"Guitars, Cadillacs" is a song written and recorded by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

artist

Dwight Yoakam Dwight David Yoakam (born October 23, 1956) is an American singer-songwriter, actor, and film director. He first achieved mainstream attention in 1986 with the release of his debut album '' Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc.''. Yoakam had considerab ...

. It was released in June 1986 as the second single and partial title track from his debut album '' Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc.''. It peaked at number 4 in the United States, and number 2 in Canada.

Music video

The music video was directed and produced by

Sherman Halsey Sherman Brooks Halsey (February 22, 1957 – October 29, 2013) was an American music video and television director, producer, and artist manager. Sherman Halsey produced and directed hundreds of television shows and music videos for artists ...

, and features Dwight Yoakam at a concert.

Critical reception

Larry Flick Larry Flick is an American journalist, former dance music columnist, single reviewer, and Senior Talent Editor for ''Billboard'' magazine, where he worked for 14 years. Now he produces and hosts Sirius XM radio shows. Flick started in the music ...

, of ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' magazine reviewed the song favorably, saying that "walking bass, twangy guitar, fiddle, and Yoakam's voice make it a pure hillbilly delight." In June 2014, ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' magazine ranked "Guitars, Cadillacs" #94 in their list of the 100 greatest country songs.

In popular culture

The song plays during the bar scene in the 1991

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

action film Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include life ...

'' Terminator 2: Judgment Day'' when the Terminator walks into a biker bar looking for clothes to wear; this scene has been omitted from some television airings. It was also featured in the film ''

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

'' released the same year. The song made another appearance in the 2019 film '' Terminator: Dark Fate'', as an homage to its presence in ''Terminator 2''. American rock group ''

The Protomen The Protomen are an American rock band, who started their career on and are perhaps most widely known for composing concept albums loosely based on the video game series '' Mega Man''. Their stage names are largely references to pop culture film ...

'' covered the song for "William Shakespeare Presents: Terminator the Second", a parody of ''Terminator 2'' consisting entirely of lines from Shakespearean works. The song is featured on the soundtrack of the play.

Chart performance

"Guitars, Cadillacs" debuted at number 54 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles & Tracks for the week of July 12, 1986.

References

{{authority control 1986 singles 1986 songs Dwight Yoakam songs Songs written by Dwight Yoakam Reprise Records singles Music videos directed by Sherman Halsey Song recordings produced by Pete Anderson