Top 10 Miranda Lambert Songs
Miranda Lambert songs are some of the most consistently interesting and best-written among the current crop of country music stars. The singer-songwriter, who rose to prominence after placing third on Nashville Star in 2003, has written and recorded some of the most challenging songs to come out of Nashville in the last two decades.
Lambert's stock in the business has only risen since her debut, but it is her diverse songs -- which range from revenge songs to gentle, heartfelt ballads -- that have placed her among the forefront of the artists in contemporary country music. Our list of the Top 10 Miranda Lambert Songs draws from every facet of her celebrated career.
- 10
"Only Prettier"
From: 'Revolution' (2009)It's tough to decide if we love this fourth single from Lambert's Revolution album or its star-studded video, which included appearances by Lady A's Hillary Scott, Kellie Pickler and Laura Bell Bundy, more. The clip for the tune, which insists to those living the "high life" that "we might think a little differently / But we got a lot in common you will see / We're just like you / Only prettier," features the four ladies performing double-duty in two rival high-school cliques. We'd like to redo a few of our own high-school memories after hearing this song!
- 9
"Tin Man"
From: 'The Weight of These Wings' (2016)Lambert used another country star's song of the same name -- Kenny Chesney's "Tin Man" -- as a jumping-off point for her "Tin Man," from her double LP The Weight of These Wings. "I told Kenny … I felt the same emotion I feel when I hear that song," she explains.
Lambert co-wrote "Tin Man" with Jon Randall and Jack Ingram in the summer of 2015.
- 8
"Kerosene"
From: 'Kerosene' (2005)The title track of and third single from Lambert's debut album, this song was an early indicator of the feisty side of the blossoming country star with whom America would soon fall in love. Singing "Now I don't hate the one who left / You can't hate someone who's dead / He's out there holding on to someone, I'm holding up my smoking gun / I'll find somewhere to lay my blame the day she changes her last name," this Texas girl wasn't afraid to make some noise!
- 7
"Over You"
From: 'Four the Record' (2011)Lambert and Shelton co-wrote this song about Shelton's brother, who was killed in a car accident when the singer was younger. Shelton felt the song was too personal for him to be able to sing it onstage every night, so Lambert recorded it. The emotionally charged track reached No. 1 on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart, and took home Song of the Year honors at both the ACMs and CMAs.
- 6
"Mama's Broken Heart"
From: 'Four the Record' (2011)Lambert included this emotion-packed tune, written by Brandy Clark, Kacey Musgraves and Shane McAnally, on her fourth CD, Four the Record. It details the disappointment of a mother while her daughter "numbed the pain" of a lost love "at the expense of [her] liver" -- and we're guessing when she's left "holdin' the matches / When the fire trucks show up and there's nobody else to blame," her mama will have plenty to say!
- 5
"Gunpowder and Lead"
From: 'Crazy Ex-Girlfriend' (2007)Perhaps the most daring song of her career, "Gunpower and Lead" had Lambert breaking all kinds of rules when she released it. Hinting at plans to do away with an abusive lover once he's released from jail, the daughter of two real-life detectives sings, "I'm goin' home, gonna load my shotgun / Wait by the door and light a cigarette / If he wants a fight well now he's got one / And he ain't seen me crazy yet," followed by a promise to "Show him what a little girl's made of / Gunpowder and lead" with such authenticity that the song became her first Top 10 and her first platinum-selling hit.
- 4
"Bluebird"
From: 'Wildcard' (2019)Lambert's "Bluebird" earned her a No. 1 country chart hit for the first time in six years when it climbed to the top of the rankings in July of 2020. The novel coronavirus pandemic no doubt helped the success of the songbird-sweet track: Its hopeful message was the light in our souls and the bluebird in our hearts, in a way.
- 3
"Heart Like Mine"
From: 'Revolution' (2009)Lambert kicked off 2011 by releasing this fifth and final single from Revolution, which quickly became her second No. 1 hit. Written by Lambert with Monroe and Howard, it's got a daring and unusual lyric: "'Cause I heard Jesus, He drank wine / And I bet we'd get along just fine / He could calm a storm and heal the blind / And I bet He'd understand a heart like mine."
- 2
"White Liar"
From: 'Revolution' (2009)"White Liar" is a catchy song of double betrayal that proves, as they say, "what goes around comes around." When confronting her boyfriend, whom she caught cheating "with a redhead named Bernice," the song's narrator waits until the end to admit she's "been lying, too." While the tune is amusing enough, it's accompanying music video, featuring Jamey Johnson as both a preacher and the secret lover, makes this song one we're going to remember for years to come.
- 1
"The House That Built Me"
From: 'Revolution' (2009)This song is the Grammy-winning track that singlehandedly changed Lambert's career. Discovered while listening to songs that Shelton was considering for his upcoming album, this ballad struck such a chord with his then-girlfriend that he gladly passed it on to her instead. Lambert recalls "crying for two hours" when she first heard the Tom Douglas / Allen Shamblin-penned tune. The single features the narrator returning to a childhood home: "I thought if I could touch this place or feel it / This brokenness inside me might start healing." Lambert won a Grammy for Best Female Country Vocal Performance for "The House That Built Me."