ALBUMS: The Best of Dolly Parton (1970); Best of Dolly Parton (1975); Dolly Greatest Hits (1982)
MVC Rating: Best (’70) 4.5/$$$; Best (’75) 5.O/$$$$; Greatest (82) 4.0/$$$
I’m jealous. My friend and colleague Greg Garrison, AL.com’s religion reporter for decades, drove to Dollywood Thursday night and had an interview Friday with Dolly Parton.
I’m Greg’s editor and he did the smart thing to call me AFTER he was on his way lest I would have ordered him to pick me up. I would have brought my three Dolly albums with me of course and asked her to sign them. Obnoxious that would be — at the least. So Greg, thanks for waiting on that call.
For my part, I am going to move Dolly Parton up the alphabetical scale of myvinylcountdown.com .
I’m almost up to the D’s anyway, which would make a good fit. You know, D for Dolly.
Dolly Parton is 72 and I am 58. About 50 years ago I became a fan. As young boy, about 8 or 9 or so, I saw her on TV, on The Porter Wagoner Show. Dolly was kind of a sidekick to Porter, the sequin jacketed country singer with slicked back hair.
As I said, I was about 8 watching B&W TV as Porter introduced Dolly singing her new song. ‘I Will Always Love You.’ That song become a minor hit at the time. And it was embedded in my 8-year-old brain.
Years later Whitney Houston took it to worldwide fame and many people thought it was a new song.
I like Dolly’s version better. Whitney could definitely power through with a voice almost too good to be true. But I blame Whitney, (rest in peace) for all of the vocal gyrations that led to and became overused on vehicles such as ‘American Idol.’
Couple things I learned or my memory was refreshed about: Dolly Parton has an incredible natural voice and sings songs like she means them which is the point of singing, no? Connecting with an audience.She sings with the right emphasis and uses the right inflection.
Her voice is the real deal. But not only that, she played many instruments, guitar, banjo and piano. And maybe more impressive than all; she wrote nearly all of her songs, some of which have become classics.
She had 25 No. 1 Billboard country hits. She did movies, some good, some not so much. But I enjoyed ‘9 to 5.’
The three albums I have are about the perfect snapshot of her career in music. The 1970 best-of covers the early years and has a startling version of ‘Mule Skinner Blues’ complete with yodeling. Dolly makes you love yodeling even if you hate yodeling. This record also may have the definitive version of ‘How Great Thou Art.’
The second best-of (from 1975) has her signature songs that led her to the big time. ‘Jolene,’ ‘I Will Always Love You’ and ‘Coat of Many Colors’ and ‘Love is Like a Butterfly.’
The third album 1982’s Greatest Hits chronicles her crossing over from mostly pure country to a more pop sound that garnered bigger audiences but I didn’t like it as well as the earlier two albums.
It has such megahits as ‘Islands in the Stream’ and ‘9 to 5,’ from the movie soundtrack of the same name.
Videos below include a surprising cover of Led Zeppelin’s ‘Stairway to Heaven,’ a classic 70s rock tune that few artists ever attempt to cover because the multi-layered original is considered definitive. And the early introduction of ‘I will Always Love You.’
Counting down my 678 vinyl records before I die of brain disease.
Dolly is one of my favorites, tool