#8 - Phil

Loretta Lynn

Van Lear Rose

2004

There were lots of things going on in my life in the spring of 2004. I was graduating from high school, I was starting my first relationship, and I was NOT listening to country music. But soon that all changed (well, the part about country music - I still graduated and dated the girl). I read in Blender magazine about veteran country singer Loretta Lynn’s new album Van Lear Rose. The reviewer gave it a perfect 5-star rating, calling it “a brave, unrepeatable record that speaks to her whole life.” But what really grabbed my attention was that it was produced by my favorite rock star ever, Jack White (which you may have picked up on). I had to give it a listen!

These songs are indeed brave, as the 69-year old Lynn fully immerses herself in the various storyteller roles they each possess. My favorite song, “Family Tree,” finds Lynn coming face-to-face with her children’s stepmother: “Woman, you don’t know me / But you can bet that I know you / Everybody in this whole darn town knows you too / I brought along our little babies / ‘Cause I wanted them to see / The woman that’s burnin’ down our family tree.” Gripping and raw, it’s a song that I can relate to from my own experience with parental divorce and remarriage.

I would not be doing this album justice, though, if I did not give Mr. White his proper due. Jack’s instrumental support to Loretta’s tender voice is a work of mastery – no wonder he produces all of his own records. “Woman’s Prison” is one of the production highlights, as Lynn takes on the role of a woman about to be executed. It begins softly as Lynn describes why she was sentenced to death, for shooting her lover after catching him with another woman. Then, as the warden brings her to the chair, the drums pick up and cymbals crash, culminating in Lynn whispering the words to “Amazing Grace” over a held keyboard note. Still the finest country album I’ve ever listened to. -P.W.

I recently read that The White Stripes dedicated their album, White Blood Cells, to this country legend long after Loretta Lynn had retired from the music world. In response, Loretta Lynn met with Jack and Meg and Jack ended up producing this album. It’s a cool story and after listening to this album and knowing very little about the back story of Loretta Lynn, I also find it to be a bit of a strange pairing. I was worried to listen to this because I have great distaste for the pop country of today, but this was pretty great. Coming from a contemporary of Johnny Cash, this is true country music and I dig it. - Ryan

With a long career behind her, Loretta needed to find a way to stay relevant in the age of bottom-dwelling mainstream country music, so she hooked up with Jack White as producer and found the perfect crossover audience. The end result is something of an overhyped fusion of classic country and White's bluesy garage sound. I can appreciate the uniqueness of this record as not too many 70 year old country musicians can put out music as fiery as "Have Mercy", but it just never quite comes together for me. - Steve