La Musica & Certain Degrees of Billy Bob Thorton

In honor of his recent wedding (who woulda thunk it?), I thought I’d post one of my favorite Dwight Yoakam songs. I agree with Johnny Cash’s assessment of Dwight as one of the best voices in country music. Yes, his sound is very high-in-the-throat (not “nasal,” as the snark crew have consistently and erroneously maintained), but it’s also very musical and layered. I picked this song because it highlights Yoakam’s vibrato, as regular as a sawtooth pattern and second only to Merle Haggard’s.

And since I was on a blogging hiatus when he died, I thought I’d also include one by John Prine. Such a potent songwriting talent.

~ S.K. Orr