Few entertainers have attained the iconic status of Dwight Yoakam. Perhaps that is because so few have consistently and repeatedly met the high standard of excellence delivered by the Kentucky native no matter what his endeavor. His name immediately conjures up compelling, provocative images: A pale cowboy hat with the brim pulled low; poured-on blue jeans; intricate, catchy melodies paired with poignant, brilliant lyrics that mesmerize with their indelible imprint. Yoakam’s relentless search for truth has firmly connected him with a large, loyal following. A long-time Los Angeleno, Yoakam has sold more than 25 million albums worldwide, placing him in an elite cadre of global superstars.

Much has been made that the Kentucky-born, Ohio-raised Yoakam was too country for Nashville when he first sought out his musical fortune in the mid-80s, but the truth is his music has always been too unique, too ruggedly individualistic to fit neatly into any one box. Like the icons he so admires – Elvis, Merle, Buck – Yoakam is one of a kind. He has taken his influences and filtered them into his own potent blend of country and rock that honors his musical predecessors and yet creates something beautifully new. As Vanity Fair declared, “Yoakam strides the divide between rock’s lust and country’s lament.”

Originally issued in 1987, Hillbilly Deluxe is Yoakam’s second studio effort and second consecutive No. 1 album on the Billboard Country Albums charts following his breakout 1986 debut Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc. Four singles from the album shot to the Top 10 on the Hot Country Singles chart including “Little Sister,” “Little Ways,” “Please, Please Baby,” and “Always Late with Your Kisses.” Ralph Novak aptly praised Yoakam here for his “uncluttered natural style, with a little rockabilly sob in his voice that harks back to Hank Williams.”