Customer Reviews

Dreaming My Dreams

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Dreaming My Dreams is the best Waylon Jennings ever got. After that, while there were other good songs and records, superstardom and the abuse of substances took their toll, and many of the songs -- especially the hits -- got ever more cartoonish and self-referential in the Hank Williams, Jr., vein. But before Jennings lost his artist's grip, there was this, as well as the earlier Honky Tonk Heroes, his enduring tribute to Billy Joe Shaver's songwriting genius. Dreaming My Dreams, which manages to fuse honkytonk grit, rock'n'roll rhythm, and folk melodicism, sounds like no other country album ever made.

Only Jack Clement's dopey "Let's All Help the Cowboys (Sing the Blues)" anticipates the inferior material to come. The rest is all stunning stuff, brought to life and breath via affectingly spare arrangements, with little to get in the way of the tightly wound vocals. The listener seems to be hearing the middle-of-the-night reflections of a man drifting in and out of consciousness, memories and dreams interwoven so that one can no longer be torn from the other, the effect enhanced by the somnambulant fade-out that concludes each song.

Though nearly all of the songs are as good as songs get, the high point is Waylon and Curtis Buck's "Waymore's Blues." Here Jennings goes back to the roots of country music and beyond, to rewrite a 19th-Century American folk song known in its different but related versions as "Milwaukee Blues," "Jay Gould's Daughter," and even, in some variants, "Casey Jones." He even tosses in a couple of traditional verses and adds one so disingenuously sexually explicit that it may as well have been borrowed from an old-time downhome blues. "Waymore's Blues" is the masterpiece within the masterpiece.

Put simply, this album is better than anything else you'll hear. It is that good. The songs are heartfelt, honest, and raw. The writing is great, but Waylon's performance is what is really incredible. It's tough but tender, and you can listen and hear so many emotions expressed in his voice.

Another nice thing is that all the lead guitar on this album was played by Waylon himself, as Jack Clement felt Waylon's voice and guitar worked very well of a package. I think he was right.

If you want Nashville's McCountry, you'll hate this. If, on the other hand, you like music, then this is your album. It goes beyond country, beyond its rock and blues influences, too. It is one of those albums that is for fans of MUSIC, regardless of genre. It is a well-crafted piece of art by an artist who created a revolution within Nashville with music like this.

This could be the finest country album ever put to tape. You will love it.

I grew up listening to Waylon and his buddies and all the crazy eclectic things my parents liked (Peter Paul & Mary, John Denver, Willie, Merle, Glen Campbell). This album is essential Waylon, IMHO; if you want to understand him in basics, this is it. It speaks to his roots, musical background, his influence on Nashville and Country Music [back when it was still Country and Western Music] and should be required listening.

The title track is one my favorite all time songs; Waylon's black hole deep baritone is hauntingly gorgous and painfully longing.

This album is to country what Van Halen I was to rock. Gritty, pure and from the soul, Jennings spans the spectrum from western swing in "Bob Wills is Still The King" to waltz/polka in "Waymore's Blues." Undeniably "outlaw" in nature, "Dreamin My Dreams" reflects the Waylon we wish we knew. Remember Elvis on Ed Sullivan? This is Waylon's lean, mean, yet tender duplicity that holds the banner of true country music that Brooks, McGraw, Byrd, and the other fill-in-the-blanks can only dream of.

Some records are so perfect there's not a second you'd want to fade or edit out. This was my introduction to Waymore, many years ago. I had the good fortune to discover him via someone who had a number of his records so it was a real eye-opener to find a singer I'd never heard of with a back catalogue of such high quality. I love the record for a number of reasons: the voice; the musicians; the songs, but more than anything else it was memorable for showing me a country band could SWING. It's not rock or blues or jazz but it has it's own feel and, of course, caused me to check out the likes of Bob Wills - not exactly a household name in the United Kingdom. Waylon was making good records til he died, but he never improved on this. Wonderful.

This should be it.
Brian Wilson has Pet Sounds, The Beatles have Sgt Peppers - and Waylon has Dreamin My Dreams.
The songs are strong, the arrangements are tight, and the sound is gutsy, warm and robust - all at the same time.
Getting into Waylon is not easy, because there are dozens of Best Of Cds available, and many are filled with his own version of C&W standards, plus duets and combinations with Willy Nelson and others.
On Dreamin My Dreams, he masters the album as a piece of music in its own right, not simply as a collection of songs.
The CD is wonderfully re-mastered, so the sound is crystal clear. "Bob Wills is Still the King" never sounded so good.
But again, this isn't an album of individual highlights; rather, it's a celebration of a guy who travelled in the world in many more ways than one, and though his journey is now over, his catalogue is immense, and this CD stands as his opus magnus.

Dreaming My Dreams was released in 1975, a couple of years after Waylon Jennings had wrestled away artistic control of his music from the Nashville establishment. It was recorded in Tompall Glaser's "very cozy" upstairs recording studio. The first song is the electric guitar rocking, autobiographical Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way.

Somebody told me when I came to Nashville
"Son, you've finally got it made
Ol' Hank made it here and we're all sure that you will"
But I don't think Hank done it this way

Waylon then gets reflective with Don Williams' Gypsy Woman. This is one of Waylon's best songs. Waylon's raspy baritone gives the impression of a big man who has lived life the hard way, but still stands tall and is ready for more (all were true). His voice also had a persuasive vulnerability that has won listeners over for decades. It's easy to identify with his struggles, and easy to want to stand in his corner. There's a excellant version of Roger Miller's I've Been A Long Time Leaving (But I'll Be A Long Time Gone) included here, too. The Door Is Always Open was a hit for the two girl, one guy trio, Dave and Sugar, but the song seems like it was written for Waylon.

When night falls on that mansion and you're lying in his bed
When he begs you for attention, will you think of me instead
When he reaches out to touch you, is your face turned to the wall
Well the door is always open and the lights on in the hall

The title track is Waylon at his most tender, but this guy never gets mushy. Not Waylon, not ever. He gets back into rowdy form, with a live version of Bob Wills Is Still The King. Waylon's dominating vocal performance sounds great, and even though it's the only live song on the album, it fits right in. He had said Dreaming My Dreams was his favorite of all his albums, and it's easy to see why. This was Waylon Jennings at the top of his game.

I had this album on 8trac tape for years! This one to me is probably his best.. I played that thing so much that the tape itself and the casing wore out. I've still got it even though it won't play anymore. This album is good for any mood you're in.

I was just getting in to music. I listened to this on vinyl on a 10$ mono record player. I went out and bought every Waylon record I could find. No easy feat for a 12 yr old. I now have all but a few on CD. This album brings back so many memories. In my opinion this is Waylon's best album.

Dreaming My Dreams showcases Waylon Jennings at the height of his creative powers. This is one of those albums that can be listened to over and over for years and never get old. The title track is one of the saddest songs about lost love that may be ever written. If you only own one country album own this one. If you could only buy two buy this one and WJ Honkey Tonk Heros.
For those of you that do not thing country music will ever sound like this again you are mostly right. However, Jamey Johnson may be the second coming of Waylon and he covers both the title track and The Door is Always Open on his brilliant album That Lonesome Song. Any Waylon or outlaw country fan should pick up Johnson's masterpiece as well.