Dolly Parton Releases Wild Track List for Upcoming Rock Album

Dolly Parton was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2022, despite having no real ties to rock music. At first she tried to pull herself out of contention for the distinction, feeling guilty that she might take the spot of someone else more worthy. But when notified she couldn’t be taken off the ballot and would probably win anyway, she decided to resolve her internal conflict by vowing to record a rock album.
And boy, has she.
Talking a play out of the Morgan Wallen/Zach Bryan playbook, Dolly Parton has decided to go big, and is releasing the 30-track album Rockstar on November 17th. Consisting of 21 cover songs and nine new original tracks, it’s not just the amount of music, but the laundry list of contributors and guests on this album that make it a juggernaut. This isn’t just a rock album. This is an international, multi-genre event.
From the country/Southern rock realm, Chris Stapleton, Warren Haynes, Emmylou Harris, Brandi Carlile, Ronnie McDowell, Ronnie Van Zant (RIP), Artimus Pyle, and Gary Rossington (RIP) are all set to appear. They will join artists as disparate as Kid Rock and Melissa Etheridge, and as popular as Lizzo and Miley Cyrus. Rock legends like Sting, Steve Perry of Journey, and Nikki Sixx of Motley Crue all make the list as well. Many of the guests appear on cover versions of the songs they helped make famous.

“I’m so excited to finally present my first rock n’ roll album, ‘Rockstar!’” Parton said in a statement. “I am very honored and privileged to have worked with some of the greatest iconic singers and musicians of all time, and to be able to sing all the iconic songs throughout the album was a joy beyond measure. I hope everybody enjoys the album as much as I’ve enjoyed putting it together!”
The album will comes as a four-LP set, a two-CD set and via digital download and on all streaming services.
TRACK LIST:
- “Rockstar” (special guest Richie Sambora)
- “World on Fire”
- “Every Breath You Take” (feat. Sting)
- “Open Arms” (feat. Steve Perry)
- “Magic Man” (feat. Ann Wilson with special guest Howard Leese)
- “Long As I Can See the Light’ (feat. John Fogerty)
- “Either Or” (feat. Kid Rock)
- “I Want You Back” (feat. Steven Tyler with special guest Warren Haynes)
- “What Has Rock and Roll Ever Done for You” (feat. Stevie Nicks with special guest Waddy Wachtel)
- “Purple Rain”
- “Baby, I Love Your Way” (feat. Peter Frampton)
- “I Hate Myself for Loving You” (feat. Joan Jett & The Blackhearts)
- “Night Moves” (feat. Chris Stapleton)
- “Wrecking Ball” (feat. Miley Cyrus)
- “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” (feat. P!nk & Brandi Carlile)
- “Keep on Loving You” (feat. Kevin Cronin)
- “Heart of Glass” (feat. Debbie Harry)
- “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” (feat. Elton John)
- “Tried to Rock and Roll Me” (feat. Melissa Etheridge)
- “Stairway to Heaven” (feat. Lizzo & Sasha Flute)
- “We Are the Champions”
- “Bygones” (feat. Rob Halford with special guests Nikki Sixx & John 5)
- My Blue Tears (feat. Simon Le Bon)
- “What’s Up?” (feat. Linda Perry)
- “You’re No Good” (feat. Emmylou Harris & Sheryl Crow)
- “Heartbreaker” (feat. Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo)
- “Bittersweet” (feat. Michael McDonald)
- “I Dreamed About Elvis” (feat. Ronnie McDowell with special guest The Jordanaires)
- “Let It Be” (feat. Paul McCartney & Ringo Starr with special guests Peter Frampton & Mick Fleetwood)
- “Free Bird” (feat. Ronnie Van Zant with special guests Gary Rossington, Artimus Pyle and The Artimus Pyle Band)
May 9, 2023 @ 1:41 pm
Would love to see Willie Nelson do something like this.
May 12, 2023 @ 1:30 pm
I would love to see kuntry celebrety cookin’ competions atwwen wrasylun all women. Cage matxh rules ofcourse
May 9, 2023 @ 1:46 pm
Wow, like I said for all those who cry about Dolly getting Into the rock hall of fame, get over it she is in and there is nothing you can do about it, she DESERVED, if she didn’t she would not be in there, i mean there is soft rock, southern rock , hard rock and pop rock , yes pop is a part of rock music and pop singers belong in the rock hall of fame, a bunch of cry bags do not get to say what defines what rock music is, there are different kinds of rock music , soft, southern , hard and pop, they are all rock music. end of discussion. Now the only down side to this album is the inclusion of kid Rock, he is such a horrible singer, and maybe she included him out of sympathy, being the angel that Dolly is, it is definitely not for his talent.
And for everyone who thinks this is going to be pop rock only, by the list of performers I say we will be getting some hard rock as well I am looking very forward to this album.
May 10, 2023 @ 7:01 am
She didn’t deserve it. “Beweave” it or not, the “RNR” Hall of Fame is capabale of making mistakes… which they did!!! That being said, this should be an “inneresting” effort.
May 15, 2023 @ 11:51 am
You appear “capabale” of errors yourself.
May 9, 2023 @ 1:52 pm
Dolly needs to do a live TV special with all of these artists. It would break the internet
May 9, 2023 @ 1:55 pm
My guess is this will happen. That is why they are giving such a long lead time until the release date (November).
May 12, 2023 @ 4:07 pm
ABSOLUTELY, & maybe (or least HOPEFULLY)
Understand WHY she WAS inducted into the R/R Hall of Fame!!!! Sum IDIOTS, will ALWAYS, just see her as a C&W performer!!!!!!!
May 9, 2023 @ 1:53 pm
Can’t wait to hear Night Moves…
May 10, 2023 @ 8:14 am
Ditto…and Open Arms
May 9, 2023 @ 2:42 pm
Everything else aside… Dolly recorded Let It Be with Paul, Ringo and Peter Frampton/Mick Fleetwood?!? I’m just going to continue to imagine that the all were in a room cutting it, and not let the reality of recording spoil it for me 🙂
May 9, 2023 @ 2:59 pm
That list is a veritable who’s who in pop/rock music! Should be a real interesting listen!
Can I say it…Dolly Rocks!!
May 9, 2023 @ 3:17 pm
Here I go, playing devils advocate again. I keep making promises to quit doing that.
I don’t want to say that this isn’t the most tasteful, classiest thing a person could do in a situation like this. Dolly Parton openly does not want to take credit away from more deserving artist, and when faced with the reality that she has no choice in the matter, she decides to do something worthy of the distinction. That’s a very mature, empathetic, considerate and downright tasteful thing to do. Bordering on Saintly
And Lord knows, I would never say anything, even remotely critical of Dolly Parton, she seems like one of the nicest human beings on earth. She seems like the kind of person who would come to sing at your mothers funeral, if you just asked her to. No matter who you were.
But let’s not distract ourselves from the actual issue at hand, which is preserving the integrity of different styles of music. Dolly Parton doesn’t need a whole lot of distinction or more coverage in the press to be celebrated or appreciated for her contributions to Music, or even culture at large, or just the fact that she’s a great humanitarian. She’s probably going to go down in history as one of the most beloved people ever. Probably right up there with Robin Williams and Betty White.
But from a country music, website angle, and since most of the people regularly interacting with this comment section are country music fans,
If the shoe were on the other foot, and Dee Snyder from Twisted Sister, we’re being inducted into the country music, Hall of Fame, seemingly out of the blue, and decided to reconcile that problem by releasing an album of country covers, how would we react to that?
Some of the people who I can already imagine, responding to this comment, would never accept a dee Snyder country album, as anything more than an abomination that belongs in an audio zoo
Other people might still take it as a gesture of good faith, and acknowledge that it was tasteful and polite, and let it be,
I think we have to remember that this is only the beginning of what might be a model, genre nightmare, continuing to overlook really deserve an artists in favor of successful artists from other genres, and if the rock ‘n’ roll Hall of Fame starts doing it, there will be pressure for the country music Hall of Fame to start doing it
Imagine the Rolling Stone articles, after Porter Wagoner is in the rock ‘n’ roll, Hall of Fame, wondering why the country music Hall of Fame refuses to induct fats domino
If anything, and I see this with the utmost good faith, I hope Dale choosing to record a rock album serves as a George Washington moment, setting an example that other artists follow when getting inducted, prompting every artist nominated for something they don’t deserve, to do something worthy of the distinction. The Way Washington set the precedent for two presidential terms.
People like to act like the people who think ahead of the game, are being paranoid, borrowing trouble, or flat out using slippery slope, strawman arguments
But that sort of thing is usually how it goes. Probably anyone, but especially honky in particular, could have told you that leading Taylor Swift release songs on country radio would have directly lead to a lack of quality gatekeeping, and a flood of terrible pop music. And of course, anyone who had heard it said that the time would say that it was madness. But the people who said it turned out to be right.
Not that this wouldn’t be the coolest crossover album in history, but let’s not miss the big picture of that as exciting as this project is, the reason it came about, should be concerning for fans of any major style of music
And let’s remember if the shoe was ever on the other foot to expect a similar level of class and decorum from persons of the future
May 9, 2023 @ 5:22 pm
I hear your point, but if Dee Snyder made a country album featuring Steve Earle, Willie Nelson, Garth Brooks, Alan Jackson, Shania Twain, George Strait, Dolly, et cetera that was a mixture of famous covers and original, faithful work I can’t say I’d be too bent out of shape.
Inducting Dolly into the Rock HOF is of course still ridiculous, but I find it hard to imagine rock fans will be offended by this.
May 9, 2023 @ 6:19 pm
I guess you have a point
But i think country fans wouldn’t be as receptive to an album like that as they are going the other way
May 10, 2023 @ 12:33 pm
Dee Snyder, probably not. If it were somebody like Bob Dylan or John Mellencamp, who have done occasional country-adjacent material and have been on record as fans of the genre, I’d probably be pretty receptive. John Fogerty, who guests on this album, has actually done that very thing a couple of times now.
Likewise, an Alan Jackson or George Strait rock album would be terrible and I’d only be interested in hearing it out of morbid curiosity. But Dolly had crossover pop success in the same era that many of her guests were on the same chart. If pop radio DJs back in the day could play Dolly and Elton John back to back, there’s no reason a duet between the two wouldn’t work. She’s also recorded Stairway to Heaven once before and did an album of ’60s and ’70s pop hits back in 2005, so she’s clearly a fan of the genre, at least that era of it.
With that said, will this be a career highlight for anyone involved and will any of the covers be as good as the originals? It’s doubtful. But I’m hoping it will at least be a fun album.
May 11, 2023 @ 3:27 pm
Don’t forget that Bon Jovi has sorta already done that. Not that he’s in the Country Music Hall of Fame, but he’s been doing crossover stuff and shows with country artists for some time now.
May 11, 2023 @ 9:09 pm
As if half of what is passed off as Country music these days isn’t actually pop and rock music. The lines have already been blurred. Authentic country music songs are hard to find these days.
May 16, 2023 @ 12:55 pm
For me, inclusion in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame requires more than simply the artist having done a rock album. I could do a rock album but trust me that wouldn’t make me Hall of Fame worthy.
And yes: although I’ve never met Dolly Parton she seems like a lovely human being. And if she wants to do a rock album she certainly should, and the album should be judged purely on its merits. If it comes out great then it’s great.
May 9, 2023 @ 3:39 pm
This is on my list of “must haves” right up there with the Pat Boone metal album (look it up — it is a real thing). Dolly is a goddess, and an angel, and a saint, though, so who cares what I think. She can do whatever the hell she wants. Also what Fuzzy Twoshits said.
May 9, 2023 @ 4:04 pm
Also what Fuzzy Twoshits said.
: D Ok, feeling magnanimous this evening, so am going to give you total credit that this is a typo.
The last thing we need is another person typing this kind of thing.
: D it is Fuzzy TwoShirts.
‘K ?
May 10, 2023 @ 2:51 am
JF just listened to the Pat Boone metal album….OMG the weirdest stuff! Thank you.
May 11, 2023 @ 4:48 pm
I even have the Ethel Merman Disco album believe it or not:). Can’t wait……
May 9, 2023 @ 3:41 pm
Bleh. Still love Dolly, though.
May 9, 2023 @ 3:49 pm
Rob Halford and Dolly. Never thought I would see that collaboration. Rob is a legend. Definitely be interesting to hear the final result.
May 11, 2023 @ 2:58 am
Big Judas Priest fan here, and that may be the track that intrigues me the most!
Would’ve been great if Dolly tried covering “Painkiller” haha
May 9, 2023 @ 4:01 pm
What a diverse list of guests! That’s awesome. I’m not a fan of everyone on the list but love seeing that. If more people participated in stuff like this, maybe folks could start having more civilized conversations on contentious subjects.
May 9, 2023 @ 4:04 pm
This album reminds me of William lee golden and the Goldens 3 cd collection of classic country gospel and rock songs, although she has a ton of guest stars singing with her, and along with the 21 classic songs we get 9 new ones, so yeah again I am over excited for her new rock album. Cannot wait to get it.
May 9, 2023 @ 4:20 pm
It’s also heartening to see Dolly pay homage to her Trio pal (and 2014 RRHoF inductee) Linda Ronstadt by doing “You’re No Good” with the other Trio member Emmylou, and Sheryl Crow, who helped induct Linda, and who just got inducted herself.
If you’re going to do something like this, you might as well go big; and Dolly went big as perhaps only she herself could have done (IMHO).
May 9, 2023 @ 4:47 pm
This woman continues to show us All how it should be done. In music & in life.
God love her.
May 9, 2023 @ 4:59 pm
Agreed. I think she is taking a bit of a strange situation and turning it into something positive. It will be interesting to hear all the collaborations!
May 9, 2023 @ 5:32 pm
As someone who was against Dolly’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction, I think this is a really stand up way to handle the situation. Who knows, this album may be a mess. But to go through so much effort and put out basically a triple album here as opposed to a token 10 songs shows that she was serious about it.
May 10, 2023 @ 8:24 am
A mess?? Nah. If she can create brilliant bluegrass versions of Stairway To Heaven and Shine, I think she can handle this. Sure, anything she does is “Dollyfied” but that’s what we love and expect from her. Will it be the next Dark Side Of The Moon? No…but I think we’re going to love it anyway. Who knows….it could turn out to be THE album of the year. But a mess or disaster? I wouldn’t bet on it.
BTW there are several variants available from various retailers. The tracklist is exactly the same, there are just differences in album covers and vinyl color.
May 14, 2023 @ 7:16 am
I’m assuming you meant “triple.”
May 14, 2023 @ 7:42 am
Yes.
May 9, 2023 @ 5:49 pm
I guess I’ll just wait for Ozzy to be inducted into the country hall of fame or invited to jam the grand ‘ol opera (it’s not so grand anymore, ask 3, he’ll tell ya).
May 10, 2023 @ 8:08 am
John Entwistle (bass guitarist for The Who) was supposed to play some dates at the Grand Ol Opry in late 2002 but his death got in the way of it.
May 9, 2023 @ 5:50 pm
I am a rock fan before I am a country fan. Rock fans do not generally acknowledge the Rock HOF at this point. We are sure next year Pavarotti will be inducted, so who gives two flying F’s.
May 9, 2023 @ 5:51 pm
This is unfortunate; I hate to see Dolly debase herself like this. The right thing to do would’ve been to disavow the induction, or maybe even sue them for inducting her.
What a shame.
May 9, 2023 @ 8:32 pm
Honky, I genuinely don’t understand you sometimes
I get it, you are a country music purist, I am not too far behind you. I think you’re a little more uptight on it than I am, in some ways.
And I get not liking other styles of music. I do. I am not the worlds biggest enthusiast for music that isn’t country, folksy, or traditional in someway. I will confess that there are a few groups from rock, a certain amount of Broadway, and the essential jazz artists like Miles Davis and Dizzy Gillespie that I can enjoy listening to.
But I’m truly curious where you’re coming from with this comment? I know that if I asked if you had a lesser opinion of rock music and it’s artists and material on principle, you would tell me that I have it right
I know that you’re down on almost everything that isn’t traditional country music. And I basically understand why, because I’ve been in the same boat.
But for the sake of good old, fashion, discussion, partly so I can understand your perspective, and partly because I know you’re not just some grout, refusing to get with the times, and that you actually have eloquent opinions about things, even if you come across as crusty
What exactly is it about rock that elicits this response from you? Is it the noisiness? The subject matter? The rebellious image?
Is it maybe this idea that rock music is for people who had a different upbringing than you? And that therefore, it is inherently the property of some group of people from a different lifestyle, background, and social situation?
And I guess tantamount to understanding any of those questions, let me ask you: did you grow up on country music, was that what was played on the record player when you were a kid? Or were you a later convert to country music who found something there that the other styles of music didn’t do for you?
No shade, man. You’re one of the only people around here that I know I can count on to back me up if I take them more controversial opinion about the state of country music.
But I’ve got to know where you’re coming from with this.
May 10, 2023 @ 4:01 am
Fuzzy,
C(c)ountry Music is the music of my people. It’s also the music of Dolly’s people. It’s not just a style of music; it’s the musical voice of one of the greatest cultures in the history of the world.
Rock N Roll did damage to C(c)ountry Music from it’s inception, and has continued to negatively impact it ever since. Because Pop and Rock, and now Rap are all considered “cool”, and the music of youth, C(c)ountry Music is the one that is always expected to adapt and “evolve”.
Well I say piss on that. I think C(c)ountry Music should be protected from interlopers and wagon-hitchers at all costs. It should be protected from outside influence. C(c)ountry legends like Dolly shouldn’t allow outside entities to hitch their wagons to her name and likeness.
May 10, 2023 @ 8:45 am
I respect that.
May 10, 2023 @ 9:25 am
The very beginnings of country music included influences from Europe, Hawaii, blues music, the banjo was from Africa, and rock music has been in country music for half a century now. I don’t understand thinking country music needs to have an exact sound, although I understand having certain values and stories embedded in the music. You’ll remain pissed off chasing some idea of country music that never existed, while Dolly and others are having fun with it. Maybe one day you’ll learn to enjoy music on a broader scale.
May 10, 2023 @ 4:10 pm
Well shoot, now that “Ackshully, The Banjo Was From Africa”-Guy has chimed in, we might at as well pack up and go home.
Oops, no, we can’t leave yet. We need to wait for “Hank Williams’ Mentor Was A Black Man”-Guy to arrive.
May 10, 2023 @ 9:29 am
Point taken, but Dolly is the interloper here. This is being marketed as Rock music. Her first instinct was perfectly in line with your sentiments, something changed her mind. Perhaps her extraordinary life has caused her to change the definition of “her people.”
May 10, 2023 @ 6:09 am
it’s because he lacks the capability for growth or self-reflection in an ever changing world. he decided he only likes certain things at a point in life, built his life around these choices, and that’s pretty much that. to change would be admitting defeat so he is going to double-down on everything pushing himself further and further to the fringe in every aspect of his life. and here we are.
May 10, 2023 @ 7:24 am
You say this, and yet, every new thing you are made to accept makes life worse for you and your people. Who is the fool now?
May 10, 2023 @ 8:38 am
Gentile, honest question:
if the world were turning into absolute hell, would you just accommodate yourself to “change,” consider yourself a noble stoic, and direct condescending insults toward all those who don’t take your approach?
Sounds awfully stunted and anti-intellectual of you.
Cultures have every right to pursue their own continuation across generations. That’s what a “culture” actually means.
May 11, 2023 @ 6:32 pm
Change is not inherently good.
Society has changed much regarding marriage and parenting, for example. None of it is for the better.
May 11, 2023 @ 6:49 pm
ik ik ik. women can just divorce awful men now. how will crowder survive.
May 10, 2023 @ 9:04 am
I love these questions. Whether they are answered or not by the King, I think they drill right down to the heart of this website’s mission and the whole concept of genre. Artists like Dolly, Willy, Ray Charles, Paul McCartney and such become their own genre due to their distinctive voices and legacies. If Dolly and her team had a panic attack she could remix all these covers with the same guests but country instrumentation and slightly altered rhythms and market it as a country album of rock songs. Would they then be country songs? What is a country song… sound, subject or singing style? I love this stuff.
May 9, 2023 @ 9:26 pm
I can hear her voice sounding great on a lot of these songs…
May 9, 2023 @ 9:35 pm
If she’s not Rock, then why does she have boulders?
May 10, 2023 @ 8:05 am
An interesting mix, for sure! 😀 But I’m a little disappointed that “Rockin'” (the song she did for her HOF induction) doesn’t appear to have made the final cut; it wouldn’t surprise me if it were being set aside for a store-exclusive bonus track, vinyl-only B-side for one of the singles, or even a Record Store Day exclusive single…
May 10, 2023 @ 9:35 am
Read where she was trying to get Mick Jagger to be on the album but guess that didn’t happen. His loss but maybe he knew she would show him up.
May 10, 2023 @ 9:45 am
What interests me most is “Whst Has Rock And Roll Ever Done For You?”. I hope the song lives up to the title!
May 10, 2023 @ 10:18 am
Two or three tracks will be pretty good – tops. The rest will be trash. Just keeping it real.
May 10, 2023 @ 11:01 am
Peter Frampton & Mick Fleetwood are honorary Beatles then?
Figured Eric Clapton would be one… oh well
May 10, 2023 @ 11:10 am
Didn’t know this was real until I saw Sheryl Crow’s name. Whew!
May 10, 2023 @ 3:20 pm
“I Want You Back”? With Steven Tyler? Surely this can’t be the Jackson 5 hit, can it? Is there another song with that title that might be more likely?
May 11, 2023 @ 3:41 am
The Ronnie Van Zant track is totally disrespectful. But its all about the $ , right?
May 11, 2023 @ 7:18 am
The track was recorded to appear on a tribute album for Van Zant. They are using the track on both projects, so I do not see how it is disrespectful.
May 11, 2023 @ 8:24 am
Nah its direspectful the point is their using his voice for it and he’s already dead… somethings just shouldn’t happen
May 11, 2023 @ 9:42 am
Let the man rest in peace. Have some respect for the dead. If you want to cover the song (which will never be as good as the original), cover the song.
May 11, 2023 @ 9:33 am
I don’t know what I was expecting but I like “World On Fire.” It’s “Dolly” for sure but completely different from anything she’s done. Looking forward to the album.
May 11, 2023 @ 10:24 am
not a fan of dolly’s voice, but she is a class act, no doubt. and her writing ability speaks for itself. but if i want to hear rock classes turned inside out, i’ll listen to Hayseed Dixie, or Richard Cheese and Lounge Against The Machine. check them both out on youtube if you’re unfamiliar.
mindbending shit…like billy strings covering pearl jam, black sabbath, etc…
May 12, 2023 @ 5:29 am
World’s on Fire blew me away. Dolly is taking a bold stand in her first rock single/track. Of course, the world doesn’t know what to do with it.
May 13, 2023 @ 11:12 am
Is Dolly Parton overrated?
I used to strongly feel Dolly Parton was overrated when I was a kid. I didn’t get the schtick at all in my teens and early 20’s. Then she released The Grass is Blue and I softened my stance and went along for the ride.
But after her terrible Christmas special, I started wondering again if she’s just a novelty act who hit some monster songs 30 years ago. Now we get this bloated rock album that coincides with her R&R Hall of Fame induction (and includes a collaboration with the scum of the earth Kid Rock).
She’s been terrible in concert for decades – talking all over her songs and playing Yakety Sax for the masses.
You can’t even lean into her charity work because most projects are fleeting. Her reading program – Dolly’s Parton Imagination Library – that the media was gushing over the last year has largely failed due to lack of funding in many regions.
No doubt in time 70’s she was the most important artist in country music. The 80’s brought massive pop success. She’s a huge brand still today. But outside some projects like Trio, what had been her contributions to country music?
May 13, 2023 @ 1:13 pm
Dolly was hugely popular in the eighties, that’s true, and she carried that momentum into the early 1990s. But then “New Country” happened. Radio stations turned away from older country acts, not just Dolly. If you were over 40, you were booted off radio for the younger acts. It’s not that Dolly hasn’t been relevant. She released albums that got no support. Hard for the public to support your work when they are not aware of it. Marketing is important.
Dolly loved doing the bluegrass recordings, but they didn’t sell well. Decent, but not spectacular. So, she started her own label and has been doing “passion” projects. Albums she wants to do and if they are successful, that’s great. She’s been giving of herself for sixty years. She’s earned the right to do whatever she wants. But to minimize her contributions over the past 30 years is a mistake. The young artists that pushed her off radio in the nineties are no longer young, but now they are studying how Dolly is still going and finding success in all forms of entertainment (TV, movies, product branding, etc.). We may not see her impact for another 20 years as artists have much longer careers even after radio is done with them.
May 14, 2023 @ 7:21 am
Yes.
She and Willie are massively overrated.
There have been plenty of better country music stars. But they pander to the non-country crowd, so their statures are exaggerated. Same with Johnny Cash.
May 16, 2023 @ 8:55 pm
I’m not sure that kind of attack on people who’ve really helped to define at least a half century of American music holds up to any kind of scrutiny. To say that Cash “pandered” to a non-country crowd is just a nasty way of saying that you resent his popularity and the fact that he transcended the niche acts that you’re apparently more fond of. Willie Nelson brought more traditional country instrumentation to the fore at a time when you were more likely to hear violas and cellos on a country record than you were a dobro – and expanded the country audience as a result. As for Dolly, yeah, there’s plenty of pop in those ‘70s and ‘80s songs, but had she not expanded the frontiers of country music, would there be the kind of dominance that country – even the apparently few kinds you seem to express enjoyment of – enjoys today in terms of touring, record sales and radio play? I think not.
May 13, 2023 @ 12:31 pm
So Dolly joins illuminati should be headline. Im sure the 5-pointed star over her left eye is just art?
May 24, 2023 @ 12:58 pm
“What’s Up?” is the most annoying song in pop history.