Wayne sounds especially delightful on this CD’s title track. Its lyric -- a pun that combines liquor to drown sorrows in, with a courtroom pseudo drama -- is double entendre at its best. But in addition to these wink-and-tell words, Wayne is also backed up by a soulful horn section and Joel Guzman’s peppy accordion. Elsewhere, western swing music drives “If These Walls Could Cry” as Wayne turns on the waterworks to moan: “And I’d be drowning in their tears/If these walls could cry.” And speaking of waterworks, countrypolitan strings saturate the equally tearful “Not a Dry Eye in the House”. “There’s not a dry eye in the house/Since you’ve gone.”
The vocal duet is a bit of a new wrinkle for Mr. Wayne, and its good fun to hear the man trading singing licks with the sassy Sunny Sweeny during “Straighten Up (And Lie Right)”. She even threatens to loosen up the teeth her man has been lying through at one point. This is a fast moving tune, which sports Bobby Flores’ hot fiddle work and Redd Volkaert’s even hotter electric guitar. This song’s saucy words are not surprising, as Wayne co-wrote it with fellow smart alack, Robbie Fulks. Fulks also assisted in writing three other songs from this lively 13-song collection.
Although Wayne tends to keep things light most of the time, “In No Time At All” takes an angry shot at today’s messed up country music business. On this one, (presumably) Volkaert shows off his blues licks. “Shit happens in no time at all,” Wayne summarizes. And that little touch of potty talk also guarantees it absolutely no commercial radio airplay.
Wayne doesn’t fit too well in country’s current style-over-substance state, as I’ll Take the Fifth is both intelligent and heartfelt. In court room jargon, taking the fifth involves waving the right to speak. But it’s a good thing Wayne has chosen to speak out because he has plenty on his mind. He may not look cute in a cowboy hat, and for heaven’s sake, let’s hope he sticks with loose fitting jeans! But by all means, keep the man in the recording studio, instead of the SIRIUS XM radio studio that’s kept him captive for the past three years. Wayne is an unlikely savior for country music. But this unlikely musical messiah has wonderful aural medicine, believe it or not. And it may just take more than a fifth of that to cure what ails us all.
You can support Dallas Wayne by purchasing this album at iTunes | Amazon.
0 Comments