Table Of Content
- Behind the Song Lyrics: “Sunshine on My Shoulders” by John Denver
- Missing lyrics by Miranda Lambert?
- Genius is the world’s biggest collection of song lyrics and musical knowledge
- Share this song with other Ran fans!
- The Meaning Behind “Woman in Love” by Barbra Streisand and Why It’s the Best Ballad Written by the Bee Gees
- Miranda Lambert

Lambert was dating Shelton at the time, and she heard this early version of “The House That Built Me.” Her reaction to the song was immediate and visceral, which then changed the trajectory of the song’s future. “The House That Built Me” is a timeless anthem that honors the importance of home, family, and the memories that continue to influence our lives long after we leave those cherished walls behind. They essentially became homeless, staying with family and friends until they found an old house, which was about to be bulldozed. They all lived in one room while slowly fixing the home — adding windows, doors, and floor-to-ceiling repairs.
Behind the Song Lyrics: “Sunshine on My Shoulders” by John Denver
She refers to it as "the house that built [her]," because of all the memories that she had of growing up within its walls. Even now, eight years later, "The House That Built Me" remains a staple in Lambert's catalog. In it, Lambert gets off a tour bus and tours her childhood home, now owned by another family. “The House That Built Me” went on to sit at the number one position on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, receive a Platinum certification, and win the Best Female Country Vocal Performance Grammy Award in 2011. Safe to say, this song not only moved Lambert but country music fans everywhere. The lyrics also ring true to the details of Lambert’s life growing up in the house that built her.
Missing lyrics by Miranda Lambert?
Country music star Miranda Lambert’s The House That Built Me song was written by Tom Douglas and Allen Shamblin. The song was released in March 2010 as the third single from her third studio album, Revolution. Surprisingly enough, Blake Shelton was originally supposed to record the emotional tune but when Lambert heard it, she snagged the song for herself. At the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards in 2011, Lambert won a Grammy for ‘Best Female Country Vocal Performance’ for the song. Miranda’s “The House That Built Me” started a four-week run at #1 on the Country Music Billboard charts starting June 12, 2010. Just like all those "10-year overnight success stories," the song that took seven years to write and found its perfect artist by happenstance became an instant classic.
Genius is the world’s biggest collection of song lyrics and musical knowledge
But when they started sending the song out to trusted sources, they got crickets. At that point in her career, Lambert already established herself as a fiery newcomer with a big Texas attitude. Her previous singles included "Kerosene" and "Gunpowder & Lead," both energetic songs with a take-no-prisoners vibe. Momma cut out pictures of houses for years / From better homes and garden magazine / Plans were drawn and concrete poured / And nail by nail and board by board / Daddy gave life to momma’s dream, Lambert sings.

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Lambert’s reaction came from the connection she felt to the lyrics that Douglas and Shamblin had written. Growing up, Lambert and her family went through a difficult time when her parents’ private investigation company failed. Lambert performed the song during the 2010 Academy of Country Music Awards on April 18, 2010, and received a standing ovation. At the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards on February 13, 2011, she won the Grammy for Best Female Country Vocal Performance. Mama cut out pictures of houses for years.From 'Better Homes and Garden' magazine.Plans were drawn, concrete poured,And nail by nail and board by boardDaddy gave life to mama's dream.
Did You Write The Song, Or Did The Song Write You?
Lambert’s dog was buried in by the house, (And I bet you didn’t know under that live oak / My favorite dog is buried in the yard) and her bedroom was upstairs (Up those stairs in that little back bedroom / Is where I did my homework and I learned to play guitar). The Lambert family eventually moved into a rental home and started rebuilding their lives as well as the home itself. That house was the house that built Miranda Lambert into the person she is today. Miranda Lambert was 26 when she first heard "The House That Built Me." Douglas and Shamblin initially figured a male would sing the tune, so they sent it over to Scott Hendricks, who has a track record of finding the hits in Nashville.
Miranda Lambert Sets Record With “The House That Built Me” - Sounds Like Nashville
Miranda Lambert Sets Record With “The House That Built Me”.
Posted: Thu, 24 Jun 2010 07:00:00 GMT [source]
Lambert released it as her third single from the album after "White Liar," racing to the top of the charts (imagine that, a ballad on country radio). Several years before the song’s debut in 2010, country music songwriters Tom Douglas and Allen Shamblin wrote the track with a male singer in mind. "The House That Built Me" is a country ballad in the key of F major driven primarily by acoustic guitar with steel guitar fills. The song's female narrator describes returning, as an adult, to the house that she grew up in, and asking the person who now lives in the house if she could step inside and take a look around.
Dave Alvin: On Songwriting, Speculation and Maintaining His Own Muse
When Lambert's parents first heard the song, they couldn't believe she didn't write it. That's because it so closely mirrored a painful point in their lives that it felt like a page right out of her diary. "We were so convinced we had a classic, we'd get together for years and think, 'What is wrong with it? Why isn't it resonating?'" Douglas says. Eventually, they realized they were trying to put too much story in the original version. Including the crucial addition of the line, "If I could just come in, I swear I'll leave — I won't take nothing but a memory." Douglas told The Tennessean that Shamblin came to him with the song idea while at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah in the early 200s.

In addition to these verses, Douglas and Shamblin ensured that “The House That Built Me” rang with a sense of universality in chorus. “When you co-write a song, you each dig into your own heart for where you’re coming from,” Shamblin explained to The Boot about the experience. “The inspiration for me was the last ten years or so with having my own children.
I often think about the neighborhood and the house that my father built that I grew up in. Lambert also captured Song of the Year, Single of the Year, and Music Video of the Year from the Academy of Country Music awards.