18. March 2025
Home » Music & Media » Media Review » Tanya Tucker – While I’m Livin’
Media Review

Tanya Tucker – While I’m Livin’

Florian Buechtingby Florian Buechting

Tanya Tucker - While I'm Livin'

Tanya Tucker - While I'm Livin'
4.4

Rating

 4.4/5

Flyctory.com Pros

  • Nice outlaw country style
  • Powerful and relatable music

While Tanya Tucker was a country music hit machine in the 1970s and 1980s, she significantly decreased the frequency of her publications in the new millennium. Her 2019 album While I’m Livin’ is only the third album in this time span and the first one since My Turn since ten years. I was looking forward how far this influenced her music.

Tanya Tucker – About The Artist

Tanya Tucker is an absolute legend in the country music genre. Born in Texas in 1958, she had her first hit, Delta Dawn, already in 1972, when the song placed #3 in Canada and #6 in the United States. The same-named album at least made it to place 32. The 1973 album What’s Your Mama’s Name already made it to the top 10. That album also lead to three top positions in the US Country Singles charts. During her career, she had ten Grammy nominees. She produced Top 10 hits until the late 1990s. Her last Number One hit, however, was Down To My Last Teardrop, which topped the Canadian Country Music charts in 1991.

 

Tanya Tucker – While I’m Livin’ – Track by Track

While I’m Livin’ is a ten track album. It lasts 34 minutes.

1. Mustang Ridge

Mustang Ridge is a powerful, traditional sounding song. I did not know at what to expect from that album, but that song caught me already.

2. The Wheels of Laredo

The Wheels of Laredo was the first single to be published of the album. More ballad-alike with classic country music sounds and a clear concentration on Tucker’s voice, which becomes very powerful and soulful towards the end. Impressing track.

3. I Don’t Owe You Anything

Third song, another different sound: especially at the beginning, there is just the guitar and Tucker’s voice, followed by a wider instrumentation when the story of the song gets clearer: a breakup song after the husband went away with a far younger girl. Powerful, emancipated songwriting and a nice chorus:

Well, I made your bed and I made your lunch
And for the last time, your clothes are out to dry
I know you’re like my own reflection
I see her in your eyes
Darling, I ain’t growin’ old with you
I don’t need your front porch swing
I raised up all your babies
I don’t owe you anything

4. The Day My Heart Goes Still

The album is full of memories of Tanya Tucker’s life. There are also many good memories and postive looking-backs. The Day My Heart Goes Still is one of the key songs in this series of stories. She states in the verses

But if the good Lord should come knockin’ at my door
I had everything I wanted and more
And if there’s hell to pay when we settle up the score
I can always say I lived my life my way

and the chorus also sends a clear message of love

Yes, I know
Well, I know I will, I will
Love you ’til the day my heart goes still
Until they put me in the ground up on some hill
I don’t think I’ll ever get my fill
I’m gonna love you ’til the day my heart goes still

5. High Ridin’ Heroes

I’m still flashed by The Day My Heart Goes Still, but High Ridin’ Heroes is definitely another great track. A bit slower and thoughtful. Great songwriting and lovely production.

6. The House That Built Me

Just very decent background sounds combined with Tucker’s strong voice. Likely she could tell me any story of her life that way. Better listen to the song yourself. It just catches me.

7. Hard Luck

Wow, Tanya Tucker is rockin’. So great and powerful arrangement. There are a lot of great songs on this album, but this one is one of the best ones. You should not miss it (if you haven’t listened to it anyway, as it was pre-released in June).

Hard luck, keep truckin’
I was born to a hard luck world
Hard luck, keep truckin’
Lord knows I’m a hard luck girl

I was impressed by that song so much that I put it into the initial sets of songs of the Flyctory.com Country Music Playlists.

8. Rich

Before I started to write this review, I first let the full album play and did some other stuff in parallel. The second time, writing the review, I already sang to Rich. Another song which just caught me. I love the way Tucker is telling me stories. Bad luck that the closest concert of her 2019 tour is 8 flight hours away – would love to see these songs live on stage. Envy about anyone who does.

People said I was poor
But I was rich in another way

9. Seminole Wind Calling

Seminole wind
Let me feel your breath again
Take me back to the place your love did find me
Black ribbon, lead me home
Wherever I may roam
And may the bridges that I cross not burn behind me

A bit more classic in sound, this is a song about home again. As at so many songs of this album, I am so impressed about the storytelling, but also the arrangement and production. So good to listen to.

10. Bring My Flowers Now

The final song on the album is one of the most catching moments of country music moments – a thoughtful ballad and somehow a goodbye song with a clear message. Wow!

Bring my flowers now, while I’m living
I won’t need your love when I’m gone
Don’t spend time, tears, or money
On my old breathless body
If your heart is in them flowers, bring ’em on
If your heart is in them flowers, bring ’em on

 

Tanya Tucker – While I’m Livin’ – Spotify

The Spotify widget allows you to have a closer look on While I’m Livin’:

 

Tanya Tucker – While I’m Livin’ – My View

Music is so subjective – and sometimes it is quite surprising as well. While I’m Livin’ is old school country music with a big touch of outlaw. These are typically not the country music ingredients which make me sway and love listening to the music. Tanya Tucker does. I just love this album. Also congrats to the two producers, Brandi Carlile and Shooter Jennings, two “big ones” in the business. This is just a good one – and it gets better and better every time I listen to it again. So it is what I call a Top Pick! definitely.

 

Flyctory.com Media Reviews

Here are all CD, book and movie reviews:

 

USA – All Postings

Here are all postings which deal with the USA:

You might also like

Helge Schneider – Die Reaktion – The Last Jazz Vol. II

Milow – Nice To Meet You

Sue Ann – Abgeschlossen EP

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *