Country queen Loretta Lynn’s new album (her first in 12 years) reaches back into her past but remains tastefully relevant.
Full Circle, recorded at the Cash Cabin Studio in Tennessee, is a roots record without being retro or obvious. After all, Lynn is a link to Appalachian ballads and pre-rhinestone country music.
Lynn is 83 but sounds much younger. Her vocal cords haven’t aged and, at times, it’s uncanny. She’s potent, clear and sweet and is the opposite of young singers who sound old (Janis Joplin, Adele).
The only help she gets is a touch of reverb from producers John Carter Cash and Patsy Lynn Russell.
Lynn and her producers chose the material well and there’s no overreaching attempts to remake Lynn’s persona or do a comeback. She clearly has her chops together as her previous album with Jack White proved (Van Lear Rose).
The themes are simple and the emphasis is in getting Lynn’s voice to interpret the arrangements. Full Circle has a deep basis in her folk ballad roots and much of that material is darkly beautiful (I Will Never Marry, In the Pines).
Black Jack David is an old song whose melody shares much with early British folk music and Lynn’s recording reflects its origin and how it adapted over time.
She shows herself as a perennial Appalachian mountain girl and bypasses the contemporary concerns of partying, religion, butt kicking and cheap sex.
About a third of the way in, the album gets a jump in energy as Lynn’s voice takes on more of a lush presence. She digs into origin songs that are a hybrid of gospel, folk and blues (Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven).
A lot of the music here, including the new material, hearkens back to these roots. It’s also burnished with the country western sheen of yesteryear, but the important aspect of the record is that it’s not nostalgia driven.
Her rendition of Always on My Mind is pure gold heartache music and displays the character that makes Lynn a heartbreaker when she sings a love song. When it comes on, it takes over a room.
Two interesting aspects of the recording are the bypassing of material like Don’t Come Home a Drinkin’ (With Lovin’ on Your Mind) and the downplay on duets.
The duets are done with restraint and make the songs shine. Elvis Costello chimes in on the chorus of Everything It Takes and Willie Nelson’s creaky voice adds understated soul to Lay Me Down. The two singers support Lynn and add vibe, getting it right.
There’s always room for an ageless voice, especially one with so much conviction and history. This album will cause surprise and raise Lynn’s reputation as a musician and singer higher.
– Dean Gordon-Smith is a Vernon based musician who reviews the latest music releases for The Morning Star every Friday.