::: from All Music Guide :: June, 2003 :: article by Thom Jurek :::
Arguably, Yoakam has never released a shoddy album, and this one is no exception. Most importantly are the surprises, of which there are plenty. On the opener, "The Late Great Golden State," written by Mike Stinson, Yoakam does his best Jackson Browne-Eagles - and actually reveals why the L.A. drugstore cowboy sound is timeless when done right. Former Eagle Timothy B. Schmidt lends a hand on the backing vocals and gives it a solid "take it easy" rollicking roll.
::: from Associated Press :: June, 2003:::
Yoakam wrote seven of the 10 tracks, including the Willie Nelson duet "If Teardrops Were Diamonds," the shuffling "No Such Thing" and the buoyant "An Exception to the Rule."
Most engaging, though, might be "The Late Great Golden State," a song written by Mike Stinson that smacks of '70s California rock by artists such as the Eagles and Jackson Browne. It contains a bouncy banjo riff, sunny harmonies and lyrics that lament the loss of West Coast optimism.
Yoakam sings, "I caught one last glimpse of the Palomino, and I drove out West to see the purple sage, Then as the canyons burned, And the mountains crumbled, The last cowboy band left the stage."
The song fits him. No other contemporary country singer is so closely linked with that dusty Western Bakersfield Sound made famous by Buck Owens and Merle Haggard. With sharp electric guitars and twangy vocals, the style countered the lush, polished country Nashville Sound of the '60s.
Yoakam struck that same raw chord 20 years later when country was again deep into pop.
::: interview with Dwight Yoakam on Country Music Television :: May 30, 2003:::
"The Late Great Golden State" was a title so compelling that I couldn't not chase the song down. That title alone is worth recording. It really encapsulates the whole California music experience and cultural experience. You go all the way back to the Dust Bowl migration of the '30s. Buck Owens' family moved from north central Texas to Arizona and him on to Bakersfield and Merle [Haggard's] family from Oklahoma. So that whole kind of American experience is caught in this song in a lot of ways.
Arguably, Yoakam has never released a shoddy album, and this one is no exception. Most importantly are the surprises, of which there are plenty. On the opener, "The Late Great Golden State," written by Mike Stinson, Yoakam does his best Jackson Browne-Eagles - and actually reveals why the L.A. drugstore cowboy sound is timeless when done right. Former Eagle Timothy B. Schmidt lends a hand on the backing vocals and gives it a solid "take it easy" rollicking roll.
::: from Associated Press :: June, 2003:::
Yoakam wrote seven of the 10 tracks, including the Willie Nelson duet "If Teardrops Were Diamonds," the shuffling "No Such Thing" and the buoyant "An Exception to the Rule."
Most engaging, though, might be "The Late Great Golden State," a song written by Mike Stinson that smacks of '70s California rock by artists such as the Eagles and Jackson Browne. It contains a bouncy banjo riff, sunny harmonies and lyrics that lament the loss of West Coast optimism.
Yoakam sings, "I caught one last glimpse of the Palomino, and I drove out West to see the purple sage, Then as the canyons burned, And the mountains crumbled, The last cowboy band left the stage."
The song fits him. No other contemporary country singer is so closely linked with that dusty Western Bakersfield Sound made famous by Buck Owens and Merle Haggard. With sharp electric guitars and twangy vocals, the style countered the lush, polished country Nashville Sound of the '60s.
Yoakam struck that same raw chord 20 years later when country was again deep into pop.
::: interview with Dwight Yoakam on Country Music Television :: May 30, 2003:::
"The Late Great Golden State" was a title so compelling that I couldn't not chase the song down. That title alone is worth recording. It really encapsulates the whole California music experience and cultural experience. You go all the way back to the Dust Bowl migration of the '30s. Buck Owens' family moved from north central Texas to Arizona and him on to Bakersfield and Merle [Haggard's] family from Oklahoma. So that whole kind of American experience is caught in this song in a lot of ways.