By the time Miranda Lambert released her fourth solo album (and fifth straight album to debut at #1 on the country charts — a record), she was country music royalty.
She and Blake Shelton had overtaken Tim McGraw and Faith Hill as country’s preeminent power couple, she’d won more than 20 awards from the Grammys, CMT’s, CMA’s, ACM’s and all the rest, and she’d been widely accepted as the next Loretta Lynn. In fact, when Lynn presented her with one of those awards, it was viewed in the industry as a symbolic passing of the torch.
Following that astronomical ascent, Lambert might have chosen to play it safe but instead she released her most eclectic album yet. Four the Record is a grab bag of traditional country tunes, radio-ready power ballads, atmospheric mood songs and even some twangy grunge.
She sings the lusty come-on tune ‘Fine Tune’ through a mic that distorts her vocals, adding an aural dirtiness to double entendres about her lover “tweaking on a little knob that I didn’t even know was there” to get her “running right” again.
Elsewhere, she is alternately heartbreaking and playful, touching on themes of love, loss and inclusion while occasionally nodding back to the sort of songs that made her famous (‘Fastest Girl in Town’ would have fit right in on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend).
Today’s SOTD, ‘Same Old You,’ is straight out of the Loretta Lynn playbook and another fine example of Lambert’s versatility as a vocalist.
Hope you’ve enjoyed this quick stroll down Miranda Lambert lane.
Kicking rocks around looking at your shoes
It’s the same old you
Tell me where you’ve been
Where you going to?
Where were you last night?
Boy, listen up when I’m talking to you
It’s the same old you
Another lonely night with that same old whiskey morning
(Chorus)
It’s the same old you when you get to drinkin’
Same old you when you’re on the town
Same old you in church on Sunday
Getting high when the sun goes down
Well this time I’ve done some thinking
And I think I’m done with you
Cause until I get to leaving it’s just the same old me too
Well your momma’s gonna cry her eyes
There ain’t gonna be no wedding day
What’s she gonna say
When I tell her how I had no choice
Same old you couldn’t even raise your voice and ask me to stay
I wouldn’t anyway
So you can keep your ring and I’ll keep my daddy’s name
(Chorus)
It’s the same old you when you get to drinkin’
Same old you when you’re on the town
Same old you in church on Sunday
Getting high when the sun goes down
This time I’ve done some thinking
And I think I’m done with you
Cause until I get to leaving it’s just the same old me too
Doo do do do doo
Cause until I get to leaving it’s just the same old me too
Meet Me In Montauk 
Yes, I might have mistaken this song for a country classic if I stumbled across it on the radio. I’m seeing Loretta Lynn (well, to be honest, Sissy Spacek singing as Loretta Lynn) in my mind as I listen to it. 🙂
I just love that a reality talent show can result in this sort of trajectory. While one of those winners (let alone 3rd or 4th placed contestants) might hope for a record deal, how many of them expect to have a torch symbolically handed to them by music royalty? Very cool.
How exactly does this show vocal versatility?
And, yes, this does sound like a Loretta Lynn song, but, just as I would turn the dial on a Lynn song, I would similarly skip this one.
Incidentally, with your new found love of country artists like Lambert, will you be buying the Lynn catalogue? Hard to imagine if you like this type of song that you wouldn’t like Lynn.
I have one Loretta Lynn album (Van Lear Rose, the one produced by Jack White) and it’s excellent. I probably should sample some of her other records, though she has something like 50 so I think that ship has mostly sailed.
I’m a bit late to the country music party as we were away for a few days. I’m not a real fan of this music, but I must say that I enjoy some of it. Recently I rewatched a movie “Sweet Dreams” starring Jessica Lang as Patsy Cline, I must admit I really enjoyed the music esp. “I go to pieces” and others. I recommend the movie if you haven’t seen it; also stars Ed Harris. Have you ever featured any of her music on the blog?
No, I never have. I’ll check it out, though.