Dallas Wayne

Dallas Wayne

I’ll Take The Fifth

4 out of 5

All Dressed Up (with No Place To Go)/ Crawlin’ Is Easy/ I’m Gonna Break Some Promises Tonight/ Not A Dry Eye In the House/ Fixin’ To Fall/ I’ll Take The Fifth/ If These Walls Could Cry/ Invincible Man/ Straighten Up (And Lie Right) w/ Sunny Sweeney/ In No Time At All/ God Only Knows/ I Never Did Like Planes/ Something Inside

Producers: Tommy Detamore and Dallas Wayne

Smith Entertainment Group SED7114

49:10

If you consider Dallas Wayne’s busy radio schedule, it is surprising that he can find the time to record. I would be hard pressed to name someone else who can host a four hour show seven days a week and a 6 hour show on Saturday nights, and still be able to find the time and energy that recording requires. But thankfully this Superman of Sirious XM satellite radio has been able to do so.

For those who follow non-Nashville Country Music happenings, the name Dallas Wayne is not new one. A quick read of his bio uncovers nine previous recordings, excluding his work with the honky tonk super group, the TwangBangers. 

With this release it is clear why Dallas has earned the reputation that he has as a singer and songwriter. Dallas wrote seven of the tracks himself. The remaining six tracks he shares writing credits (most notably with Robbie Fulks on four of the six). The well sung and well produced 13 tracks range in style, but all are worth repeat listens.

The lead track All Dressed Up (With No Place To Go) swings as much as Asleep At the Wheel and will have you ready to find the nearest hardwood. It is, to say the least, very nicely written, and fun to the point that you almost forget to notice the lyric.

Traditional country finds itself represented here in other ways as well. Hardcore country is represented in the slow “Not A Dry Eye In the House”. This tearful track is sure to please those who prefer their country lonely and sad. While “Fixin’ To Fall” is nothing but traditional in its shuffling announcement that he’s about to fall for someone.

Crawlin’ Is Easy (....when you ain’t got a leg to stand on) is radio ready, as is “I’m Gonna Break Some Promises Tonight”, “God Only Knows”, and “I Never Did Like Planes.” Even though to expect mainstream radio to play great songs sung well is a bit of a pipedream, these songs should be heard. I know Mainstream Country Radio works hard at not letting many slip through the cracks, but maybe something will distract it long enough for these to get through. Granted, Dallas looks as if his hair is combed and his pants fit right, but aren’t the songs what Country is supposed to be about.

“Invisible Man” is a track more like something Nashville would be glad to release. Although, it leans more toward the not so traditional side of things, it’s still a good song. You can hear Toby Keith scoring a hit with it. A similar thing can be said about “If These Walls Could Cry”. It too begs to be covered, but it would take Rick Trevino instead of Toby. That being said, I think most would find there is nothing unpleasant about Dallas’ delivery of either song.

A sense of humor is added to the mix with the title track, “I’ll Take The Fifth”. This song has the singer on trial for those types of silly heartsick deeds that sometimes occur after a relationship has ended. We can all remember doing things like this....er, um, I mean hearing about things like this. But instead of admitting to the misdeeds, he states “I’ll take the fifth, gonna drink it down....I refuse to answer on the grounds....That everything I say I might incriminate....Let my broken hearted peers decide my fate......The only thing I’m guilty of is loving her the way I do.” A fun, and funny, song with a Delbert McClinton like arrangement, certainly works for me.

A sense of Humor also marks Dallas’ duet with Sunny Sweeney. “Straighten Up (And Lie Right)” is a fast stepper in the tradition of Loretta Lynn. In this the woman demands that her man stop telling stupid lies to cover his behavior. Instead, she suggests that he “straighten up and lie right because it’s the last one you’re gonna tell”.

The remaining tracks are good as well. “In No Time at All” issues the warning that “s*** happens in no time at all” to those whose time in the sun can come to a close at any time. A very direct lyric, that I like, backed by an arrangement that Charlie Daniels would be proud of. “Something Inside” also shares the influence of the Southern Rock side of Country.

With this disc Dallas Wayne has touched on almost every type of Country imaginable. It makes for a great listen.  There is a bit of something for everyone, and a whole lot to enjoy if you are a fan of the genre as a whole. Thanks Dallas.