By now, you’ve probably seen the press about the collaboration of Loretta Lynn and Jack White for her upcoming release, “Van Lear Rose.” The pairing came about after “The Whites” dedicated their album “White Blood Cells” to Lynn.
Lynn’s album is released this Tuesday and I just heard some MP3s. I have to say that I’m digging the songs. Given White’s presence on the project, I think this album will easily cross out of the country barrier and into rock territories.
So is this kind of cross-pollination a good thing for music? Sometimes. I thought that Johnny Cash’s cover of “Hurt” by Nine Inch Nails was beautiful and adapted perfectly to the feelings of an aging music legend.
And in this case, White is obviously involved out of passion and personal interest in the influences of country and blues as predecessors to rock. He plays guitar on every song and duets with Lynn on a track called “Portland, Oregon.” His bluesy guitar riffs are a perfect background for the dark subject matter of the lyrics — which include songs about death row and the feeling of being a widower.
It’s all enough to make me want to visit my video store and ask them to dust off a copy of “Coalminer’s Daughter” for me.
Download some MP3s and see more about how the collaboration came to be at this link.