The Queen still reigns

Clare and I drove to Macon, Ga. Friday night, March 9, the legendary Loretta Lynn. She played at the Macon City Auditorium to an enthused crowd of about 500. I was impressed, but not surprised to see everyone from spiky-haired college kids to women well into their seventies into the crowd. Loretta is still feisty although limited physically by a shoulder injury that left her seated for much of the show. The highlights were her classics like "Fist City,""One's on the Way,""Don't Come Home a Drinkin,""You're Looking at Country,""Honky Tonk Girl," and of course her signature "Coal Miner's Daughter." Lynn's granddaughter Taylor helped her "MeeMaw" out by an energetic rendition of "Mad Mrs. Leroy Brown" off the stellar 2004 album "Van Lear Rose." Lynn and her back-up singers performed a chill bump inspiring A Capella version of "How Great Thou Art" that beautifully resonated throughout the auditorium, a facility with excellent acoustics with old timey music hall charm.

Known for her sharp on-stage banter, Lynn introduced one of her male backup singers as, "the one the all that har" (hair) and another as "the one with no har at all." She also sang "Fist City" twice, mistaking the intro for "Don't Come Home a Drinkin'". The band tried to end the song, but she kept going explaining after the song, "Sometimes my songs just sound alike." It was a legit excuse and since "Fist City" is one of her best, who really cared?

The low lights were her backup singers taking the lead with The Eagles "Peaceful Easy Feeling" to give Mrs. Lynn a break. The three male singers are incredibly talented with very strong voices, but this interlude had no place whatsoever at this concert. One of my least favorite of her songs, "God Bless America Again," was performed with a new spin with one of the backup singers going on a tirade about prayer in school and other Christianity versus big government statements that had the mostly blue-collar Wal-Mart crowd hollering. I thought it was lame and unnecessary. The politics that make Loretta Lynn interesting the songs that had her banned from country radio like "Rated X" and "The Pill" -- two songs that spoke about women's rights in a musical genre that shied away from anything controversial, especially coming from a woman.

Unlike most country singers who perform music and lyrics written by professional Music Row songwriters, Lynn's songwriting speaks from her personal experience, her joys, humiliations, frustrations and pain and I think that is what makes her such a beloved American legend.

More photos from the concert are here.


Loretta and her backing singers belt "How Great Thou Art"




The crowd outside Macon City Auditorium after the show.