FRESHLY PRESSED
VAN LEAR ROSE
LORETTA LYNN
COUNTRY • 2004 (2026 REISSUE) • THIRD MAN RECORDS
This one has been on our vinyl wish list for a long, long time. We’ve had it on CD since it first came out, but earlier vinyl pressings go for big bucks on Discogs and we haven’t had any luck digging for it at our regular haunts.
Then in 2021 it disappeared from most streaming platforms, so your only option was physical media. Whatever rights issues caused that seem to have been sorted out, because this remaster hits the digital platforms the same day the vinyl lands.
When it came out in 2004, Loretta was a 72 year old country legend. Jack White was the 28 year old guitarist and vocalist of the White Stripes. Somehow, he talked her into making a record together.
Loretta wrote every song (one with White and one with her husband Doolittle). White produced and played on every track. The title comes from the Van Lear coal mine where her father worked.
Against all odds, it flat works.
It debuted at #2 on the country chart and #24 on the Billboard 200, and won two Grammys: Best Country Album, and Best Country Collaboration with Vocals for the ‘Portland Oregon’ duet.
For this release, Third Man remastered it from the original analog tapes. It comes on black vinyl or a limited orange, and adds ‘Just to Have You Back’, which had only been on Third Man’s Vault edition until now. ‘Miss Being Mrs.’ is already out as a single.
In the early aughts, someone we care a lot about was going through the bitterest kind of divorce, fueled by infidelity. ‘Family Tree’ became a touchstone for her, the centerpiece of a ‘You’re Better Off’ mixtape back then. But the whole album carries a beautiful tension, balanced between Lynn’s powerful voice and White’s shredding guitar, respect for Lynn’s writing and genuine joy at playing with her.
On vinyl, at a sane price. Finally.
LISTEN & BUY
If at all possible, buy it at your local record store.