At first, Tanya Tucker didn’t want to mess with Miranda Lambert’s modern classic, “The House That Built Me,” but she was finally persuaded by her producers, Brandi Carlile and Shooter Jennings, to give it a shot.
With slight modification to the lyrics, Tucker narrates the song as a mother, pointing out the rooms where her kids did their homework and learned to play guitar. With this unique perspective, the song remains just as poignant as the original yet different enough to stand on its own merits.
Tucker says she felt that nobody could match the emotion that Lambert — who is one of Tucker’s favorite singers — brought to the song, but she opted to follow her producers’ instincts. By the time the session was done, Carlile pointed out that it took 46 times to get the first line where it needed to be.
“I went, ‘I’ve never ever done that. Ever.’ I can’t even believe I stood there that long. I’m not shy, I hope they’re lying to me when they said that,” Tucker says. “But now I hear it and it’s growing on me. It gives me chills. … I went right into my little zone and did it just like I do with everything else and any other song.”
The track is featured on Tucker’s new album, While I’m Livin’, set for release on August 23.
