Loretta Lynn's 40 Best Song Lyrics Will Continue To Inspire for Generations

It's hard to pick a favorite among Loretta Lynn's many amazing lyrics.

Loretta Lynn's lyrics prove that this coal miner's daughter had a way with words.

The country icon passed away on Tuesday, Oct. 4, 2022, at age 90, but her legacy will live on forever in her iconic songs.

Lynn wrote many of her own songs, as well as songs for other artists, and also sang lyrics by the likes of poet Shel Silverstein (including "Hey Loretta").

The legendary Lynn even had songs banned for being controversial at the time of their release, like the feminist anthem, "The Pill." Her words were and are relatable to women across generations, and while that's a bonus to her work, she said it wasn't the driving goal of her lyricism.

She previously told Parade of her songwriting process, "I just write what I feel, what is going on with me and my life. It just happened that a lot of other women felt the same. I would never set out to write something just for it to shock someone; I am not that clever. It’s always been about truth and if that means radio wants to ban it, well that’s their problem. Most of my records they banned became No. 1 anyway."

Preach! Reminisce on her long, illustrious life with the best Loretta Lynn lyrics.

Related: Loretta Lynn Talks "Ruby's Stool"

Best Loretta Lynn Lyrics

1. "Well, I was born a coal miner’s daughter / In a cabin on a hill in Butcher Holler." — "Coal Miner's Daughter"

2. "I remember daddy's hands workin' 'til they bled / Sacrificed unselfishly just to keep us all fed / If I could do things over, I'd live my life again / And never take for granted the love in daddy's hands." — "Daddy's Hands"

3. "This old maternity dress I've got is going in the garbage / The clothes I'm wearing from now on won't take up so much yardage / Miniskirts, hot pants, and a few little fancy frills / Yeah, I'm making up for all those years since I've got the pill." — "The Pill"

4. "This here country is a little green / And there's a lotta country that you ain’t seen / I'll show you around if you'll show me a wedding band." — "You're Lookin' at Country"

5. "You hung my wings upon your horns / And turned my halo into thorns / And turned me into a woman I can't stand." — "Wings Upon Your Horns"

Related: Loretta Lynn on Working With Willie Nelson and Elvis Costello

6. "I remember daddy's hands how they held my mama tight / And patted my back for something done right / There are things that I'd forgotten that I loved about the man / But I'll always remember the love in daddy's hands." — "Daddy's Hands"

7. "Dear Uncle Sam / I know you're a busy man / And tonight I write to you through tears with a trembling hand / My darling answered when he got that call from you / You said you really need him but you don't need him like I do." — "Dear Uncle Sam"

8. "Dear Uncle Sam I just got your telegram / And I can't believe that this is me shaking like I am / For it said 'I'm sorry to inform you.'" — "Dear Uncle Sam"

9. "Just stay out there on the town and see what you can find / 'Cause if you want that kind of love, well, you don't need none of mine / So don't come home a-drinkin' with lovin' on your mind." — "Don't Come Home A-Drinkin'"

10. "If you don’t wanna go to Fist City you’d better detour round my town / ’Cause I’ll grab you by the hair of the head and I’ll lift you off of the ground." — "Fist City"

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11. "Don't misunderstand I know he's fighting for our land / I really love my country but I also love my man /  He proudly wears the colors of the old red white and blue / While I wear a heartache since he left me for you." — "Dear Uncle Sam"

12. "I remember daddy's hands folded silently in prayer / And reachin' out to hold me when I had a nightmare / You could read quite a story in the callouses and lines / Years of work and worry had left their mark behind." — "Daddy's Hands"

13. "The girls in New York City they all march for women's lib / And Better Homes and Gardens shows the modern way to live / And the pill may change the world tomorrow but meanwhile today / Here in Topeka the flies are a-buzzin', the dog is a-barkin' and the floor needs a-scrubbin.'" — "One's On the Way"

14. "Well, your little play house is sittin' on sticks of dynamite / And I get mad tonight and light the fuse." — "The Devil Gets His Due"

15. "So turn that jukebox way up high / And fill my glass up while I cry / I’ve lost everything in this world / And now I’m a honky-tonk girl." — "Honky-Tonk Girl"

Related: Look Back at Loretta Lynn's 50th Album

16. "When he holds me close it feels almost / Like another hurricane just ripped the coast." — "Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man"

17. "Where I come from the mountain flowers grow wild / The blue grass sways like it's goin' out of style / God-fearin' people / Simple and real / 'Cause up on the ridge, folks that's the deal." — "High on a Mountain Top"

18. "We used to plan and talk of what we'd do / But now you let the bottle talk for you / But I still love the man you use to be / What's the bottle done to my baby." — "What's the Bottle Done to My Baby"

19. "The women all look at you like you're bad / The men all hope you are /  But if you go too far / You're gonna wear the scar / Of a woman rated X." — "Rated X"

20. "How long did you think you could go on hurtin' me / And I'd be your fool and wait at home alone / Well you go out and have your fun like you are free / Tonight I'll have some pleasures of my own / 'Cause a shoe goes on the other foot tonight / We'll find out if two wrongs can make a right / Tonight I'll push my heartaches out of sight / 'Cause a shoe goes on the other foot tonight." — "Shoe Goes On the Other Foot Tonight"

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21. "While I’m at home a-workin' and a-slavin' away / you’re out a-misbehavin’ / Spending all of your pay on wine, women, and song." — "Wine, Women, and Song"

22. "Well goodbye tubs and clothes lines / Goodbye pots and pans / I'm a gonna take a Greyhound bus as further as I can / I ain't a-gonna wash no windows and I ain't a-gonna scrub no floors / And when you realize I'm gone, I'm a-gonna hear you roar." — "Hey Loretta"

23. "I’m not a-sayin' my baby is a saint cause he ain’t / And that he won’t cat around with a kitty / I’m here to tell you gal to lay off of my man if you don’t wanna go to Fist City." — "Fist City"

24. "There's a place I know where you should go / For that's where you belong / Woman of the world / Leave my world alone." — "Woman of the World"

25. "Women like you, they're a dime a dozen / You can buy 'em anywhere / For you to get to him, I'd have to move over / And I'm gonna stand right here / It'll be over my dead body so get out while you can / 'Cause you ain't woman enough to take my man." — "You Ain't Woman Enough to Take My Man"

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26. "We bought us a mansion on the hill / Livin' big like we were big deals / Scarlet O'Hara in Gone With The Wind / I was pregnant again." — "Story of My Life"

27. "Don't wait to bring great riches home to me / I need no diamond rings or fancy pearls / Just bring yourself, you're all I'll ever need / That's good enough for this blue Kentucky girl." — "Blue Kentucky Girl"

28. "I treat him like the man he is and when he needs me I'm there / He must not think that I'm so bad for he takes me everywhere / But if how much I love him tells how bad I am / Then you won't find anyone any worse anywhere." — "Any One, Any Worse, Any Where"

29. "Love is where you find it / When you find no love at home / And there's nothin' cold as ashes / After the fire is gone." — "After the Fire Is Gone"

30. "Yeah, I got caught, but honey, you’re a pro / There’s not a thing about cheatin’ you don’t know / That same old line you sell is the same old line I bought / The thing you’ve got away with / I got caught." — "I Got Caught"

Related: Songwriter Reveals Inspiration for Willie Nelson's "Always on My Mind"

31. "Somebody, somewhere don't know what he’s missin' tonight / Lord, here sits a woman / Just lonesome enough to be right." — "Somebody, Somewhere (Don't Know What He's Missin' Tonight)"

32. "Now you tell me that you love me / Yes, you tell me that you care / That tomorrow we'll be married /But tomorrow is never there." — "Tomorrow Never Comes"

33. "I've got your picture that you gave to me / And it's signed 'with love' just like it used to be / The only thing different / The only thing new / I've got your picture / She's got you." — "She's Got You"

34. "Success has made a failure of our home." — "Success"

35. "I dare never drown my sorrows in the warm glow of your wine / You can't buy my love with money for I never was that kind / Silver threads and golden needles cannot mend this heart of mine." — "Silver Threads and Golden Needles"

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36. "You’re so contented but for me it’s all gone / And though I pretend, you just don’t turn me on / The body performs but the soul has no will/When the tingle becomes a chill." — "When the Tingle Becomes a Chill"

37. "You're the reason I'm ridin' 'round on recapped tires / And you're the reason I'm hangin' our clothes outside on walls / And you're the reason our kids are ugly, little darling / Ah, but looks ain't everything / And money ain't everything / But I love you just the same." — "You're the Reason Our Kids Are Ugly"

38. "Oh, if this old house could talk / What a story it would tell / It would tell about the good times / And the bad times as well / It would tell about the love that lived and died inside these walls / And the sound of the little footsteps runnin' up and down the halls." — "This Old House"

39. "If this old house could talk, what a story it would tell / We'll build this home together / And with love we drove each nail / Take me in your arms and hold me / 'Cause we've been apart too long / Why, if this old house could talk / All it would say is 'Welcome home.'" — "This Old House"

40. "The kids all say, 'Grown-ups are strange' / And aren't they? / They teach their kids not to do as I do but as I say / They cry for peace and then make war / And wonder what they're fighting for." — "Ain't It Funny"

Next, cheer up with happy songs to boost your mood.