You may or may not have been to Texas, but it’s easy to tell that Lyle Lovett is from there. And apart from a couple of detours, he’s never really left.
“There’s a tendency among Texas musicians to sing about where they’re from and exude a sense of confidence,” says Lovett in a baritone drawl that’s as dryly understated as his sense of humor. “And I think having a sense of the place where you belong gives any soul on this earth a confidence that allows them to speak up.
“Look at Archie Bell & The Drells in Houston doing the ‘Tighten Up,’ or Kenny Rogers to, you know, Bun B, Beyoncé, and Yolanda Adams. Even with that diversity, there’s a confidence among those performers that provides a tremendous foundation on which to build everything.”
As a case-in-point, Lovett describes an Alice in Wonderland-themed photo shoot for Disney that found him sitting in a tea cup with Beyoncé and Oliver Platt.
“Beyoncé was Alice, and Ollie was the Mad Hatter, and I was the March Hare,” the four-time Grammy winner recalls. “So we’re all in this tea cup and between shots, all we did was talk about Houston. We all had that in common, and Beyoncé really seemed like a Houston girl as we sat there between shots. There is something about that national identity of Texas that all of us hang on to.”
Over the course of his career, Lovett has explored a range of influences, and through it all, his voice and songwriting have remained unmistakable. But the country music industry, which made a considerable amount of money off his early hits, became less supportive as his sound became less predictable.
Then came Americana, a genre that has variously been viewed as roots or country music that doesn’t get played on country radio. The less restrictive term is often used to describe Lovett’s music, and he’s just fine with that. In January 2025, Lovett flew to London to pick up his second award at the UK Americana Awards.
“It’s funny, because I think Americana is willing to embrace just about any American form of music,” he says. “And I’m grateful for the organization, because it’s able to shine a light on musicians and songwriters that may not be as mainstream as other categories.”
Lovett’s roots, meanwhile, are firmly planted in the rural Texas town of Klein, which was named after his great-grandfather. It’s there, on his grandfather’s ranch, that he was raised and still resides.
“Both sides of my family arrived in Texas around 1850,” he says, “so I guess I’m, let’s see—one, two, three, four—I’m fourth generation, which means my children are fifth generation. It still feels like home and that’s not just because of my time spent here, or the time my ancestors spent here. It’s also because of all the people I still see, you know? I see people I went to first grade with.”
It wasn’t until second grade that the young Lyle Lovett made his debut as a performer when he and his classmate Rodney Fisher played The Beatles’ “I Wanna Hold Your Hand” as well as The Four Flickers’ “Long Tall Texan,” which Lovett went on to record for his much-acclaimed Road to Ensenada album.
Released in 1996, the album also includes “That’s Right (You’re Not From Texas),” one of his best-loved signature songs. Same goes for his song “12th of June,” which appears on the 2023 album of the same name. Its title refers to his 7-year-old twins’ birthday, while the lyrics also name-check the San Jacinto River, which runs along the family cemetery.
After 15 albums, it took Lovett a decade to write, record, and release 12th of June, an album that is among his most moving and musically compelling.
Lovett had just finished his decades-long contract with Curb Records and was trying to figure out the best way forward. He was also raising a family, something he’d never imagined would be so satisfying. And then there was the COVID-19 pandemic, during which Lovett put on a series of web shows, including one with Shawn Colvin.
“Shawn and I have been friends since the early ’90s,” Lovett says. “When my [twins] were little babies she would play peekaboo with them. She’d cover up her eyes and say ‘peeky,’ so they call her Aunt Peeky.”
This time out Lovett brings a slimmed-down version of his large band on his Small Large Band tour. While his original songs are the focal point, he’s been known to cover numerous artists, from Townes Van Zandt to Tammy Wynette.
Over the course of the tour, Lovett says he might even find the time to write a song or two. “I try to think of an idea worth imposing on someone’s ears,” he says with humility. “It’s not a small ask to say, ‘Hey, listen to this.’ I mean, there’s a responsibility in that, right? So I try to think of an idea that is worth demanding someone’s attention. And then I write to that idea the best I can.”
