Patty Loveless’ Heartbreaking Song “Nothin’ But the Wheel”

Patty Loveless is one of the female artists who had a breakout career during the ’90s. Her self-titled debut album was released back in 1986 but later on, she got her success with the release of her album Only What I Feel. The track contains one of Patty’s best songs “Nothin But the Wheel.”

The country singer’s other hit songs are “Timber, I’m Falling in Love,” “Chains,” “Blame It on Your Heart,” “You Can Feel Bad,” and “Lonely Too Long.”

Patty Loveless’ Heartbreaking Song

This track is one of the few hits of Patty Loveless. It was released back in 1993 from her album Only What I Feel. The track was penned by Nashville songwriter, John Scott Sherrill who was contemplating it while driving.

Sherrill wrote:

“I was just driving all night long, just like it says in the song, and actually started writing it in the middle of that drive. I didn’t finish it or anything, but the idea: there I was holding on to nothing but the steering wheel. I got the brief kind of glimmer into the song right there. I just knew I had to get out of town.”

Lyrics Breakdown

And the only thing I know for sure
Is if you don’t want me anymore
Then I’m holding on to nothin’ but the wheel

Traditional country music is all about the heartbreaks and sad experiences of the singer or the songwriter. This Patty Loveless track is one of them as the narrative of the song indicates that the woman is finding herself after a heartbreaking relationship.

When you invest all of your life in a relationship, it usually leads to an identity crisis if everything falls apart. That is the reason why we must love ourselves first before loving someone. We must also know who we really are and what we want in life before engaging in a relationship. This way, we can have a better grasp of the situation if the relationship does not succeed.

Listen to the song here: