The first time I ever took notice of Dwight Yoakam was his duet with the legendary Buck Owens, "The Streets of Bakersfield." Their chemistry together was so tangible that my father was convinced Yoakam was Owens' son recording under a different name. Regardless, this Tejano-tinged song is one that's darn near impossible to hear without smiling. It's simply fun. And I adore the concise storytelling in the lyrics--"I took fifteen dollars from that man" Yoakam sings of a drunk thrown into the same San Francisco jail cell as he, before Owens jumps in with the clarification, "Left him my watch and my old house key/Don't want folks thinking that I'd steal." How great is that? I aspire to write such character-defining lines in my writing, and here it's an almost throw-away lyric in the song. The video also gets bonus points from me for the Colt .45s cap and the return of Owens' signature red-white-and-blue guitar.
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