Maps of Music

Van Lear Rose (2004)

Where the lyrics of Van Lear Rose take you, and where it was really made.

When this album came out, Loretta Lynn was 72 and producer Jack White was 28, and it became the most successful crossover album of Lynn's 60-year career up to that point.

Key places

Recorded in Nashville (2004)

Recording site Nashville — The album was recorded in Nashville, Tennessee. The point marks the city's recording location as listed in the source. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Mixed in Memphis (2004)

Recording site Ardent Studios — The album was mixed at Easley McCain Studios in Memphis, Tennessee, by Jack White and Stuart Sikes. The point is set at city-center level, not the studio building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Mastered in Los Angeles (2004)

Recording site The Mastering Lab, Los Angeles — The album was mastered at The Mastering Lab in Los Angeles, California. The site is listed as the mastering studio for this release. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Van Lear Rose: forty-second solo studio album by Loretta Lynn
• American country singer-songwriter; released 27 April 2004 by Interscope Records
• Produced by Jack White
• Peaked at No. 2 on Billboard Top Country Albums and No. 24 on Billboard 200
• The most successful crossover album of Lynn's 60-year career up to that point

Background

• Initially intended as a musical experiment, blending the styles of Lynn and producer White
• Jack White co-wrote one track, sings a duet with Lynn, and plays on the entire album
• At the time of release, Lynn was 72 and White was 28
• The title refers to Lynn's origins as the daughter of a miner working the Van Lear coal mines

Recording

• Recorded in Nashville, Tennessee
• Mixed at Easley McCain Studios in Memphis, Tennessee, by Jack White and Stuart Sikes
• Mastered at The Mastering Lab in Los Angeles, California
• Engineers: Eric McConnell; Brendan Benson added as engineer on Little Red Shoes
• Personnel includes Dirk Powell (fiddle, bowed bass, banjo), David Feeny (pedal steel, Dobro), Patrick Keeler (drums), Little Jack Lawrence (bass), and Dan John Miller (acoustic guitar)

Cover

• Cover photography by Russ Harrington
• Cover art direction by Nancy Russell

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · it.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.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

• The album was released to glowing reviews and universal acclaim
• Blender magazine called it some of the most gripping singing of the year and a brave, unrepeatable record that speaks to Lynn's whole life
• Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic praised how the record captures the essence of Lynn's music while still carrying flourishes that are distinctly Jack White's
• Metacritic gave the album a score of 97, the fourth highest ever and the second-highest for a female artist to date
• Rhapsody ranked the album No. 16 on its Country's Best Albums of the Decade list

Reappraisal

• Pitchfork listed the track Portland Oregon as the 305th best song of the 2000s

Records

• Debuted at No. 2 on the US Billboard Top Country Albums chart and No. 24 on the US Billboard 200
• Sold 37,000 copies in its first week, the best sales week for Lynn in the Nielsen Soundscan era
• Sold over 233,000 copies in the United States as of September 2004
• Won a Grammy Award for best country album in 2004
• Most successful crossover album of Lynn's 60-year career up to that point

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · it.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The first single, Miss Being Mrs., was released in April 2004 and did not chart; its music video premiered on 23 May.
• The second single, Portland Oregon, was released in May and did not chart; two music videos were shot for it, and the first one was never released.
• Portland Oregon features Jack White singing a duet with Lynn.
• The album was released as a jewel case with a clear tray and a 12-page cover booklet containing lyrics, credits, and photos.
• Lynn was 72 at release and White 28, making the pairing a striking age contrast.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com

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