She owned her own theme park (which I’ve visited). She made random movie cameos. There was even a bit of a joke that she was more plastic than skin and bone.
But lemme tell you what, suckers. Dolly Parton is a friggin’ saint.
Released when she was just 29 and including only one song she didn’t write, the sheer variety and consistency of this compilation speaks volumes to the quality of her body of work (my dad would make a punchline here. Something about work done on her body. Shut up, dad).
She shows herself a master of dark, mournful ballads (“Jolene,” “Corner Store), tender love songs (the indelible “And I Will Always Love You”), and unbridled country-western jubilance (“Coat of Many Colors,” “When I Sing For Him”).
There’s not a bad track on here. And while I famously dismiss greatest hits comps, this one doesn’t have a bad second of music on it. Nothing seems out of place. It’s just pure Dolly, through and through, and that’s all it needs to be.
They were using a bunch of old records as decorations—hanging them on walls, using them as chargers for plates, and other unsavory treatment that no good record should be subjected to.
So I went through the stack ahead of time and saved these.
Especially important is the punk classic Easter by the Patty Smith Group. An absolute gem of a record.
I’ve derided him as a Paul McCartney wannabe who was far more concerned with making soundtracks for music videos than writing good pop tunes.
But that’s not entirely fair. Nor is it necessarily true.
This is an unusual live album: after The Stranger made him a huge star, Billy released an album of live versions of his old songs to introduce new listeners to his back catalog. In the liner notes, he specifically mentioned that he wanted to focus on lesser-known cuts: which means no “Piano Man.”
But there are several gems on here. “Captain Jack,” a deep cut from The Stranger is played with a heavy hitting energy that the studio version lacked—including a shouted final chorus. “She’s Got a Way About Her,” the lead track from his ill-fated first album , finds new life here—this version became a charting single, and for good reason.
Even besides these standouts, the entire tracklist is filled with gems. The best songs from a talented young songwriter played with the conviction and power of a star performer. The songs are lifted from the murky swamp of “potential” and given the performances they deserve.