RIFF Magazine

Obituary: ‘Coal Miner’s Daughter’ country icon Loretta Lynn dies at 90

Loretta Lynn

Loretta Lynn, courtesy: David McClister.

Country Music Hall of Fame inductee, Grand Ole Opry member and Grammy-winning artist Loretta Lynn died at the age 90 Tuesday morning.

According to her publicist, Lynn passed away in her sleep in her home in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee.

In more than six decades in the country music industry, Lynn achieved 51 top-10 hits like “Fist City,” “You Ain’t Woman Enough,” “You’re Lookin’ At Country,” “Don’t Come Home A’ Drinkin’” and “Coal Miner’s Daughter.” Although already successful, she rose to prominence after Oscar-winning 1980 film “Coal Miner’s Daughter,” starring Sissy Spacek, used Lynn’s story and songs.



Lynn’s lyrics didn’t gloss over the realities of rural life and the difficulties it presented. The Butcher Hollow, Ky. native (in Appalachia) was born in 1932 and raised in poverty, having her first child at 17 with a neglectful man. Many of her earlier songs were about this experience.

She had no formal training but sang at home and at her church. She was married at 15 and had four children in her first four years of marriage to Doolittle Lynn. The two had twins years later. Her family moved to Washington State, where in 1960 she recorded her first song, “Honky Tonk Girl.” As the story goes, her husband bought her a guitar after hearing her sing. The two were married for 50 years until his death in 1996.

On the strength of that song, she played for radio stations, played at the Grand Ole Opry for the first time and got a record contract with Decca.

In 1966, she broke through with country hits “Don’t Come Home A’ Drinkin’ (With Lovin’ On Your Mind)” and “You Ain’t Woman Enough (To Take My Man).” Lynn became the first woman country artist to write a No. 1 hit. Women connected with her straightforward songwriting, while several of her songs were banned from country radio, such as “Rated X” (about divorce) and “The Pill” (about birth control).

A 1976 memoir, “Coal Miner’s Daughter” led to to the 1980 film of the same name. Lynn was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1988, and the song “Coal Miner’s Daughter” was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998. She received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010, and three years later President Barack Obama awarded her with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.



Lynn recorded with the likes of Conway Twitty and The Wilburne Brothers. In 2004, she partnered with Jack White on Grammy-winning album Van Lear Rose.

Lynn never stopped making music, not even in her 80s. In 2016, she returned to the charts with Grammy-nominated Full Circle, the first of several albums produced by her daughter, Patsy Lynn Russell, and John Carter Cash at Cash Cabin Studio in Hendersonville, Tenn.

She followed that up with White Christmas Blue (2016) and 2018 Grammy-nominated Wouldn’t It Be Great, a mix of new songs and reinterpretations of her catalog.

Loretta Lynn had a stroke in 2017, and a 2018 hip injury forced her to give up a lifetime of touring.

Last year, she released Still Woman Enough, her 50th studio album (not including her 10 studio collaborations with Conway Twitty), inspired by the title of her 2002 autobiography and the concept of her signature 1966 single “You Ain’t Woman Enough (To Take My Man).” The album brought together women in the country industry and reframed classic songs in a modern context.

“One thing that remains obvious … is that she’s still a reigning queen in country music,” this publication said at the time.



On Tuesday, condolences poured in on social media from fans and other country artists alike. Some of them are below.

“Loretta Lynn was a sweet, kind, and genuine woman that George and I loved. George toured with her for many years. I will miss her dearly.” – Nancy Jones.

“Today country music lost one of its icons. The Coal Miner’s daughter, Loretta Lynn, was one of the most gracious women I’ve ever met in my life. Besides being an amazing country music artist, she was a true Southern lady. I only met her once in May of 1997 but she made me feel like I had known her my whole life – like she was my favorite aunt that I hadn’t seen in a long time. Country music now has a void that will likely not be filled for quite some time if ever. Rest in peace, Miss Loretta.” – Heath Wright.



“I’ve listened to her music all my life, sang her songs, and was thrilled to work with her at the same shows on a few occasions. One, in particular, was in 1985 with Jim Ed Brown and Loretta. We started to sign autographs in front of the stage; the crowd started rushing the stage and security quickly hoisted me, Loretta, and Jim Ed to safety. I had never experienced anything like that. I realized a potentially dangerous situation was only because of the audience’s love for the music and the artists. She was loved for her real, down-home, honest personality; in addition to her amazing voice and songs. She will be incredibly missed, but her music will live on forever. Rest In Sweet Peace Loretta.” – Rhonda Vincent.

“She was and will always be one of the strongest forces that helped propel country music worldwide. Gone but will never be forgotten. R.I.P. my friend.” – T.G. Sheppard.

“Country music last a groundbreaking powerhouse, someone who paved the way for women in all genres of music.” – Ian Flanigan.



“As a proud Kentuckian, today is a very sad day in our bluegrass state. Prayers up to the family of the Queen of Country Music, Ms. Loretta Lynn. What an incredible career and legacy that she has left behind. So many iconic songs and a life every Small-town kid dreamed of. My prayers are with the family at this time. Long live the Coal Miner’s Daughter. I’ll continue to treasure her signature on my guitar. Love you too, Loretta.” – JD Shelburne.





 

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