Remember When Tanya Tucker Covered Miranda Lambert’s ‘The House That Built Me?’

In 2019, Tanya Tucker dropped a cover of Miranda Lambert’s “The House That Built Me.” The fragile song appears on the country legend’s GRAMMY-winning album, While I’m Livin,’ her first collection of new music in 17 years.

In the song’s accompanying music video, Tucker pays tribute to several important people and animals that have touched her life over the years. Viewers see flashback photos of her with her parents, her beloved fur babies and stars like Loretta Lynn, Roy Acuff, Minnie Pearl and Glen Campbell, whom she once dated. The “Delta Dawn” singer’s three children are also featured in the montage, as audio tells the story of a mother revisiting the house, where she once raised her children.

“I cut out pictures of houses for years / From Better Homes and Garden magazines / Plans were drawn and concrete poured / Nail by nail and board by board / But once the kids were grown, it was just too much for me,” Tucker croons, modifying the nostalgic song lyrics to suit her personal life story.

The video then ends with recent footage of Tucker on a horse before her tour bus passes the James L. Voss Veterinary Teaching Hospital located at Colorado State University.

It’s no doubt that Tucker’s powerful rendition gives new meaning to “The House That Built Me.” But she might not have covered the tune had it not been for Brandi Carlile, who made the suggestion, while producing Tucker’s full-length album alongside, Shooter Jennings.

“I was shaking my head, but she talked me into it,” Tucker told Rolling Stone Country. “And Brandi was with me the whole time in the vocal booth, going, ‘Try it like this.’ I followed her, and it was 43 takes on the first line of the song. But now I listen to it and it gives me chills.”

Written by Allen Shamblin and Tom Douglas, “The House That Built Me” became a huge hit for Lambert back in 2010. Not only did it become her first chart-topper on the Billboard Hot Country Songs Chart, but it also won her a GRAMMY Award. 

Click above to re-live Tanya Tucker’s version of “The House That Built Me.”