Though we tend to eschew giving coverage to vinyl-only “reissues” of records still in print (we don’t see them as a “reissue” but as a mere “repressing” into the hip format), we will make exceptions when they are called for, and such is the case with the recent triple-LP reissue of the expanded edition of Dwight Yoakam‘s superb debut album, Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc. Etc., which features his complete 1981 demo tape and a live show from 1986. When released in 1986, Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc. Etc., was a breath of fresh air thanks to the staid and sterile Modern Country format, and though Yoakam considered himself to be a part of the roots rock movement that had birthed such fine bands as Jason & The Scorchers, Lone Justice, and Rank & File, the record was an immediate smash on Country radio and prompted him to mainstream success, thanks in part to its updated take on the Bakersfield Sound. The album’s second single, the exciting “Guitars, Cadillacs,” was a smash hit, still proves to be an exciting listen three decades on. The rest of Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc. Etc. does as well, and it’s an important record both in terms of Roots Rock and 1980s country as well.
Purchase: Amazon
The Recoup 
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