On this day (November 14) in 1966, Loretta Lynn was at No. 1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums Chart with You Ain’t Woman Enough. The album was her first to reach the top of the charts. Its title track, released a few months before the LP, was her biggest hit at the time.
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The late 1960s saw Lynn rise to the peak of her fame. Her first album of 1966, I Like ‘Em Country, peaked at No. 2, kicking off a long string of hit LPs. You Ain’t Woman Enough came next, giving the Coal Miner’s Daughter the first chart-topper of her career. Every solo studio album she released for the next nine years reached the top five. Three of those albums reached No. 1.
Lynn saw a similar progression on the Hot Country Songs chart. “You Ain’t Woman Enough to Take My Man” peaked at No. 2. At the time, it was her biggest hit. Her next single, “Don’t Come Home a-Drinkin’ (With Lovin’ on Your Mind),” went to No. 1. However, “You Ain’t Woman Enough to Take My Man” proved to have more longevity. It became one of her signature songs and remains a favorite among fans decades later.
Loretta Lynn Wrote Her Signature Song After Helping a Fan
Loretta Lynn was a powerful voice for women in country music. She didn’t shy away from topics of sexism and drew much inspiration from her own rocky marriage to pen her songs. However, this girl’s girl behavior didn’t stop when she left the recording studio.
One evening, a woman met Lynn backstage. She then told the star that she came to the concert alone. Her husband, on the other hand, was sitting in the crowd with his mistress. She pointed them out to the country star. Lynn looked at the fan’s husband’s affair partner and told her, “She ain’t woman enough to take your man.”
After the interaction ended, Loretta Lynn went to her dressing room and began writing what would be one of her most memorable songs.
Featured Image by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
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