Would you guys think I was an awful person if I admitted that I don't actually love Loretta Lynn's "Coal Miner's Daughter"? I was listening to the song last weekend and realized the false rhymes and awkward scansions were getting to me:
I think it's partially cultural conditioning, too. After growing up on prairie girl stories and spending a lot of time around union organizers, Lynn's poor-but-happy narrative feels a little...forced. The thing is, "Van Lear Rose" isn't any less corny:
But I think it's a tighter song. And I feel a little guilty for liking it better. It should make me an obnoxious hipster to dig the Pitchfork-accredited country of Lynn's album with Jack White more than I like the original, unpolished Lynn. Or maybe I'm just in a hipster trap for thinking I should like her early stuff better. Whatever I figure out, I will defend "Portland, Oregon" forever, though:
I really do hope this song had its genesis in an actual, epic night out.