Product Details

• Audio CD (August 31, 2004)
• Original Release Date: August 31, 2004
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Single
• Label: Rhino Records

Editorial Reviews “Your stuff is so hard, they’re gonna think it’s rock ‘n’ roll,” a friend oncetold Dwight Yoakam. Twisting strains of Hank Williams, Elvis Presley, MerleHaggard, and Gram Parsons into a stripped-down sound wholly his own, Yoakam isone of music’s true mavericks, and his body of work is one of the mostinnovative in all of country. Rooted in the purest country traditions, andwrapped in raw rock ‘n’ roll attitude, Yoakam’s art rivets fans of both genresand remains as utterly original today as when it started burning up the chartsin the ’80s. Moving to Los Angeles after an unproductive stint in Nashville, Kentucky-bornDwight Yoakam made a name for himself by reviving the more robust honky-tonktraditions of the Bakersfield Sound–a bold contrast with Music City’sassembly-line approach. In 1984, his independently released six-song EP,_Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc._, added to the buzz and helped land him onWarner Bros./Reprise. Now, twenty years later comes _The Very Best of DwightYoakam_, a superb single-disc distillation of the four-CD box, _Reprise PleaseBaby: The Warner Bros. Years_. With 20 tracks spanning his recording careerand sequenced in chronological order, the set rolls along with gusto andverve. While not covering every one of his releases (the Christmas and coversreleases are omitted, for example), there are some singles and soundtrackentries that fall nicely into place. _–David Greenberger_