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Loveless tackles the Harlan Howard' 1962 classic "Busted" on her "Mountain Soul II" album and makes it her own using traditional bluegrass instrumentation. After growing up in Kentucky, those mournful sounds and her voice now seem made for each other. Her video finds a confused waitress who appears to stumble back in time to a strange moving picture parlor. Filled with men who ravenously crank away at their personal viewing machines including Buddy Apple, loyal sideman to Doyle & Debbie. She gives one a try and sees Loveless in the viewfinder. Unfortunately, the waitress remains confused, but since she's got a job, at least she's not "busted."
Kentucky-born Loveless has been one of the most popular female country singers of the new traditionalist movement since the 1990s. She rose to stardom thanks to her mix-blend of honky tonk and emotive country ballad styles. At 53, Loveless is hardly a doddering old maid, but it's been more than a decade since she was deemed too mature for country radio. With her chart-topping days done, she wedded herself to the cause of traditional roots music. On the long-awaited sequel, Loveless starts with a stirring version of Harlan Howard's "Busted." With much of Music Row relying on slick packaging and trite themes, Loveless is a standard bearer for her craft, a living testament to how the sweetest triumphs can rise from the deepest sorrows. What's lifted Loveless above her peers is the rare ability to channel heartache into moments of transcendence and hard-won truth. There's also proof that present-day Nashville can balance emotional heft with melodic hooks.
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