Lyle Pearce Lovett is the heir to such eccentric Texan troubadours as Guy Clark, Walter Hyatt and Townes Van Zandt. He set the stage for alternative country music and the American movement. His albums, full of insightful observation of characters, lyrical ballads and dry wit, established Lovett as an authentic singer/songwriter whose popularity extended far beyond the country. Read more about him at houston-trend.
EARLY YEARS
Lovett was born on November 1, 1957, in Houston. His family lived in the small town of Klein, which later became Houston’s suburb. Interestingly, this town got its name after Adam Klein, Lovett’s great-grandfather who was a Bavarian weaver. The boy’s father was the manager of the marketing department and his mother worked as a staff training specialist.
In 1980, Lovett received a Bachelor of Arts in German language and journalism from Texas A&M University. In the early 1980s, he often played acoustic solos in small bars near the campus. In addition, Lyle performed covers and original songs at local folk festivals and clubs. When he was a graduate student, he went to Germany to study. Lovett continued his writing and playing activities in Europe.
MUSICAL CAREER
After returning to America in the early 1980s, Lovett started out as a singer and songwriter. By then, he had already gained a good reputation in the folk-acoustic community in Texas. In 1980 and 1982, the musician participated in the New Folk competition at the Kerrville Folk Festival.
As early as 1978, in Germany, Lovett got acquainted with singer Buffalo Wayne, who invited him to perform at the Schueberfouer annual fair in Luxembourg in 1983. When Lyle played with other musicians in the musical tent, he discovered that his songs would sound completely different with proper accompaniment. Soon, Lovett received an offer to record in the studio. During his stay in Arizona, he created 18 tracks that summer.
When the singer’s debut album was released in 1986, Lovett stood out for his straight-talking songs with a somewhat cynical tone. They were performed in free arrangements and resembled country music from another era.
Several members of the British soft rock band the Rogues, continued to play with Lyle Lovett & His Large Band. In 1985, blues singer Francine Reed joined them, with whom the musicians toured for decades.
In 1987, Lovett released his second album, Pontiac, in which he demonstrated his eclecticism and proficiency. Pontiac received extremely positive feedback from both local and mainstream publications. Thus, the Houston native reached a wider audience in the pop and rock music markets.
After recording Lyle Lovett and His Large Band in 1989, Lovett settled in California. In LA, he worked the next two years on his fourth album, Joshua Judges Ruth, with a lot of gospel and R&B influences, which became the musician’s most successful release. It was ignored by country radio but not by the pop audience. Lyle became a mainstay on adult alternative radio.
Lyle reached the peak of his fame in the early 1990s with albums Joshua Judges Ruth and I Love Everybody, intended for adult pop listeners. For his 1996 album The Road to Ensenada, the musician won a Grammy for Best Country Album.
Despite his top positions on the country charts, it was clear from the start that Lovett’s musical tastes were not limited to country music, although the genre was the core of his sound. Instead, he combined jazz, folk, pop, western, swing, bebop, blues and gospel, pushing the boundaries of each genre.
In the 2010s, Lovett’s songwriting process was rather slow. The musician took a 10-year break between his album Release Me in 2012 and 12th of June in 2022. However, throughout this time, he regularly performed on American and Texan country stages so his fans did not forget him.
ACTING CAREER
Lyle Lovett is not only a musician but also a talented actor. In 1983, he starred in the biographical TV drama Bill: On His Own with Mickey Rooney. Almost 10 years later, he made his feature film debut portraying a quirky police detective in the 1992 comedy-drama The Player. The plot revolves around a Hollywood producer, Griffin Mill, who often rejects numerous screenwriters and authors of ideas for potential films. Griffin’s goal is to find a gem among tons of “unprocessed ore.” But, one day, he receives postcards saying he will die. The producer kills an innocent playwright because his assumptions about the addressee turn out to be wrong.
In addition, Lyle appeared in films such as Short Cuts, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, The Opposite of Sex, Cookie’s Fortune, Three Days of Rain, TV series The Bridge, Big Sky and many others.
PERSONAL LIFE
Lovett met actress Julia Roberts on the set of The Player. The couple got married in 1993 after just three weeks of dating. When they announced their marriage, Lovett became the center of many rumors and tabloid stories. He had never experienced before in his music career such an unprecedented level of fame. Lovett and Roberts separated in the spring of 1995 and Lyle began to lose huge popularity. People magazine reported that the reason for the split was career matters. Lovett and Roberts spent a lot of time apart due to their different professions.
After almost two years of living together, the couple amicably parted. As of 1997, Lovett still referred to Roberts’ mother as “mom”, while the actress described their marriage to the New York Daily News as simply a “mistake”. However, even after the media lost interest in Lovett’s music and love life following the divorce, the singer continued to record great albums and unforgettable singles.
In 1997, Lovett began a romantic relationship with a little-known woman, April Kimble. They got engaged in 2003 and wedded in February 2017. The couple has twins – a boy and a girl.
A FEW CURIOUS FACTS
- Lyle’s single “Cowboy Man” from his debut 1986 album reached 10th position on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. This is the singer’s most popular hit.
- Although Roberts and Lovett met while filming The Player in 1992, Roberts revealed to Walters magazine in 1993 that she had been a fan of his music long before their meeting and used to listen to his tapes in the car.
- On March 28, 2002, Lyle was attacked by a bull near a fence on his uncle’s farm in Klein. He suffered a severe leg fracture but fully recovered after six months and resumed touring in the summer of 2003.
- On May 15, 2010, at the opening ceremony, Lyle received a Doctor of Humane Letters from the University of Houston. Interestingly, his mother also got a bachelor’s degree there in 1960.
- Lyle Lovett is a horse lover. He participated in reining. It is a Western-style equestrian competition where riders lead horses through a precise pattern of circles, spins and stops. Lovett was inducted into the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame in 2012.
