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Yoakam brings back rock, twang with 16th release

July 28, 2005

There's a little bit of truth to that joke about country music. You know the one:

What do you get when you play a country song backward?

Um … I don't know.

You get your wife, your truck and your dog back.

Yeah, that's a good one.

Indeed, country music deals with loss, even more than it does drinking, trains, prison or mama.

In his 16th album, the first one he's produced by himself, Kentucky-native Dwight Yoakam continues to successfully bridge the gap between honky tonk, country and rock 'n' roll.

By far, the best "Blame the Vain" has to offer is the seven rock 'n' twang songs.

The album's title track is a beautifully woven country-rock masterpiece. The medium tempo song is introspective and sad. The song is the first on the album and sets the listener at rest, because yes, even at 48, Yoakam's voice sounds just as good as the 28-year-old who took the Los Angeles-area music scene by storm (starting points of Buck Owens and Merle Haggard).

His voice dips from low moans to duet melodies with background vocalists Jonathan Clark and Timothy B. Schmitt. Yoakam croons over Keith Gattis' perfectly placed country lead guitar, "I'll blame her mind/For the thoughts we shared/And I'll blame her heart/For every time we cared/I'll blame it all/On how we used to be/Until she's finally gone/Then I'll just blame me."

"Intentional Heartache" jumps right out of the speakers with an intro played on the bongos. Yoakam's borderline yodeling and the fast, freight-train rhythm make this the perfect song for driving fast down a country road.

The song is humorous and creates a great visual in one's mind of a broken-hearted, pissed-off woman - "She drove up across the yard/And through his mama's garden/Didn't touch the brakes just slammed/Right into his Chevrolet/Tossed out his clothes, boots/Bud cap and signed Dale Jr. poster/Then shot the whole mess neon green/With a can of DuPont spray."

"Just Passin' Time" is a slow, solid bass groove and enters with a tremolo guitar. This is the kind of song to listen to when your dog runs away - or your woman for that matter. Skip Edwards' pedal steel guitar takes the listener down to the streets of Nashville, Tenn., and Yoakam's beautiful acoustic guitar solo makes this ballad one of the best of the album.

The intro to "She'll Remember" is just plain odd. Synthesizers soar over Mitch Marine's groove drum beats, and Yoakam speaks in a British accent. The strange sounds lead into the rest of the song, which ends up being another of the album's best. The rockin' country sounds lead into soulful honky tonk with Edwards on piano. The upbeat rhythm is carried by bass player Taras Prodaniuk's groovy walks and keeps the sad lyrics from bringing down the song's mood, "Late afternoon/I curl up tight/To fight back tears/I'll shed all night/But she'll remember/Yea she'll remember."

"Watch out" is simultaneously a ballad and a fast-paced honky-tonk ditty. Yoakam's vocals are at their best on this one, even delving into a little growl on a few lines. Gattis' electric fingers set this song on fire with the guitar sending the song into overdrive.

After two hard-driving choruses, one might have to check to see if it's still the same song when the electric guitar gives way to soulful pedal steel guitar for a slow break, as Yoakam's voice turns from rockin' honky tonk to pure sad country in the tune of George Jones or Haggard: "It was gone before it ever went away/Got up and left before it even really tried to stay/And any doubt that hung around/Sure ain't here now/No, she's the best dirty trick/Love's ever played." Yoakam comes back into the honky-tonk groove quickly with a deep rich voice, reminiscent of Waylon Jennings' trademark style.

Music connoisseurs will dig this album for its originality and Yoakam's die-hard fans are sure to fall in love with it on first listen because it's exactly what we wanted.

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