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.
Dim Lights Thick Smoke
Dwight Yoakam Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It's the only kind of life you'll ever understand
Oh, dim lights, thick smoke and loud, loud music
You'll never make a wife, to a home loving man
At home eight little children, mean nothing to you
A house filled with love and a husband so true
You'd rather have a drink with the first guy you meet
Dim lights, thick smoke, and loud, loud music
It's the only kind of life you'll ever understand
Whoa, dim lights, thick smoke and loud, loud music
You'll never make a wife, to a home loving man
Drinking and dancing to a honky tonk band
When you left your loving family life back, right back where you ran
So go on and have your fun, but you won't always look so smart
When some day that lonely bar room break your honky-tonk heart
Dim lights, thick smoke, and loud, loud music
It's the only kind of life you'll ever understand
Whoa, dim lights, thick smoke and loud, loud music
You'll never look at your wife, to a home loving man
Oh you'll never look at your wife, to a home loving man
Dim lights, thick smoke, and loud, loud music
You'll never look at your wife, to a home loving man
The song "Dim Lights Thick Smoke" by Dwight Yoakam portrays a story of a woman who prefers the honky tonk life over her responsibilities at home. The first two lines of the song set the tone for the song, hinting that the song will be about a gritty lifestyle. The character being depicted in the song just likes loud honky tonk music, dim lights, and thick smoke. The lyrics also state that she would never be able to be with a man who prefers a good home life, hinting at her lack of interest in maternal and marital responsibilities.
The second part of the song describes the woman's family life, where she is married with eight children. Nevertheless, she has no interest in this life and instead loves partying in the pub with random men. These lyrics show how she doesn't care about her family or the moral values expected of her as a wife and mother. She is only interested in having fun with men and drinking, which is evidential in her choice of lifestyle.
The song's tone then changes and warns the woman that she'll eventually look back and regret her actions. It warns her that her actions will cause her romantic loss and heartbreak. The last two lyrics reveal that she will never look back at her boring home life nor seek her husband's love.
In conclusion, the lyrics of "Dim Lights Thick Smoke" paints a very vivid picture of a heedless woman who enjoys the honky-tonk lifestyle over her maternal and marital duties. The song also presents a warning that this woman will eventually regret her decisions when she looks back at the missed opportunities to love and settle down.
Line by Line Meaning
Dim lights, thick smoke, and loud, loud music
The atmosphere of bars and honky tonks that you find comfort in, with blaring music and heavy smoke that fill your senses
It's the only kind of life you'll ever understand
This lifestyle is all you know and will ever know, as it provides you with the excitement and thrill that you seek
You'll never make a wife, to a home loving man
Your wild spirit and devotion to this lifestyle will never allow you to settle down and have a happy home with a loving husband
At home eight little children, mean nothing to you
Your family and responsibilities at home are ignored and don't compare to the thrill and excitement you find in the bar scene
A house filled with love and a husband so true
The love and comfort that comes with having a loyal husband and a caring family are not important to you, as it doesn't provide the same rush and excitement as your current lifestyle
You'd rather have a drink with the first guy you meet
You're willing to potentially sacrifice the safety and stability of your family by spending time with strangers who share your love of the bar scene
And the only home you know, that pub down the street
Bars and honky tonks are the only places you feel at home and where you can truly be yourself, while leaving your other responsibilities behind
Drinking and dancing to a honky tonk band
You find joy and fulfillment in the simple pleasures of drinking and dancing to music you love, regardless of the lack of substance and importance in those activities
When you left your loving family life back, right back where you ran
You ran away from the caring and loving environment of your home in search of the thrill and excitement of the bar scene
So go on and have your fun, but you won't always look so smart
Your constant pursuit of temporary happiness and thrill-seeking may eventually catch up with you, making you regret not placing value in things that truly matter
When some day that lonely bar room break your honky-tonk heart
Your dependence on the bar scene may eventually lead to heartbreak and loneliness, as you realize that it's not a sustainable or meaningful way of living
You'll never look at your wife, to a home loving man
Your current lifestyle and devotion to the bar scene will forever prevent you from finding happiness and love in a stable and loving home environment
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: JOE MAPHIS, MAX FIDLER, ROSE LEE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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