She rejects various eligible suitors (a rancher and a banker) for their lack of rhythm on the dance floor, eventually finding Charlie, who is no looker, but he hooks Carmelita through his dance skills. This sounds as though it’s made for a video. Sadly, the story fizzles out after that, and Star relapses into a general demand that “we” want a man who can dance, which feels a bit pointless.

The production is a bit busy at times, the rhythms lightly (and appropriately) reflecting the Latin dance styles the lyrics reference. It definitely has a little more of a Spanish flavor than her previous singles, and a Spanish-language version is also being released (‘Chicos Que Sepan Bailar’, which I think translates as the plural ‘boys who can dance’, which has a slightly different emphasis). The English version also has a Spanish phrase at the end. Star’s vocals sound a bit anonymous on the English version but she shows some personality with the odd interjected laugh and a trilled “r” when she sings about rumba. The Spanish version sounds more passionate vocally for some reason.

I wasn’t crazy about this song when I first heard it, but repeated listens let its charms grow on me. I feel Star is worthy of better songs (like the wonderful ‘She’s Pretty’), but perhaps this has more of a chance of getting airplay, and increases the chances of someday getting a full album release.

Grade: B

Listen to both English and Spanish versions (and Star’s two previous singles) streaming on her myspace.

Classic Rewind: Statler Brothers – ‘Class Of ’57′

Album Review: Dwight Yoakam – ‘Tomorrow’s Sounds Today’

Dwight’s final album for Reprise, released in 2000, comprised mostly self-penned material produced by Pete Anderson. A few months earlier, Dwight had re-imagined many of his earlier hits on dwightyoakamacoustic.net, and this album feels like a conscious attempt to look forward to a new phase of his career. The sound mixes traditional country with prominent fiddle and steel on many tracks, and three collaborations with Dwight’s mentor Buck Owens, with rock influences. It was a distinctive combination which probably only Dwight could have made.

The catchy ‘What Do You Know About Love’ has a typically insistent Dwight groove but sounds quite contemporary, and was the album’s only (modest) hit single, peaking at #26. It was his last ever time in the country top 40, but is a pretty good song and should have done better than it did.

Dwight’s cover of the rock song ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’ had been his last big hit (from the Last Chance For A Thousand Years hits compilation), peaking at #12 in 1999. He attempted to repeat this success by releasing a version of Cheap Trick’s 1970s hit ‘I Want You To Want Me’ as the second single from Tomorrow’s Sounds Today, but it barely scraped into the top 50. It is pleasant enough and doesn’t sound out of place here, but it is rather repetitive and doesn’t really stand out either.

Harking back to his earlier days the album closes with two last duets with Buck Owens. ‘I Was There’, a buddyish cover of a song Buck recorded on one of his late 80s comeback releases, was the final (and sadly non-charting) single. The cheery love song ‘Alright, I’m Wrong’ was written by Pete Anderson, and is served up with some Tex-Mex accordion from Flaco Jimenez; it’s entertaining, but the lyrics don’t work as a male/male duet with swapped lines. Better than either of these, and in fact one of the best tracks on the album, is the mournful steel-laced ‘The Sad Side Of Town’ in the middle of the album, which Buck wrote with Dwight, and on which he sings harmony in a way reminiscent of his legendary sideman Don Rich’s work on his classic recordings.

The album’s title notwithstanding, there is plenty more material firmly rooted in country music’s rich traditions. I really like the melodic ‘Time Spent Missing You’ with its prominent fiddle and steel, mandolin courtesy of Chris Hillman, and close harmonies from Jim Lauderdale. The mid-tempo ‘Heartaches Are Free’ is another highlight, and one with particularly prominent steel.

‘A Promise You Can’t Keep’ is a fine if gloomy country ballad doubting the protagonist’s partner’s words of love with a pain-infused vocal. ‘A World Of Blue’ is a lovely ballad with a sad lyric but relaxed loungy vocal which strikes a faintly jarring note, but sounds good.

Some tracks are less successful for me. I found the jaded ‘Dreams Of Clay’, ‘For Love’s Sake’, and the opening track ‘Love Caught Up To Me’ all rather forgettable. ‘Free To Go’ is catchy enough but has a rather cynical lyric about the transience of love, which I didn’t really like. ‘A Place To Cry’ is rockier and is too loud, cluttered and rushed for my taste. But with 14 tracks, there is room for some experiments to fail.

Overall, this was a solid effort with some high quality material. Although it failed to capture the interest of country radio, it has a lot to appeal to Dwight Yoakam fans.

Grade: B+

Although the CD version is now out of print, Tomorrow’s Sounds Today is easy to find at a reasonable price and is also available digitally.

Classic Rewind: Del Reeves – ‘The Belles Of Southern Bell’

Week ending 1/22/11: #1 singles this week in country music history

1951: The Shotgun Boogie — Tennessee Ernie Ford (Capitol)

1961: North To Alaska — Johnny Horton (Columbia)

1971: Rose Garden — Lynn Anderson (Columbia)

1981: I Love A Rainy Night — Eddie Rabbitt (Elektra)

1991: Unanswered Prayers — Garth Brooks (Capitol)

2001: Born To Fly — Sara Evans (RCA)

2011: Felt Good On My Lips — Tim McGraw (Curb)

Classic Rewind: Jody Miller – ‘If You Think I Love You Now (I’m Just Getting Started)’

Classic Rewind: Stonewall Jackson – ‘Don’t Be Angry’

Album Review: Dwight Yoakam – ‘A Long Way Home’

Following 1995′s somewhat disappointing Gone, Dwight Yoakam released an album of cover songs and a Christmas album, which were followed by his tenth studio release in 1998. For the most part, A Long Way Home got him back on track artistically, but it was tepidly received at both radio and retail, suggesting that Dwight’s commercial prowess was waning. The album contains thirteen tracks, all of which were written by Dwight and produced by Pete Anderson. Reprise appears not to have given the album much promotion, releasing only two singles, “Things Change” and “These Arms”, neither of which reached the Top 10.

I’ve heard A Long Way Home described as alt-country, but that is only the case in the sense that mainstream country had begun a dramatic transformation in the late 90s and not because Dwight had changed musical directions. If anything, he back-pedaled from the rock-oriented sound that had dominated Gone; there is nothing radical about A Long Way Home. It doesn’t contain any hardcore honky tonk numbers like his early albums, but it does contain a diverse mix of rockabilly and Bakersfield sound, along with some more mainstream, albeit retro-sounding fare. Like This Time, it is an eclectic collection, though it is a much more cohesive set than that 1993 album.

Dwight’s musical influences are apparent throughout this project. “The Curse” sounds like a cover of an old Johnny Cash song, while “That’s Okay” is reminiscent of the old Buck Owens tune “My Heart Skips A Beat.” Further tribute is paid to the Bakersfield sound with “I Wouldn’t Put It Past Me”, while Yoakam channels Elvis Presley on “Listen”. “These Arms” starts out sounding like an old Ray Price shuffle, opening with a fiddle, rhythm guitar and piano, but the production suddenly changes direction by the song’s first bridge, with amped up electric guitars, drums and a swelling string section, resulting in a rather cluttered sound, before reverting back to the original instrumentation for the next verse. The song alternates between the two styles for its duration. It’s a great song, but I find the production changes somewhat jarring and would have preferred a more traditional approach throughout. Released as the album’s second and final single, “These Arms” stalled at #57.

The album’s first single, “Things Change”, a 60s mainstream pop-sounding song that reminds me of an album my dad used to play by The Mamas and The Papas when I was a child, fared better on the charts, reaching #17. “Only Want You More”, another rockabilly number is a bit overproduced and is my least favorite track on the album. “I’ll Take These” is the most mainstream-sounding song on the album; it seems like it would have had a reasonable shot at success as a single, but the label seems to have lost interest in promoting the album following the failure of “These Arms” on the charts.

The best track on the album is the bluegrass number “Traveler’s Lantern”, on which Dwight is joined by the legendary Ralph Stanley. Listening to it makes me wish Dwight would release an all-bluegrass album. I would have sequenced the album a little differently to make this the last track, instead of making it second-to-last, followed by the rockabilly number “Maybe You Like It, Maybe You Don’t.” I do like it, but it provides a less effective close to the album than “Traveler’s Lantern” would have done.

A Long Way Home was Yoakam’s first major label release that failed to earn at least gold certification, but despite its somewhat lackluster sales and failure to produce a major hit, it is an overlooked gem in Yoakam’s impressive catalog. If you missed this one the first time around, give it a try. You’re in for a real treat.

Grade: A

A Long Way Home can be purchased from Amazon or iTunes.