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Eighty-three-year-old
Loretta Lynn, another artistic peer of Glen Campbell's, recently released her 118th* album, "Full Circle", earlier this year, her 56th year in the music business. According to her daughter,
Patsy Lynn Russell, Full Circle has been the "highest debuting album of the year", and hope is high for an ensuing Grammy Award. Full Circle is Loretta's first new studio album in over 10 years and is comprised of a mixture of recordings inspired by Appalachian folk songs Lynn learned as a child and newer versions of past hits. Produced by Patsy and
John Carter Cash, the son of
Johnny Cash and
June Carter Cash, the album includes duets with
Elvis Costello and the venerable
Willie Nelson.
Spin Magazine describes Full Circle as "an afternoon on the front porch listening to Lynn tell you her life story, a trajectory with an impact that no single disc could ever fully sum up.”
One of the album's tracks, "Who's Gonna Miss Me?", written by LL and Lola Jean Dillon, is a sad lament about mortality; different and yet similar to
Glen Campbell and
Julian Raymond's "I'm Not Gonna Miss You". Loretta's penned song was based on her devastating life experiences with losses of loved ones; Loretta has outlived her husband and two of her children.
I recently saw Loretta Lynn in concert. I felt she truly embodies the title many people use when referring to Loretta: "Queen of Country Music". Seated onstage throughout her concert, she sat regally in a chair, her back straight, her head held up high, dressed in a long red-sequined dress; sans guitar. She was quick to give her band, "The Coal Miners", commands but also joked with them at length. Loretta sang hit after hit including her mega hit song "Coal Miner's Daughter". At one point, she mentioned to the audience that for the last four years on or around the 4th of July holiday, she has held a "Remember Conway Twitty Weekend" at her home in Tennessee. Artists and family members gather to sing
Conway Twitty songs and share memories about Twitty; this event means a lot to her. (Twitty passed away in 1993.)
Loretta's daughter Patsy is a twin, and Patsy and her sister, Peggy, opened the concert with a couple of songs. They are pictured below. Loretta's grandson, Anthony, helped to work the merch table in the lobby. Similar to Willie Nelson on tour, Loretta's tour is a family affair.
Below are a few pictures I took. The coal miner logo photos are from Loretta Lynn's tour bus; a strong logo for a strong woman.
*
according to Patsy and Loretta's count of albums
c. D. Zink 2016