Maps of Music

Honky Tonk Heroes (1978)

Where the lyrics of Honky Tonk Heroes take you, and where it was really made.

It was the duo's eighth straight top-10 album, yet it was the lowest-placed of that run, peaking at No. 8 on the US country albums chart.

Key places

Recording sessions at Bradley's Barn (1978)

Recording site Bradley's Barn — Recording sessions for the album took place here on March 8, 14 and 15, 1978. The point sits at building-level coordinates. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Honky Tonk Heroes: eighth collaborative studio album by Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn
• Released June 26, 1978 by MCA Records
• The duo's annual duet LP, including some of the couple's latest singles
• Also includes new numbers that fans heard for the first time on this album
• Only single: From Seven Till Ten, released June 1978
• The single was backed with You're the Reason Our Kids Are Ugly

Background

• Eighth consecutive album by the duo to peak in the US top 10
• Peaked at No. 8 on the US Billboard Hot Country LP's chart, the duo's lowest chart position for an album at the time
• In Canada, peaked at No. 2 on the RPM Country Albums chart
• The single peaked at No. 6 on the US Billboard Hot Country Singles chart, the duo's eighth top-10 single

Recording

• Recording sessions held March 8, 14 and 15, 1978, at Bradley's Barn in Mount Juliet, Tennessee
• Owen Bradley credited as producer
• Three songs came from earlier sessions
• We've Made It Legal recorded March 6, 1973, for the Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man sessions
• Two songs came from 1977 Dynamic Duo sessions: From Seven Till Ten (March 15, 1977) and How High Can You Build a Fire (March 16, 1977)

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Artist

Early life

• Born Loretta Webb on April 14, 1932, in Butcher Hollow, Kentucky, the oldest daughter in a coal miner's family.
• Married Oliver Vanetta "Doolittle" Lynn in 1948 at age 15; the marriage lasted almost 50 years until his death in 1996.
• Began singing in local clubs in the late 1950s and formed her own band, the Trailblazers.

Career

• Signed with Zero Records in 1960; her first release was "Whispering Sea" and "I'm a Honky Tonk Girl".
• Joined Decca Records through the Wilburn Brothers; joined the Grand Ole Opry on September 25, 1962.
• Scored a string of hits from the 1960s, including "You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My Man)" and "Don't Come Home A-Drinkin'".
• Wrote songs on women's issues such as birth control ("The Pill") and double standards ("Rated 'X'"), many inspired by her own marriage.
• Recorded five No. 1 duets with Conway Twitty between 1971 and 1975.
• Her 1976 autobiography Coal Miner's Daughter became a bestseller and inspired the 1980 Oscar-winning film starring Sissy Spacek.
• Named Artist of the Decade for the 1970s by the Academy of Country Music, the only woman to win this honor.
• Released Van Lear Rose (2004), produced by Jack White, which won the Grammy for Best Country Album.
• Had a stroke in 2017 and broke her hip in 2018, which ended her touring after 57 years.
• Died on October 4, 2022, at age 90, at her home in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Billboard, July 8, 1978 issue: called it the duo's annual duet LP with the couple's latest singles and new numbers
• Billboard: described the instrumentation as straight country, with a bouncy, prominent bass line, frequent bursts of harmonica, and a surplus of guitar
• Billboard: named I've Already Loved You in My Mind, How High Can You Build a Fire, You're the Reason Our Kids Are Ugly, We've Made It Legal, and Live It Up as the best cuts
• Billboard: told album dealers to expect sales to be consistently strong

Records

• US Billboard Hot Country LP chart: number 8
• Eighth consecutive top-10 album for the duo, and their lowest chart position for an album at the time
• Canada, RPM Country Albums chart: number 2
• Single From Seven Till Ten: US Billboard Hot Country Singles number 6, the duo's eighth top-10 single
• Single From Seven Till Ten: Canada, RPM Country Singles number 2

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The album's single From Seven Till Ten was backed with the album track You're the Reason Our Kids Are Ugly.
• Three songs on the album were recorded in earlier sessions rather than the March 1978 sessions.
• The album's Billboard review said the duo's annual duet LP mixed new numbers with recent singles, and that fans would hear some songs for the first time.
• Billboard expected album sales to stay consistently strong, according to its note to dealers.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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