 Album cover. Decca (DL 74897) (1967) Image credit: greenshields at discogs.com May 29, 1967: Bill Philips released his second studio album, Bill Phillips' Style. The album included the first recorded version of the Dolly and Bill Owens composition, "The Company You Keep" (Dolly's version would be included on her debut album in September 1967), in addition to another Parton–Owens composition, "Friends Tell Friends", which features harmony vocals by Dolly. The album peaked at number 43 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart.  Album cover. Columbia (CK 44384) (1989) May 30, 1989: Dolly released her twenty-ninth solo studio album, White Limozeen. The album peaked at number three on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart.  Cassette tape single cover. Hollywood (HR-64745-4) (1992) Image credit: d_k_ray at discogs.com June 1, 1992: "Light of a Clear Blue Morning" is released as the second single from the Straight Talk soundtrack album.
 Album cover. Rounder (11661-0580-2) (2006) May 23, 2006: Rhonda Vincent released her All American Bluegrass Girl album featuring Dolly on "Heartbreaker's Alibi". The album peaked at number 43 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart and number one on the Billboard Bluegrass Albums chart.  Single cover. Dolly / Warner Music Nashville (digital single) (2011) May 23, 2011: Dolly released "Together You and I" as the first single from her forty-third solo studio album, Better Day. The single peaked at number 67 on the UK Singles chart. She had previously recorded the song as a duet with Porter Wagoner on their Porter 'n' Dolly album in 1974.  45 single, Side A. RCA Victor (47-9994) (1971) Image credit: spidey2 at 45cat.com May 24, 1971: "The Right Combination" is released as the first single from Porter Wagoner and Dolly's seventh collaboration album, The Right Combination • Burning the Midnight Oil. The single peaked at number 14 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.
 Album cover. Columbia (CK 57584) (1994) May 17, 1994: Julio Iglesias released his Crazy album featuring a duet with Dolly on "When You Tell Me That You Love Me". The album peaked at number 30 on the Billboard 200.  Single cover. Debbie Cochran (digital single) (2017) May 17, 2017: Debbie Cochran released "Born Again Wildflower", featuring Dolly, as a single from her album of the same name.  45 single, Side A. RCA Victor (74-0172) (1969) Image credit: Louval at 45cat.com May 19, 1969: "Always, Always" is released as the second single from Porter and Dolly's album of the same name. The single peaked at number 16 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.
by Ben Childers  Image credit: Vinyl Me, Please The second record in Dolly's 'Vinyl Me, Parton' subscription is Dolly's Grammy-nominated 2001 album, Little Sparrow. The album is pressed on beautiful Lavender Galaxy vinyl, housed in a double gatefold jacket. The album jacket is printed on sturdy matte finished cardboard. The matte finish is a nice touch and is reminiscent of the packaging of the US digipack CD pressing from 2001. With mastering handled by Ryan Smith at Sterling Sound, the album has never sounded better. Rounding out this first-time vinyl release is new online liner notes written by Nashville-based writer, Brittany McKenna. Check out the unboxing video at the end of this review! Little Sparrow makes a great follow-up to last month's My Tennessee Mountain Home. Where My Tennessee Mountain Home almost solely focuses on Dolly's childhood, Little Sparrow touches on all aspects of her life and career. The second album in Dolly's critically acclaimed bluegrass trilogy, Little Sparrow sees Dolly putting her own bluegrass touch on gospel and rock, mixed in with bluegrass and folk music. The album's melding of these genres creates what Dolly has termed "mountain music." Little Sparrow is among my favorites in Dolly's discography. This is an album that I come back to often during walks at the Natchez Trace or on a drive toward Cades Cove in the Smokies. It's the perfect album to listen to in nature. I actually don't remember the first time I heard the album, but the bluegrass trilogy has been among my favorites since I was first discovering Dolly's music. The album opens with the title track, "Little Sparrow". This is an original Dolly composition which she wrote to sound like an old-timey mountain song. She said she drew inspiration for the song from "Fair and Tender Maidens" and "Silver Dagger" (which she recorded on The Grass Is Blue in 1999) and based it on "that theme of the mistreated, broken love affair." Track 2 is Dolly's Grammy-winning cover of Collective Soul's "Shine". Dolly was inspired to cover this song after hearing the song on the radio with her husband, Carl. She said she had always thought when hearing the guitars that it would make a great song "with just a mandolin or some simple sound with that." Side A closes out with a cover of the Louvin Brothers classic, "I Don't Believe You've Met My Baby", which was written by Autry Inman. Dolly had previously recorded this song as a duet with Porter Wagoner for their 1969 album, Always, Always. Side B begins with an updated version of "My Blue Tears, a song Dolly originally wrote and recorded for her 1971 album, Coat of Many Colors, and would later provide harmony vocals, along with Emmylou Harris, on Linda Ronstadt's cover for her 1982 album, Get Closer. One of Dolly's best compositions, this new version is an album highlight. A cover of Steve Young's "Seven Bridges Road" follows. It had been previously covered by Eddy Arnold, Joan Boaz, and the Eagles, among others. Dolly said in her track-by-track of the album in 2001 that she chose to record the song because she had always loved it, but had never heard the harmony sung by girls. The Isaacs provide harmony on this version and it is a definite album highlight. "Bluer Pastures" was almost the album's title track. The song tells the story of someone who left home and their partner to find better things, but in the end comes back home disappointed, hoping their partner will still be waiting. Side B closes with "A Tender Lie", a song so filled with emotion that Dolly said she cried the first time she heard it. "I Get a Kick Out of You" opens Side C. Written by Cole Porter, the song was originally performed in the 1934 Broadway musical, Anything Goes. Dolly said she was inspired to cover the song after hearing her husband play a Frank Sinatra recording of it. "Mountain Angel" follows and is one of my favorite Dolly songs of all time (and one of Dolly's favorites on the album). About a young girl who never recovers from a broken heart, it is one of the best story songs Dolly has ever written. If there is ever a season two of Dolly's Heartstrings series on Netflix, I hope this song is included. "Marry Me" ends Side C and is a fun, up-tempo song in an old-fashioned barn dance style. Side D begins with an updated version of Dolly's 1970 song, "Down from Dover". In this new version there is an additional verse which was omitted from the original on The Fairest of Them All. Dolly explained in the 2001 track-by-track that the original song was so long that Porter asked her to remove some of the verses and that she was happy to finally be able to present the song in its entirety. The next track is "The Beautiful Lie", an Amazing Rhythm Aces cover. The penultimate track is a hauntingly beautiful cover of the gospel standard "In the Sweet By-and By", featuring verse sung in Irish by Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh of Irish group Altan. The album closes with a short instrumental reprise of "Little Sparrow" with some vocalizing my Dolly. Little Sparrow was produced by Steve Buckingham and is dedicated to Dolly's father, Robert Lee Parton, who passed away two months before the album's release. It is a beautiful album and one of my favorites. The undeniable heart of the bluegrass trilogy, it is an absolutely essential Dolly album. Next month will see the 'Vinyl Me, Parton' reissue of Dolly's 2014 studio album, Blue Smoke. If you haven't already, sign-up for Vinyl Me, Parton today! Click here to read Dolly's complete 2001 track-by-track of the album on the Internet Archive.  Ben Childers is the administrator of The Dolly Parton Discography. A native of Tupelo, Mississippi, he grew up taking family vacations to the Smokies and Dollywood. His love for Dolly and her music reached a fanatical level in April 2013. After spending countless hours researching and cataloging Dolly's musical output, he decided to open a website dedicated to her discography.
 Album cover. Butterfly / Big Machine Label Group, LLC (2023) Dolly's new album, Rockstar, will be released on November 17, 2023. The album includes nine original songs and 21 covers of classic rock songs, featuring guest appearances from some of the biggest rock legends and today's hottest artists! The album will be available on 2xCD, 4xLP, digital download, and streaming. There are currently seven announced variants of the LP release with various covers and vinyl colors. Links to pre-order all release variants will be listed at the end of this post! Across the album's 30 tracks are appearances from Sting, Steven Tyler, Stevie Nicks, Debbie Harry, Miley Cyrus, P!nk, Lizzo, and many more! The biggest collaboration on the album may be the reunion of surviving Beatles members Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr on a cover of "Let It Be". Notably missing is the original song "Rockin'" which Dolly performed at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony last fall. Dolly's official store is also offering box sets for the CD, clear vinyl, and clear red vinyl variants which include a t-shirt and a sticker housed in an exclusive road case box. The lead single, "World on Fire", will be released Thursday, May 11, and will be performed live for the first time at the ACM Awards the same day! “I’m a rockstar now!” Track listing:
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Album of the Week
Dumplin' (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack album to the 2018 film the same name. It was released on November 30, 2018, by Dolly Records and RCA Records. It was produced by Linda Perry. The album peaked at number 16 on the Billboard Hot Country Albums chart. The album's release was preceded by three singles: "Here I Am", "Girl in the Movies", and "Jolene (New String Version)". The release was promoted with a CMT television special titled Dolly & Friends: The Making of a Soundtrack.
AdministratorBen Childers is the administrator of The Dolly Parton Discography. A native of Tupelo, Mississippi, he grew up taking family vacations to the Smokies and Dollywood. His love for Dolly and her music reached a fanatical level in April 2013. After spending countless hours researching and cataloging Dolly's musical output, he decided to open a website dedicated to her discography. His dream of meeting Dolly came true on May 23, 2024. 
Ben at the opening of Dollywood's 39th season on March 8, 2024.
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October 2025
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