Country legend Loretta Lynn, who sang “Coal Miner’s Daughter” and other hits, has died at age 90. Lynn’s family confirmed her death Tuesday, October 4, providing the below statement:
“Our precious mom, Loretta Lynn, passed away peacefully this morning, October 4th, in her sleep at home in her beloved ranch in Hurricane Mills, [Tennessee].”
Born Loretta Webb on April 14, 1932, in Butcher Hollow, Kentucky, her father Melvin Theodore “Ted” Webb was a coal miner. In 1948, at the age 15, Loretta married Oliver Vanetta “Doolittle” Lynn and in the mid-1950s they relocated to Washington state. While there, Lynn taught herself to play guitar and began performing at local bars and taverns. In February 1960, Lynn released her debut single, “I’m a Honky Tonk Girl.”
She became part of the Nashville country scene in the 1960s, and started releasing a string of chart-topping hit songs, “Coal Miner’s Daughter,” “Fist City,” “Don’t Come Home A-Drinkin’ (With Lovin’ on Your Mind)” and “You Ain’t Woman Enough (To Take My Man).” Other notable standouts from Lynn’s career include the provocative songs “The Pill,” “Rated X” and “One’s on the Way.” Lynn amassed a total of 16 songs that went to #1 on the country charts.
Lynn also released several successful duets with Conway Twitty, with whom she collaborated with extensively in the early 1970s. Lynn received acclaim for her 1977 album, I Remember Patsy which was a tribute to her friend, fellow country singer Patsy Cline, who died in 1963.
In 1976, Lynn published her well-received autobiography, Coal Miner’s Daughter. Four year’s later, the book was the basis for the feature film of the same name that starred Sissy Spacek and Tommy Lee Jones (as Doolittle). The movie garnered seven Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture. Spacek was awarded the Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal of Lynn.
Lynn continued to achieve success on the country charts in the 1980s with the likes of “Pregnant Again,” “Naked in the Rain” and “I Lie.” Lynn remained active in the 1990s and 2000s.
Lynn’s album Van Lear Rose was released in 2004. Produced by Jack White, the record won the Grammy Award for Best Country Album. In 2021, Lynn’s 46th and last solo album, Still Woman Enough, was released.
According to Lynn’s website:
She is also one of the most awarded musicians of all time. Loretta has been inducted into more music Halls of Fame than any female recording artist, including The Country Music Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and was the first woman to be named the Country Music Association’s Entertainer of the Year in 1972. Lynn received Kennedy Center Honors in 2003 and a Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2013. In 2015, she was named recipient of Billboard’s inaugural Women in Music “Legend” Award. With 18 nominations spread out over every single decade for the last six decades, Lynn has won four Grammy Awards, including a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010, and her most recent in 2019. She has sold more than 45 million records worldwide.
