Loretta Lynn, Van Lear Rose

If Phil Spector could produce the Ramones, why can’t Jack White, garage-rock hero of the White Stripes, take a whack at spinning the studio dials for honky-tonk goddess Loretta Lynn? No good reason at all, and Van Lear Rose, which White both produced and arranged, proves that opposites can indeed attract beautiful music. The most powerful song is “Family Tree,” in which Lynn escorts her children to the home of their father’s mistress so the whole brood can take a gander at the “woman that’s burning down our family tree.” Lynn delivers her usual repertoire—drinking, cheating men, and keeping the faith—but at seventy, she’s never sounded better. (Available now)