Dwight David Yoakam (born October 23, 1956) is an American singer-songwrite… Read Full Bio ↴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 21 albums and compilations, charted more than 30 singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, and sold more than 25 million records. Yoakam has recorded 5 Billboard #1 Albums, 12 Gold Albums, and 9 Platinum Albums, including the Triple Platinum This Time. In addition to his many achievements in the performing arts, Yoakam is also the most frequent musical guest in the history of The Tonight Show.

Yoakam was born in Pikeville, Kentucky, the son of Ruth Ann, a key-punch operator, and David Yoakam, a gas-station owner. 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 1977 with the intent of becoming a recording artist. Later on, Ohio Valley University in Parkersburg, West Virginia awarded and presented Dwight with an honorary doctorate degree on May 7, 2005.

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 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 by Reprise records, 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 No. 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 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 that "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.

2005 saw the release of Yoakam's well-reviewed album 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. 3 Pears was released on September 18, 2012 with twelve new tracks. The album, produced by Yoakam, includes collaborations with Kid Rock, Beck, and Ashley Monroe. 3 Pears was released to resounding critical acclaim and earned Yoakam the highest-charting debut of his career on the Billboard 200 and Billboard Country Albums charts. 3 Pears reached #1 on the Americana Radio chart on October 29, 2012 and went on to break the 2012 record for most weeks at #1 on Americana Radio.[4] By the end of 2012, the album was named on annual best of lists by NPR, Rolling Stone, American Songwriter, AOL's The Boot, Entertainment Weekly, The Village Voice, and Rhapsody, and has been included in more critic's "best of 2012" lists than any other artist in the country genre.

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 and given the International Touring Artist Award by CMA in 2007.

In 2011, Yoakam received the Cliffie Stone Pioneer Award for his trailblazing achievements in the country music genre.

Blame The Vain
Dwight Yoakam Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I blame the vain for what we wear
And I blame the blind when we can't see
I blame it all on somebody else
'Til there's nobody left, then I just blame me

I blame her mind for the thoughts we share
Whoa, and I blame her heart for the time we cared
I blame it all on how we used to be

'Til she's finally gone, then I'll just blame me

So go ahead and blame anything that you want
'Cause it all end up the same
When everything that you've been claiming is wrong

Oh and don't you know that blame
Is always never enough
It just keeps you in the game
'Til you've only got yourself left to bluff

I blame the vain for what we wear
And I blame the blind when we can't see
I blame it all on somebody else
'Til there's nobody left, then I just blame me

'Til she's finally gone, then I'll just blame me

Overall Meaning

In Dwight Yoakam's song Blame The Vain, the singer reflects on the tendency people have to blame others for their problems instead of taking responsibility for their own actions. He blames the vain for what people wear and the blind for their inability to see, then admits to blaming others until there is no one left to blame but himself. However, in the end, he still pushes responsibility away by blaming his former lover's mind and heart for their shared thoughts and feelings until she leaves, at which point he will have no one else to blame but himself.

The lyrics of this song are insightful in their commentary on human nature and the tendency to avoid taking responsibility for our shortcomings. Yoakam's repetition of blaming others before finally admitting to blaming himself is relatable to many listeners who have struggled with owning up to their mistakes. The use of the words "vain" and "blind" also adds depth to the song by highlighting the external factors that we often blame for our problems, like societal norms or physical limitations, rather than looking inward and evaluating our own actions.

Overall, Blame The Vain is a powerful reminder that taking responsibility for our actions is an essential part of personal growth and accountability.

Line by Line Meaning

I blame the vain for what we wear
I hold the vain responsible for dictating what we wear and how we present ourselves.

And I blame the blind when we can't see
When we can't see what's going on, I attribute it to the blindness of those involved.

I blame it all on somebody else
I shift the blame to others instead of taking responsibility myself.

'Til there's nobody left, then I just blame me
When everyone else is gone, I finally take accountability for my actions.

I blame her mind for the thoughts we share
I hold her responsible for the thoughts we share, as they originate from her mind.

Whoa, and I blame her heart for the time we cared
The caring we had came from her heart, so I attribute it to her.

I blame it all on how we used to be
I attribute our current situation to how we used to be in the past.

'Til she's finally gone, then I'll just blame me
When she's no longer around, I'll take responsibility for everything that went wrong.

So go ahead and blame anything that you want
Others are free to blame whatever they want without consequence.

'Cause it all end up the same
Regardless of who or what is being blamed, the outcome will always be the same.

When everything that you've been claiming is wrong
If everything you've been blaming is wrong, it's pointless to continue blaming.

Oh and don't you know that blame
Blaming others can have negative consequences.

Is always never enough
Blaming others is never sufficient to address a situation.

It just keeps you in the game
Continuing to blame others allows you to avoid taking necessary action or addressing the situation.

'Til you've only got yourself left to bluff
Eventually, you will be left with no one else to blame and will have to take responsibility for your actions.

I blame the vain for what we wear
I hold the vain responsible for dictating what we wear and how we present ourselves.

And I blame the blind when we can't see
When we can't see what's going on, I attribute it to the blindness of those involved.

I blame it all on somebody else
I shift the blame to others instead of taking responsibility myself.

'Til there's nobody left, then I just blame me
When everyone else is gone, I finally take accountability for my actions.

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: DWIGHT DAVID YOAKAM

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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