Featuring songs like “Portland, Oregon” and “God Makes No Mistakes,” Van Lear Rose is a testament to Lynn’s enduring strength as one of the strongest songwriting voices of the past hundred years. The LP, produced exclusively for part of the Vault, is mastered directly from the original analog tapes and includes a previously unreleased song from the sessions titled “Just to Have You Back.” Housed in a sleeve that reinterprets the original artwork with embellishments of gold foil embossing, soft touch coating, spot UV varnish and pressed on “golden” vinyl, the fanciful re-imagination of the artwork is wholly vibrant and compelling.
The accompanying 7” single is the White Stripes covering two of Lynn’s classic songs. Recorded in Detroit in 2000, Jack and Meg White’s interpretation of “Rated X” is a studio recording originally intended as the flipside to the Stripes’ cover of Dolly Parton’s “Jolene.” Buried in the Vault since then, the electric version, complete with steel guitar accompaniment, is tantalizing and the kind of material that the Vault was specifically created to release. On the b-side is a live rendition of Lynn’s “Whispering Sea” recorded live at the Gorge Amphitheater in George, WA on August 6, 2005… just up the road from where Lynn wrote the song back in the early 1960s. Pressed on white vinyl and housed in the inimitable Third Man Vault sleeve, these White Stripes renditions are the prefect pairing to Lynn’s landmark album.
To top it all off and of supreme excitement is a new, exclusive DVD filmed in 2015 of both Lynn and White revisiting the time of Van Lear Rose to tell stories of its creation, its release and all the other subsequent hubbub and adoration. Shot by Third Man’s in-house video maestro Brad Holland, the entirety of the film is being created solely for Vault inclusion and enjoyment. Maybe Loretta and Jack will even grace us with a few stripped-down, acoustic versions of some of their favorite songs on the album. And don’t let our lawyer see this, but we’ll also be hiding some deep archival footage that we are actually legally prohibited from telling you about. Things you can’t even find on YouTube. The DVD will be jam-packed with goodness and good times.
And because we’re just crazy enough to load you down with tasty extras, we’re including a custom 5 x 7” foil-stamped and embossed postcard playing on the album lettering. This thing is suitable for framing. Also suitable for framing… stunning unused photos from the original album art session. On top of that is an exquisitely-designed enamel rose pin done up in the deep apricot color of the floribunda rose named “Loretta Lynn Van Lear” in 2011 in honor of Lynn’s 50th anniversary in the music business.
The total, unified package is something Third Man Records is quite humbled to be able to offer to the world. Subscriptions are available now, with the April 30th deadline to get in on this package swiftly approaching.
For more info about the Loretta Lynn Van Lear (including mail order options!) check out http://www.chambleeroses.com/order.php?id=468
