21-time nominated, multiple Grammy Award winner and country superstar Dwight Yoakam’s first new album in nine years, Brighter Days, is out now on ViaRecords/Thirty Tigers. Listen HERE.
Leading up to the release Yoakam unveiled three new songs: “I’ll Pay The Price”, “Wide Open Heart”, and “I Don’t Know How To Say Goodbye (Bang Bang Boom Boom)” with Post Malone (along with a music video).
Written and recorded over the last three years, Brighter Days features 12 brand-new songs written/co-written by Yoakam, as well as three seemingly disparate covers—“Keeping On The Sunny Side” by the Carter Family, “Bound Away” by Cake and “Time Between” written by Chris Hillman of The Byrds—artfully woven into the same body of work in the unmistakable style that could only be Dwight Yoakam.
At once timeless and timely, Yoakam self-produced Brighter Days, infusing a modern appreciation for country music’s history with the trailblazing rock and roll spirit of California. The result is an album that reflects a sense of craftsmanship and immediacy, capturing the quintessential Dwight Yoakam “cool” that has set him apart from his country contemporaries since the beginning of his legendary career. As always, Yoakam’s lyrics throughout the album are both deceptively effortless and profoundly poignant. The album was mixed by world-class engineer Chris Lord-Alge.
Brighter Days tracklisting
1. Wide Open Heart
2. I’ll Pay The Price
3. Bound Away (Cake cover)
4. California Sky
5. Can’t Be Wrong
6. I Spell Love
7. A Dream That Never Ends
8. Brighter Days
9. I Don’t Know How To Say Goodbye (Bang Bang Boom Boom) (with Post Malone)
10. If Only
11. Hand Me Down Heart
12. Time Between
13. Keep On The Sunny Side (The Carter Family cover)
14. Every Night