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

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

artist

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

. 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, 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 musi ...

, of ''

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'' 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, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' magazine ranked "Guitars, Cadillacs" #94 in their list of the 100 greatest country songs. In an updated 2024 ranking by the publication that expanded the list to 200 songs, "Guitars, Cadillacs" placed at #137.

In popular culture

The song plays during the bar scene in the 1991

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

action film The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as D ...

'' Terminator 2: Judgment Day'' when the T-800 walks into a biker bar looking for clothes to wear and means of transportation; this scene has been omitted from some television airings. It was also featured in the film '' Dutch'' released the same year. The song made another appearance in the 2019 film '' Terminator: Dark Fate'', as a homage to its presence in ''Terminator 2''. American rock group ''

The Protomen The Protomen are an American rock band who started their career composing concept albums loosely based on the video game series ''Mega Man''. Their stage names are largely references to pop culture films, song titles, and fictional characters. T ...

'' 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