Summary:The first release in a dozen years for the country artist features guest appearances by Elvis Costello and Willie Nelson and was produced by John Carter Cash and her daughter, Patsy Lynn Russell.
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Record Label:Sony Music
Genre(s): Country, Alt-Country, Americana, Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Progressive Country, Traditional Country
"Fist City" By: Loretta Lynn
You've been makin' your braggs around town
That you've been a lovin' my man
But the man I love
When he picks up trash
He...
As both a comeback and perhaps a farewell to recording, with Full Circle Lynn continues with the style, talent and class that have personified her lengthy, legendary career.
Only a interpreter as shrewd and tasteful as Loretta Lynn could find the inherent commonalities in these songs, and make a grab-bag late-late-career album like this feel not only emotionally grounded, but like a powerful choice.
There’s no grandstanding on this modest yet confident record. Rather there’s the humility, humour, wisdom and hard-won truths of country music at its best.
Loretta does not disappoint on this album. There are several remakes of her classic tunes but there are several new songs, as well. The duetLoretta does not disappoint on this album. There are several remakes of her classic tunes but there are several new songs, as well. The duet with Willie Nelson, Lay Me Down, is awesome. The mountain classic In The Pines is very robust and erie at the same time, the way Loretta' s voice keeps fading through the ending of the song. Not going to say much more but this album is very much worth adding to your collection!…Expand
Full Circle is Loretta's first studio album since 2004s exquisite collaboration with Jack White, Van Lear Rose. If it were anyone else it'd beFull Circle is Loretta's first studio album since 2004s exquisite collaboration with Jack White, Van Lear Rose. If it were anyone else it'd be hard to believe - to be recording some of her most innovative, interesting and vocally brilliant songs in her 80s. But when you're dealing with Loretta Lynn, it's hardly a surprise at all.
Taking from it's title, the album is almost a retrospective of her career & life, but it's also looking forward with a couple of new songs towards the end.
The standout for me is the first song Loretta ever wrote, Whispering Sea. A lament of lost love and the other person moving on. The new arrangement and quality recording really lets it shine - and a superb opener. Remarkable this being one of the first songs she ever wrote, and aging so well. I think it speaks to her song writing talent, that hasn't wearied at all over her 60 year career. As the two closing numbers of the album (one a duet with Elvis Costello and the other with none other than Willy Nelson) are both originals. At very different ends of the spectrum, they sound modern yet have that classic, almost timeless quality that the high points of Loretta's song writing can reach. Lay Me Down is really something else.
There are new takes on some of her back catalogue - Fist City still packs a proverbial punch. And I wouldn't want to take on Loretta lest she grab me by the hair a the head and lift me off the ground!
Some of the most magical moments on the album are her interpretations of traditional country songs - Black Jack David speaks to her unsurpassed phrasing and fascinating interpretation on such an old song. I wonder if in some ways she's reflecting on her 45+ years with Doolittle. They married when she was 15!
I've never been the biggest fan of Always On My Mind, but I really appreciate Loretta's take on it. She's most certainly singing to Doolittle, and reflecting on their time together.
In The Pines is a solid number - the production by Patsy Lynn Russell & John Carter Cash takes it to another level. She uses her lower register & the deep, rich quality of her voice to bring the lyrics to life.
I Will Never Marry is another standout. The fragility of Lynn's voice, the journey of the song to the sad conclusion. She is a master story teller and there really is no one like her.
Can't wait for this year's Wouldn't It Be Great, and many more albums after.…Expand
Loretta Lynn is some kind of musical anomaly. How she manages to keep producing high-quality, pleasant-as-hell golden age country records 50Loretta Lynn is some kind of musical anomaly. How she manages to keep producing high-quality, pleasant-as-hell golden age country records 50 years later is beyond me, but she sure does. Full Circle is loosely themed around a revisiting of her entire career. Most songs here are reworkings of other, older tunes, including a version of (apparently) the first song Lynn ever wrote. Full Circle is an ode to one of the most consistent folk/country artists out there...if not the most, decades later.
