Dwight Yoakam

Dwight Yoakam
Dwight Yoakam
Background information
Birth name Dwight David Yoakam
Born October 23, 1956 (1956-10-23) (age 55)
Pikeville, Kentucky,
United States
Origin Columbus, Ohio, United States
Genres Country Rock
Occupations Singer-songwriter, actor, director
Instruments Guitar, vocals
Years active 1984–present
Labels Reprise, Audium, New West Warner Brothers Nashville
Associated acts Buck Owens
Website http://www.dwightyoakam.com/

Dwight David Yoakam (born October 23, 1956) is an American singer-songwriter, actor and film director, most famous for his pioneering country music. Popular since the early 1980s, he has recorded more than twenty-one albums and compilations, has charted more than thirty singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, and sold more than 25 million records.

Contents

Early life

Yoakam was born in Pikeville, Kentucky, the son of Ruth Ann, a key-punch operator, and David Yoakam, a gas-station owner.[1] He was raised in Columbus, Ohio. He graduated from Columbus's Northland High School in 1974. During his high school years, he excelled in both music and drama, regularly securing the lead role in school plays, such as "Charlie" in a stage version of Flowers for Algernon, honing his skills under the guidance of teacher-mentors Jerry McAfee (music) and Charles Lewis (drama). Outside of school, Yoakam sang and played guitar with local garage bands, and entertained his friends and classmates with his impersonations, such as Richard Nixon, who, at the time, was heavily embroiled in the Watergate controversy.

Yoakam briefly attended Ohio State University, but dropped out and moved to Nashville in the late 1970s with the intent of becoming a recording artist.

Music career

Dwight Yoakam.

When he began his career, Nashville was oriented toward pop "Urban Cowboy" music, and Yoakam's brand of hip Honky Tonk music was not considered marketable.

Not making much headway in Nashville, Yoakam moved to Los Angeles and worked towards bringing his particular brand of new Honky Tonk or "Hillbilly" music (as he himself called it) forward into the 1980s. Writing all his own songs, and continuing to perform mostly outside traditional country music channels, Yoakam did many shows in rock and punk rock clubs around Los Angeles, playing with roots rock or punk rock acts like The Blasters (Yoakam scored a small video hit with his version of their song "Long White Cadillac"), Los Lobos, and X. This helped him diversify his audience beyond the typical country music fans, and his authentic, groundbreaking music is often credited with rock audiences accepting country music.

Yoakam's recording debut was the self-financed EP Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc. on independent label Oak Records produced by lead-guitarist Pete Anderson; this was later re-released, with several additional tracks, as his major-label debut LP, 1986's Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc.. It launched his career. "Honky Tonk Man", a remake of the Johnny Horton song, and "Guitars, Cadillacs" were hit singles. His stylish video "Honky Tonk Man" was the first country music video ever played on MTV. The follow-up LP, Hillbilly Deluxe, was just as successful. His third LP, Buenas Noches from a Lonely Room, included his first #1, a duet with his musical idol, Buck Owens, on "Streets of Bakersfield". 1990's If There Was a Way was another best-seller.

Yoakam's song "Readin', Rightin', Route 23" pays tribute to his childhood move from Kentucky, and is named after a local expression describing the route that rural Kentuckians took to take to find a job outside of the coal mines. (U.S. Route 23 runs north from Kentucky through Columbus and Toledo, Ohio and through the automotive centers of Michigan.) Rather than the standard line that their elementary schools taught "the three Rs" of "Readin', 'Ritin', and 'Rithmetic", Kentuckians used to say that the three Rs they learned were "Readin', 'Ritin, and Route 23 North".

Johnny Cash once cited Yoakam as his favorite country singer. Chris Isaak called him as good a songwriter that ever put a pen to paper. Time Magazine dubbed Yoakam "A Renaissance Man" and Vanity Fair declared "Yoakam strides the divide between rock's lust and country's lament." Along with his bluegrass and honky-tonk roots, Yoakam has written or covered many Elvis Presley-style rockabilly songs, including his covers of Queen's "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" in 1999 and Presley's "Suspicious Minds" in 1992. He recorded a cover of the Clash's "Train in Vain" in 1997, a cover of the Grateful Dead song "Truckin'", as well as Cheap Trick's "I Want You to Want Me". Yoakam has never been associated only with Country music; on many early tours, he played with Hardcore Punk bands like Hüsker Dü, and played many shows around Los Angeles with Roots/Punk/Rock & Roll acts. His middle-period-to-later records saw him branching out to different styles, covering Rock & Roll, Punk, 1960's, Blues-based "Boogie" like ZZ Top, and writing more adventurous songs like "A Thousand Miles From Nowhere". In 2003, he provided background vocals on Warren Zevon's last album The Wind.

In the 21st century, Yoakam released dwightyoakamacoustic.net, an album featuring solo acoustic versions of many of his hits; left his major label and started his own label.[citation needed]

His latest album of new material is 2005's well-reviewed Blame the Vain, on New West Records. Yoakam also released an album dedicated to Buck Owens, Dwight Sings Buck, on October 23, 2007. His duet with Michelle Branch, a song titled "Long Goodbye", was released as a free download on Branch's official website in early 2011.

In July 2011, Yoakam re-signed with Warner Bros. Nashville and announced plans to release a new album in early 2012.[2] Yoakam will co-produce the new album with rock producer Joe Chiccarelli.[2]

Film career

Yoakam has also starred in many films, most notably in critically acclaimed performances as an abusive alcoholic in Sling Blade (1996), as a psychopathic killer in Panic Room (2002), as the sheriff in The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (2002) and as a police detective in Hollywood Homicide (2003). He appeared in a supporting role as Doc Miles, the doctor for Chev Chelios, in Crank and its sequel, Crank 2: High Voltage. In addition, he also guest starred in the King of the Hill episode Nine Very Angry Men as Lane Pratley. Yoakam also had a cameo appearance in the 2005 comedy movie Wedding Crashers. In 2008, Yoakam played Pastor Phil in Four Christmases, starring Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon, and he appears in the upcoming film Dirty Girl. He also appeared in The Last Rites of Ransom Pride, an independent 2010 Western that also stars fellow country singer Kris Kristofferson. In 1993, he played a truck driver in the Wyoming crime thriller, Red Rock West.

Yoakam also starred alongside Penélope Cruz and Salma Hayek in the movie Bandidas (2006).

In 2000, Yoakam co-wrote, starred in, produced and wrote the soundtrack for South of Heaven, West of Hell, also starring Vince Vaughn and Bridget Fonda.

Some of his songs are included in the film Big Eden.

Food ventures

Yoakam's food brand, Bakersfield Biscuits,[3] sells frozen foods at retailers such as Wal-Mart Superstores, Walgreens, Sam's Club, and Kroger.

Awards and recognition

Yoakam won the Grammy Award for "Best Male Country Vocal Performance" in 1993 for the song "Ain't That Lonely Yet". He was also named "Artist of the Year" by CMT Europe in 1993.[4]

Johnny Cash once cited Yoakam as his favorite country singer. Chris Isaak said Yoakam "is about as good a songwriter that ever put a pen to paper. I think he is someone who years from now will still be remembered, like Hank Williams or Buck Owens."[5] Time magazine dubbed Yoakam "A Renaissance Man" and Vanity Fair declared, "Yoakam strides the divide between rock's lust and country's lament."

Discography

Studio albums

Christmas albums

Covers albums

Compilation albums

International releases

  • This Is... (1990)
  • La Croix D'Amour (1992)

Filmography

Film
Year Title Role Notes
1991 Terminator 2: Judgment Day Performer
1992 Red Rock West Truck Driver
1994 Roswell Mac Brazel TV Movie
1995 The Little Death Bobby Lomax
1996 Don't Look Back Skipper TV movie
1996 Sling Blade Doyle Hargraves Nominated — Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance
1997 Painted Hero Virgil Kidder
1998 The Newton Boys Brentwood Glasscock
1998 When Trumpets Fade Lieutenant Colonel George Rickman TV movie
1999 The Minus Man Blair
2001 South of Heaven, West of Hell Valentine Casey Also director and writer
2002 Panic Room Raoul
2003 Hollywood Homicide Leroy Wasley
2004 Three Way Herbert Claremont/Clarkson
2005 Wedding Crashers Mr. Kroeger
2005 The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada Belmont Western Heritage Award for Outstanding Theatrical Motion Picture
2006 Bandidas Tyler Jackson
2006 Crank Doc Miles
2008 Two:Thirteen Sandy
2008 Four Christmases Pastor Phil
2009 Crank: High Voltage Doc Miles
2010 Dirty Girl Joseph
2010 The Last Rites of Ransom Pride Reverend Early Pride
2010 Bloodworth Boyd Bloodworth
2013 Jayne Mansfield's Car TBA pre-production
Television
Year Title Role Notes
1986 Hee Haw Himself 1 episode; performer
1991 P.S. I Luv U Harlan Justice 1 episode
1993 America Comes to Graceland Himself TV documentary
1993 Rhythm & Jam Himself TV mini-series
1997 Ellen The Bag Boy 2 episodes
1998 King of the Hill Lane Pratley 1 episode
2002 Dinner for Five Himself 1 episode
2002 Peter Fonda: Fortunate Son Narrator TV documentary
2011 Wilfred (U.S. TV series) Bruce 1 episode

References

Specific references:

  1. ^ Country Music Magazine, May/June 1986
  2. ^ a b Dwight Yoakam Preps New Album on Old Label Home
  3. ^ Dwight Yoakam's Bakersfield Biscuits website
  4. ^ Dwight Yoakam Fact Sheet, Dwight Yoakam official website
  5. ^ Houston Chronicle, chron.com, 11/19/2009 - article by Andrew Dansby

General references:

  • Himes, Geoffery. (1998). "Dwight Yoakam". In The Encyclopedia of Country Music. Paul Kingsbuey, Editor. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 605–6.

External links


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