Dwight Yoakam - Blame the Vain
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Music CD Cover
Artist: Dwight YoakamBrand: Baker Drivetrain
Edition: Music CD
CD Release Date: 2005-06-14
Music Label: New West Records
Soundtracks:
- Blame The Vain
- Lucky That Way
- Intentional Heartache
- Does It Show?
- Three Good Reasons
- Just Passing Time
- I'll Pretend
- She'll Remember
- I Want To Love Again
- When I First Came Here
- Watch Out
- The Last Heart In Line
Free Music Notes for Blame the Vain
Free Music Review: Blame the Vain - a perfect example of how country music SHOULD sound...
Hit: 5 Stars
In a time when sugarcoated country-pop fluff rules the charts, any new release from Mr. Dwight Yoakam is always a welcome breath of fresh air. Without a doubt, he's the ultimate country rebel. With his restless creativity, undeniable intelligence, and talent that isn't just limited to the music industry (he's highly acclaimed in the movie world too), this Kentucky-born cowboy has had an amazing career thus far. After nearly 20 years as an artist, Dwight has proven in spades that he'd rather make music by his own unique standards than follow the industry's rules and trends, and he's made it abundantly clear that he's not going to sell his soul to commercial Nashville any time soon. No matter if you love him or hate him, you have to admit that's pretty admirable.
Blame the Vain, Yoakam's 18th studio album, marks many first milestones in the icon's career. Most notably, it's his first attempt at producing after almost two decades with his ex-producer/guitarist Pete Anderson. Yoakam does a very nice job indeed, proving to us once and for all that he's the major driving force behind his success, although that's not to say that Pete was not a monumental aspect of Dwight's music. Taking Anderson's place as lead guitarist is Keith Gattis, a talented Texan who may not be the same kind of guitar virtuoso that Anderson is, but he's extremely gifted nonetheless.
It may be a bold claim, but I truly believe that the songwriting showcased on Blame the Vain just might be some of the best material Yoakam's ever written. With all twelve tracks penned solely by Dwight, I think he digs deeper into complex human emotions than he ever has before in terms of his lyrics. Even just reading the words written inside the CD booklet provokes more sheer emotion than listening to anything that's played regularly on commercial country radio ever could. The first verse of the title track (and also the opening lines of the album) is extremely intriguing: "I'll blame the vain for what we wear/And I'll blame the blind when we can't see/I'll blame it all on someone else/'Til there's nobody left... then I'll just blame me." Just reading that gives off a feeling of total denial that will most certainly result in lonliness and emptiness. Deep stuff and definately not a bad way to kick off the album. Elsewhere, on the weeper "Does It Show", Dwight really shows off his unsurpassed lyrical abilities. I especially like how he's able to paint a sad, detailed picture using contrasting images of light and dark: "Does it show/With each flickering memory's final glow/As night's cold shadows wrap around where hope let go/And I sit there in the dark/Does it show?" Just amazing, amazing lyrics. I can't praise his talent as a songwriter enough!
But what really brings these sad tales of love gone wrong to life is Dwight's unique and expressive voice. In my opinion, Dwight's voice only gets better with age. The older he gets, the more you're able to notice the powerful yet subtle nuances embedded in his rich, sweet voice. On slower ballads such as "Lucky That Way", "Does It Show", "Just Passin' Time", and "The Last Heart in Line", his voice posesses such believable earnesty and uninhibited emotion that he really makes you feel his hoplessness and pain. On the other hand, with the rockin', fast-paced tunes like "Intentional Heartache", "Three Good Reasons", and "Watch Out", his voice has a biting authenticity that just keeps you hanging on his every word.
Favorites here include "Watch Out", which has to be the most bipolar song I've ever heard in my life. It goes from being a straight up hard-hitting rocker to being a depressing, tearstained weeper before you even know what hit you... and then it morphs suddenly back into its rockin' self. If any of Dwight's songs could be considered a 'one-fingered salute' to watered-down pop-country music, this is the one. "She'll Remember" is also great because it's different from any other song I've ever heard Dwight sing. At first, I wasn't a fan of the intro that includes lots of synthesizer and Dwight (sporting a fake British accent) telling a story about a lover walking out on him. But after I saw what an energized and fun intro it was to his live shows, I was instantly turned into a believer. The song itself is a little bit of honkytonk mixed with some unexpected British-style rock and some great guitar work by Mr. Gattis. A surprising combo, but this one really works. I adore "Three Good Reasons" for it's hip, Elvis-inspired rockabilly swagger and attitude, plus the clever wordplay that only Yoakam could pull off. As far as the ballads contained on this album go, "Does It Show" is probably my favorite. I like the delicate piano solo followed by a calm but resonating guitar solo, and his voice simply amazes me on this one.
I also have to mention how much I like Blame the Vain's album art in and of itself. It definately tells a story all on its own. The pictures of Dwight and model Donna Feldman are somewhat provocative, yet they have an almost eerie, stark beauty to them. By looking over the photos, it's obvious that the two are an item, but Dwight seems to be annoyed by her, almost indifferent to her (probably due to her apparent preoccupation with herself), while it seems that she's only with him for material purposes. Although it's open for personal interpretation, the message I got from it is that vanity gets you nowhere in life, as the picture of her lying seemingly dead on a bed in a messy, run-down hotel room while Dwight looms emotionlessly over her lifeless body would suggest. Very dark.
Blame the Vain is an amazing collection of 12 original Yoakam gems. I adore every track on this album and I seriously urge any country music fan to buy it. It's definately the best album I've heard so far in 2005. One can only hope that this is the beginning of a great run with New West Records, as they deserve endless praise for promoting him much better than Reprise or Audium did and actually listening to the fans. Dwight truly did a great job on this album!
Blame the Vain Poster
flexfield5Dwight Yoakam occupies a singular position in contemporary country. No artist has better balanced mainstream commercial success with artistic, alt-country credibility, while somehow managing to embody both the music's most traditional and its most progressive impulses. Blame the Vain marks a milestone for Yoakam as his first self-produced effort since splitting with producer/guitarist/bandleader Pete Anderson. While the material seems to document the end of a relationship and the hope for romantic renewal, there's a freewheeling playfulness to the arrangements--the bongo-driven, rock & roll urgency of "International Heartache," the faux British accent and synthesizer intro on "She'll Remember," the shifting time signatures of "Watch Out." The tear-in-your-beer balladry of "Lucky That Way" and "Does It Show" should satisfy those who take their honky-tonk straight, no chaser, while the homage paid to timeless Roy Orbison ("Just Passin' Time"), early Johnny Cash ("I'll Pretend") and later Elvis Presley ("When I First Came Here") attests to the range and richness of Yoakam's artistry. He may no longer have the hits like he once did, but he hasn't lost the vision. --Don McLeese
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