Miranda Lambert has seven No. 1 hits on Billboard‘s Country Airplay chart among many other lauds. Her discography is anything but underground. However, even she can’t escape the inevitable deep cut.
Videos by American Songwriter
[RELATED: Miranda Lambert Almost Recorded Lady A’s Hit, “Downtown”]
Aside from Lambert superfans—who likely know every song the country star has released—casual country listeners may not know Lambert’s back catalog in great detail. Nevertheless, she has some hidden gems that we think deserve more ears tuning in. We’ve picked five of Lambert’s best deep cuts and detailed them below.
[RELATED: Top 10 Songs by Miranda Lambert]
1. “Bathroom Sink”
“Bathroom Sink” has a similar headspace to “Mamas Broken Heart.” In this track, Lambert tries to pull herself together in front of the mirror after a fight with her mom. I’m at it again with mama / Everybody is so tired of the drama / We’re still fighting like I’m sixteen / And I guess we always will be, she sings.
While everyone is well aware that Lambert can deliver an anthem, she also has a softer touch that is equally as enticing. With “Bathroom Sink” she flexes her ability to be vulnerable so that the listener can open up their wounds too.
2. “Desperation”
While many of the songs on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend are barn-burner hits featuring murder threats, revenge tales, and other unsavory acts, “Desperation” shows off a more somber side of Lambert. If there ain’t nowhere to fall? / What’s the use in hanging on tight to the phone / If nobody might call, she sings with…well, desperation. This track is a nice change of pace from the riotous offerings filling the rest of the album.
3. “Me and Your Cigarettes”
Lambert frames herself as a bad habit in “Me and Your Cigarettes.” Gives you something you can do with your hands / Makes you look cool and feel like a man / In the morning you’ll probably regret me / Me and your cigarettes. This is the most enjoyable cautionary tale we can think of, complete with Lambert’s stunning vocals and a driving beat.
4. “Airstream Song”
Lambert fantasizes about what could have been in “Airstream Song.” Sometimes I wish I lived on a mountain / Drank from a stream instead of a fountain / I’d stay there, top of the world but I was born a red dirt girl. In the end, she realizes it’s her point of view that causes her to want more than she has. I’ll always be unsatisfied, she sings.
5. “Another Sunday in the South”
Lambert wrote “Another Sunday in the South” with Jessi Alexander and Ashley Monroe. The track, featured on her fifth studio album, Platinum, infuses “as many ’90s country titles” as the songwriters could pack into three minutes.
[RELATED: American Songwriter May/June Cover Story: Miranda Lambert—Finding Balance]
Just another Sunday in the South / Wanna put on some Shenandoah / And crank it loud, she sings effortlessly in this lighthearted track. If you also have a penchant for ’90s country, you won’t regret adding this one to your summer playlist. It’s the perfect track for a warm, sunny day down south.
Photo by Robert Ascroft for foureleven agency
