Country music legend Loretta Lynn comes 'Full Circle' with new album, documentary

Loretta Lynn, the most decorated female recording artist in country music, shocked the publishing world with her ode to "The Pill," raised six children during a never-ending tour and put herself in the hands of the White Stripes' Jack White for the 2004 masterpiece "Van Lear Rose."

And now, her latest logic-defying trick: a collaboration with Sean Penn.

Whoa! The Coal Miner's Daughter hangs with Jeff Spicoli? Totally awesome!

"Shawn Camp. Isn't that what I said?" the legend said in January after twice confusing her latest songwriting partner with the actor who has most definitely come home a-drinkin' with lovin' on his mind more than a few times. "They all laugh at me still yet, how I talk. And they ought to get over it, because I'm not going to change."

At 83, Lynn may not be a whiz when it comes to remembering names, but as a performer, she's as sharp as ever, her wit and wherewithal on full display in the "American Masters" documentary "Loretta Lynn: Still a Mountain Girl" and a new album, "Full Circle." Both drop on Friday.

The two projects do their share of wading through nostalgia. "Full Circle" includes do-overs of classic hits, including "Fist City," her 1968 warning to women who dared to come near husband Oliver "Doolittle" Lynn, whose lust for the ladies was as strong as his thirst for booze.

But it also features fresh material, including "Everything It Takes," an instantly hummable ditty that she penned with relative youngster Elvis Costello. "We were writing a song at Johnny Cash's studio and everybody was so nosy, so we went back to the kitchen," Lynn said.

The movie, premiering on PBS, also straddles the past and present, most notably in a scene in which fans stumble into an interview with Lynn at her home in Hurricane Mills, Tenn., which also serves as a museum, working ranch and upscale version of a Cracker Barrel.

"We had arranged it so no tour buses would be coming by while filming, but somehow the wires got crossed, and the next thing you know, there was a group that literally burst in," said executive producer Elliott Halpern.

"What happened next was so unpredictable. They sang 'Coal Miner's Daughter' to Loretta. It showed this bond she has with her fans. It was really something."

Admirers of a more famous ilk pop up in both projects. Willie Nelson contributes to the album closer, "Lay Me Down": a recording-studio cameo that Lynn was unaware of until she heard the finished song for the first time.

In the movie, Sissy Spacek, who won an Oscar for 1980's "Coal Miner's Daughter," rummages through old photos with the woman she faithfully portrayed. Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood spontaneously harmonize together as they chat about the impact of Lynn's duets with Conway Twitty in the 1970s. The usually unflappable Jack White is nearly slack-jawed as he recalls peeling off the top sheets of Lynn's unrecorded lyrics for "Van Lear Rose," wondering what treasures might lie beneath.

There are no tour dates scheduled in the Twin Cities anytime soon, but Lynn will make an appearance this month at the South by Southwest music conference in Texas, a hipster gathering that has a tradition of taking time out to honor musicians who've stood the test of time.

"I kind of had to lay down the law or they'd have me working every night, you know," Lynn said. "But I recently sat down for a week or two and I said, 'I can't wait until I get back on the road.' I get so tired of sitting down. I can't stand it."

njustin@startribune.com • 612-673-7431 • Twitter: @nealjustin