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.
My Heart Skips A Beat
Dwight Yoakam Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
When we walk down the street
I feel a tremblin' in my knees
And just to know your mine,
Until the end of time
Makes my heart skip a beat.
Well, I did a double take the day I met you
My heart turned a flip as I stood next to you
For you are my every dream come true
And my heart skips a beat,
When we walk down the street
I feel a tremblin' in my knees
And just to know your mine,
Until the end of time
Makes my heart skip a beat
[Instrumental]
You came into my life without a warning
And you turned my cloudy skies from gray to blue
Your my sunshine that comes up every morning
Yes, you are my every dream come true.
And my heart skips a beat,
When we walk down the street
I feel a tremblin' in my knees
And just to know your mine,
Until the end of time
Makes my heart skip a beat...
Dwight Yoakam's song "My Heart Skips a Beat" is a classic country love song that describes the feeling of being in love. The lyrics express the physical and emotional reaction that the singer experiences when he sees his love. The first verse describes the singer's physical reaction, specifically how his heart skips a beat and he feels a trembling in his knees when he is walking down the street with his love. The second verse is about the emotional connection that the singer has with his love. He expresses how meeting her was a life-changing moment for him and how he could never forget her. The chorus repeats the same theme, emphasizing just how much he loves his partner.
The song uses simple language and a catchy melody to portray the idea of being deeply in love. The lyrics are sincere and heartfelt, giving the listener a sense of how profound and all-encompassing love can be. The song highlights the many feelings that come with being in love, including the sense of warmth and comfort that it brings.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, my heart skips a beat,
The singer's heart beats faster when they are around the person they love.
When we walk down the street
The feeling of love intensifies when they are in the presence of their loved one.
I feel a tremblin' in my knees
The strong emotions cause a physical reaction in the singer's body.
And just to know your mine,
The singer feels privileged to be with the person they love.
Until the end of time
The singer is committed to loving the person forever.
Makes my heart skip a beat.
The love the singer feels for the person is very intense and emotional.
Well, I did a double take the day I met you
The singer was shocked and surprised when they met the person they love.
My heart turned a flip as I stood next to you
The singer's heart felt intense emotions when they were near the person they love.
And I knew right there I never could forget you
The singer felt a deep and lasting love for the person from the moment they met.
For you are my every dream come true
The person the singer loves embodies everything they have ever wanted in a partner.
You came into my life without a warning
The singer was surprised when they fell in love with the person.
And you turned my cloudy skies from gray to blue
Meeting the person the singer loves brought happiness and hope into their life.
Your my sunshine that comes up every morning
The person the singer loves brings joy and light into their life every day.
Yes, you are my every dream come true.
The person the singer loves fulfills everything they have ever wanted in a partner.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Buck Owens
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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