Maps of Music

You're Lookin' at Country (1971)

Where the lyrics of You're Lookin' at Country take you, and where it was really made.

Six of this album's songs were recorded in earlier sessions, some as far back as 1969, so the record was assembled from older takes as well as new ones.

Key places

Bradley's Barn, Mount Juliet (1971)

Recording site Bradley's Barn — Recording sessions for the album took place on July 19 and August 3, 1971, at Bradley's Barn studio in Mount Juliet, Tennessee. The studio is the recording location for the album's 1971 sessions. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• You're Lookin' at Country is the eighteenth solo studio album by American country singer-songwriter Loretta Lynn
• Released September 20, 1971 by Decca Records
• The album's only single was the title track, released in July 1971
• The title track peaked at No. 5 on the US Billboard Hot Country Singles chart
• In Canada the title track peaked at No. 1 on the RPM Country Singles chart
• The album peaked at No. 7 on the US Billboard Hot Country LP chart

Background

• The album came after several earlier Lynn releases from the same label, which are the source of its older recordings
• Lynn's 1969 album Woman of the World/To Make a Man supplied one of the older sessions
• Her 1970 album Wings Upon Your Horns supplied two older sessions from October 1969
• Her 1970 album Loretta Lynn Writes 'Em and Sings 'Em supplied two songs from a December 1969 session
• The title track was recorded for the 1971 album I Wanna Be Free, which it followed closely
• The album mixes recent recordings with leftovers from these earlier sessions

Recording

• Recording sessions for the album took place on July 19 and August 3, 1971, at Bradley's Barn studio in Mount Juliet, Tennessee
• 'You Can't Hold on to Love' was recorded on May 14, 1969, during a session for Woman of the World/To Make a Man
• 'I Burnt the Little Roadside Tavern Down' and 'Love Whatcha Got at Home' were recorded in sessions dated October 2 and 3, 1969
• 'Close My Eyes' and 'From Now On' were recorded on December 8, 1969
• The title track 'You're Lookin' at Country' was recorded on November 25, 1970
• Owen Bradley produced the album
• Session musicians included Grady Martin, Ray Edenton, Hal Rugg, Hargus Robbins, Buddy Harman and Charlie McCoy on harmonica
• The Jordanaires provided background vocals

Sources: en.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

• Billboard reviewed the album in its October 9, 1971 issue, saying the top stylist comes up with a powerhouse production here
• Billboard called the album a top sales item
• Cashbox reviewed the album in its October 2 issue as a guaranteed winner
• Cashbox singled out John Denver's 'Take Me Home, Country Roads' as a track that could be forced out as the next single
• Cashbox praised Lynn's constant strength and wrote that she had once again proved it

Records

• US Billboard Hot Country LP chart: No. 7
• The only single, 'You're Lookin' at Country', peaked at No. 5 on the US Billboard Hot Country Singles chart
• In Canada the single peaked at No. 1 on the RPM Country Singles chart

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Six songs on the album were from previous recording sessions, so the record mixes old and new takes.
• The title track was recorded on November 25, 1970, for a session tied to a 1971 album, before this record was assembled.
• Cashbox saw John Denver's 'Take Me Home, Country Roads' as strong enough to be pushed out as Lynn's next single.
• The Italian-language reference lists 'Take Me Home, Country Roads' as recorded on July 19, 1971, at Bradley's Barn.

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

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