Ah the sweet, sweet sound of a steel guitar, don’t you just love it? I don’t know about you, but when I hear the beautiful cry of the steel guitar, it acts as a time machine transporting me back to the golden age of country music, to a simpler time. I was lucky enough to have been exposed to classic country music at a young age, so I grew up listening to Miss Loretta Lynn, among others. My mother is a huge fan of Miss Loretta and passed down that love to me. One of the first albums I owned was one of Loretta’s greatest hits albums. I would fall asleep to the tunes of “Coal Miner’s Daughter”, “Here In Topeka”, and “Woman of the World”. So obviously I was excited when Loretta announced that she had a brand new album (released in March).
It has been 12 years since we’ve heard new music from Miss Loretta, but we can now rejoice in the fact that we have a brand new single from the legend, with a new record too. At the age of 83, the legend is still making wonderful, solid music (younger artists should take notes). With Elvis Costello on subtle background vocals and the beautiful cry of the steel guitar, “Everything It Takes” is pure country goodness. Loretta shows us all how country is supposed to be done, production-wise and lyrically.
“Everything It Takes” is the new “Woman of the World”. The single finds Loretta throwing it back to her prime as she blasts another woman for trying to take her man. She warns her man, “I love you more than she ever will/ But the only way she can get a man is steal/ I don’t know if I should tell you this or not/ she’s got everything it takes/ to take everything you’ve got” and informs him that “She’s had a million old flames/ so to her, you’re nothing new”. She describes the slutty adulteress as “cold as ice”, but, sadly, says that her man still thinks she’s hot.
This single isn’t as fire-y and sassy as “You Ain’t Woman Enough” or “Fist City”, but runs more along the same vein as “Woman of the World”. It’s lower key with a touch of sadness. “Everything It Takes” is still smart and clever lyrically, just not full of sass like the earlier singles. Loretta brings a breath of fresh, pure country air with her new single, and it is a much needed change of pace compared to what is currently being called country today. Will the single get airplay? No, most definitely not, as it’s too country to be played on mainstream radio today, but who really cares anyway? Loretta certainly doesn’t need radio support, being the beloved trail blazing legend that she is, she has a huge fan base that will continue to buy her music without radio telling them they should.
If you’re a real, true pure country fan, you need to have a listen to this single.
Originally posted here.
