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.
It Is Well With My Soul
Dwight Yoakam Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Attendeth my way
When sorrows like sea billows, roll
Whatever my lot
Thou has taught me to say
It is well, it is well with my soul
With my soul
It is well, it is well with my soul
My sin, oh, the bliss
Of this glorious thought
My sin, not in part but the whole
Is nailed to the cross
And I bear it no more
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord
Oh, my soul
It is well, it is well with my soul
With my soul
It is well, it is well with my soul
And Lord, haste the day
When the faith shall be sight
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll
The trump shall resound
And the Lord shall descend
Even so, it is well with my soul
It is well, it is well with my soul
With my soul
It is well, it is well with my soul
It is well, it is well with my soul
With my soul
It is well, it is well with my soul
Dwight Yoakam's song "It Is Well With My Soul" is an interpretation of the classic Christian hymn with the same name. The lyrics describe the unwavering faith and trust that the writer has in God, even in the midst of difficult circumstances. The first stanza compares the feeling of peace to that of a river's flow and the sorrows to the tumultuous waves of the sea. Despite the challenges that may come their way, the writer is confident in their faith and declares that everything is okay with their soul.
The second stanza focuses on redemption and the joy that comes from knowing that all of one's sins have been forgiven. The writer expresses their overwhelming happiness in knowing that their sins, both in part and in whole, are nailed to the cross and no longer bear any weight. The final stanza concludes with the writer's plea for the return of the Lord and the day when the faithful will see Him face to face. The writer is filled with hope and peace, knowing that, ultimately, everything is well with their soul.
Overall, Dwight Yoakam's rendition of "It Is Well With My Soul" is a powerful declaration of faith and trust in God. it's an inspiring hymn that reminds us to keep our eyes fixed on Him, even when life's storms rage around us.
Line by Line Meaning
When peace like a river
When calmness fills my mind like a flowing river
Attendeth my way
And accompanies me on this journey
When sorrows like sea billows, roll
When overwhelming sadness washes over me like stormy waves
Whatever my lot
No matter what fate has in store for me
Thou has taught me to say
You have nurtured me to cope with it and say
It is well, it is well with my soul
Everything is going to be alright, and I will remain content
My sin, oh, the bliss
The feeling of relief that comes from knowing
Of this glorious thought
That my sins, all of them, have been forgiven
My sin, not in part but the whole
Without exception, my transgressions have been washed away
Is nailed to the cross
They have been symbolically attached to the cross
And I bear it no more
And I won't have to worry about those sins again
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord
Let us all praise the Lord for this amazing grace and forgiveness
Oh, my soul
From the depths of my heart and mind
And Lord, haste the day
And I implore you, Lord, to hurry the day when
When the faith shall be sight
My faith will transform itself into reality
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll
As if the clouds were paper, they will be rolled up and opened
The trump shall resound
And when the trumpets blow, announcing the Second Coming of Christ
And the Lord shall descend
The Lord Jesus himself will come to Earth
Even so, it is well with my soul
Even in this event, I will stay calm and happy
It is well, it is well with my soul
I will remain content and at peace with myself
With my soul
Deep within myself, at my core
It is well, it is well with my soul
Everything is alright in my soul, and I will remain content
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
Written by: Dwight Yoakam
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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