[Jennings is] like a tough, savvy minstrel, a maverick wanderer who's still able to rejoice in life. Jennings is the kind of man who has the same wink whether he's getting thrown out of a bar or he's punching out some little wimp and taking his woman. It's all the same, he laughs, just life. You can count on one finger the number of singers in any field today who can communicate that kind of wicked, joyful irreverence. (p. 68)

[It's] hard to explain why Ladies Love Outlaws is a slight disappointment in comparison to Jennings' recent albums. The material is extremely uneven…. Two of the better cuts are Jennings' only compositions here: "Sure Didn't Take Him Long" is a wry comment on woman stealing and "I Think It's Time She Learned" addresses itself to the correction of an errant woman…. In sum, a good album but not a great one. (p. 70)

Chet Flippo, "Country Music's Perennials: Four of the Most Distinctive Voices," in Rolling Stone (by Straight Arrow Publishers, Inc. © 1972; all rights reserved; reprinted by permission), Issue 122, November 23, 1972, pp. 68, 70.∗