| Reprise Please Baby: The Warner Brothers Years - Dwight Yoakam | |
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Reviewed by Kathy Coleman
After 20 some years of pedaling his music and 16 years signed with Warner/Reprise, Dwight Yoakam has finally released a four-disc box set which captures a nice selection of the best of his years at Reprise records, plus a lot of surprise extras and unreleased tracks that should be a
real treat for any long-time Dwight Yoakam fan, and a perfect starter for anyone new to Yoakam's unique hillbilly-rock sound.
His first release, Guitars Cadillacs Etc. Etc., blasted through the soft Nashville sounds, which dominated the country charts throughout the late 70's into the early 80's, and helped forge a new country sound that was as old as his native Kentucky hills, much as Waylon and Willie
had done for the genre a decade before. With powerful sex appeal and intelligent lyrics, Yoakam appealed to fans of new country as much as to fans of old.
In the 16 years since that first release, Yoakam has provided his listeners with music that is as unique as it is true to his roots. As a songwriter and singer, Dwight Yoakam has made himself a singular force in country music, always new but always carrying on his plain country traditions.
His lyrics are simple, expressive, quirky, and perceptive, the gathered thoughts of a restlessly creative mind.
With an impressive collection of Grammys, CMA and ACM awards, as well as gold and platinum records and a solid string of Top 10 hits, Yoakam has proven time and again he is a force in today's country music, even when the country music industry all but ignores him.
This four-disc collection is a fairly comprehensive look at the music he's released over his impressive career, as well as a full disc of unreleased tracks, many of which are early demo recordings, pre-Guitars Cadillacs. This set comes on strong and stays that way all the way
through. The first three discs collect the some of the best of Yoakam's best work. It also releases three new songs: "Louisville," "Mercury Blues" (heard on recent car commercials), and "Sittin' Pretty" (previously released on the NASCAR tribute, Inside Traxx).
In addition to familiar chart-topping hits such as "Guitars, Cadillacs," "Streets of Bakersfield," "I Sang Dixie," "It Only Hurts When I Cry," "Suspicious Minds," and the super-sexy "Fast As You," this collection includes lesser-known album cuts and the singles from the
last eight years which got only rare radio airplay (due to Dwight being "too country" for country radio), such as "Gone," "Sorry You Asked?" "Things Change," "Only Want You More," "These Arms," and "What Do You Know About Love?" You'll also find splendid little gems such as
Yoakam's cover of "Crazy Little Thing Called Love," acoustic tracks from the masterpiece release dwightyoakamacoustic.net, and several songs from the soundtrack of Yoakam's 2001 theatrical movie release, South of Heaven, West of Hell.
Disc 4, the unreleased tracks, is a treasure trove of Dwight delights, a treasure for any and all Dwight Yoakam fans. Alternate cuts of early tracks, "This Drinkin' Will Kill Me," "It Won't Hurt," "I'll Be Gone,""Floyd County," "You're The One," "Twenty Years," "Miner's Prayer," "I Sang Dixie," and "Bury Me" are tracks which were cut in 1981. Amidst these is a track he never did officially release, "Please Daddy," a true heartbreaker of a real country song.
Rare indeed is the country singer who can cover Elvis Presley, The Clash, Sonny & Cher, Queen, Cheap Trick, and ZZ Top, but that's all here on this awesome collection; and it's all country, going deliciously hand-in-hand with covers of Johnny Horton, Bob Wills, Merle Haggard, Hank Williams, and Lefty Frizzell, as well as, of course, Yoakam's own superb writing. Yoakam never does things half-way; this first box set from country's super-hip
Renaissance man is one heck of a start on the way to saluting the career of a man well on his way to legendary status; if, in fact, he's not there already.
Dwight Yoakam can sing of tears and trials, bitter loss and vicious revenge, love and hate and every emotion that lies between them, and he does it all with a sugared bourbon voice that twangs with authenticity. Yoakam has never failed to be anything less than what he promises to be, and never gives less than his best to every song he takes on. This collection is a true treasure, an "about time" box set that is definitely a "MUST-have" for anyone who loves real country music.
Song List:
Disc I:
Album cover, used with permission of Reprise/Rhino.
Disc II:
Disc III:
Disc IV:
