• Loretta Lynn, the "Coal Miner's Daughter" who, as a singer-songwriter illuminated the challenges and victories of a generation of women, has passed away. She was 90.
In its obituary, the New York Times writes that "her voice was unmistakable, with its Kentucky drawl, its tensely coiled vibrato and its deep reserves of power … Her songwriting made her a model for generations of country songwriters. Her music was rooted in the verities of honky-tonk country and the Appalachian songs she had grown up singing, and her lyrics were lean and direct, with nuggets of wordplay: 'She’s got everything it takes/To take everything you’ve got,' she sang in 'Everything It Takes,' one of her many songs about cheating, released in 2016."
Her memoir, "Coal Miner's Daughter," was turned into a hit movie of the same name in 1980, starring Sissy Spacek - who won an Oscar for portraying Lynn, who handpicked her for the role.
