Dear miss loretta, I ain't ever met ya

But I'm lonely tonight and I just betcha

You might have some wisdom to pull off that shelf

Your songs were all fun 'til I lived them myself.

I ain't a coal miner's daughter

But my grandmother was

Must be whiskey in the water

Must be bourbon in the blood

I'm a long way from kentucky

But the hurtin's the same

Now I know why you sang that way.

Oh, what ended up tough

I started out broken

What ended up lost

I started out hopin'

A lifetime of pain was three minutes long

And you weren't ashamed

When the world sang along.

I ain't a coal miner's daughter

But my grandmother was

Must be whiskey in the water

Must be bourbon in the blood

I'm a long way from kentucky

But the hurtin's the same

Now I know why you sang that way.

Dear miss loretta

We both grew up too fast

And I wish you could tell me

How you made it last.

I ain't a coal miner's daughter

But I've sung it all my life

I ain't been a widow

But I've been an ex-wife

And I hear your truth

And I feel your pain

Now I know why you sang that way

Yeah, I know why you sang that way.