Today, NPR Music debuts Loretta Lynn’s “Half a Mind,” her mellifluous homage to fellow country pioneer Roger Miller, and another highlight off the sweeping, star-studded celebration: ‘King of the Road: A Tribute to Roger Miller’ (out 8/31 on BMG).
As Stephen Thompson notes, the song is a prime display of Miller’s “tremendous gift for plainspoken wordplay” that Lynn embodies “over an arrangement straight out of an antique jukebox.” Listen/share here: https://n.pr/2LoN4V8
“Half a Mind” follows offerings from Dolly Parton, Alison Krauss, and Brad Paisley (which you can hear at Rolling Stone), and previews forthcoming contributions from Kacey Musgraves, Ringo Starr, Willie Nelson, John Goodman, Cake, and nearly 40 other famous fans, friends, and followers of the late icon. Produced by Dean Miller (son of Roger and contributing artist) and Colby Barnum Wright, ‘King of the Road’ is the essential salute to the eccentric, often-overlooked breadth of Roger Miller, capturing the essence that earned him 11 Grammy wins, a Tony, a role in ‘Robin Hood,’ 31 country hits, and so much more than you know.