Freida Parton Releases New Album

Album cover. Van-Par Productions / Owepar Records (2026)

Freida Parton on Friday, February 13, 2026, released her highly anticipated album, The Crops Came In, on Owepar Records. The album has a storied history and was nearly 40 years in the making.

Following the opening of Dollywood in 1986, Dolly extended an invitation to Freida to return to the Smokies and perform at the park. Freida had released a rock album, Two-Faced, in 1984 and appreciated the opportunity to return home and to her roots. Freida began performing at Dollywood soon after and brought with her new songs based on her family history and personal experiences. The songs were so well received that fans began requesting that she record an album of the material. She knew exactly who to turn to to make this a reality, her cousin Richie Owens.

Richie had a portable studio in a renovated 40-foot refrigerated semi trailer called The Refuge. He had used this studio in the mid-1980s to record some of Nashville's independent rock and punk bands. He brought the studio with him when he retuned to the Smokies in 1987. Freida described the recording process as "a lot of fun" because they "weren’t trying to cut a number one." She said that she "just wanted to give the fans a piece of the mountains...what it was like to grow up there in our family" and that she "wanted them to always be able to have us in the car with them."

The completed album, titled Pleasant Memories, was only released on cassette and sold at Dollywood for a limited time starting in 1989. Over the years it has become a highly sought after collector's item, developing a sort-of cult following among Freida's fans and fans of the Owens-Parton musical legacy. The album has an authentic Appalachian feel, but also leans into Freida's pop and rock influences. It carries a sense of nostalgia for a world that no longer exists.

When it came time to put together the 2023 family album, Smoky Mountain DNA: Family, Faith and Fables, Dolly chose the track "The Crops Came In" to turn into a duet with her sister. Richie took this opportunity to record a completely new instrumental track for the song, giving it a modern and fuller sound. Upon its release, the track was so well-received that it inspired the remixing and release of the full album. The result is a wonderful addition to the Owepar Records Legacy Series, and quite possibly the strongest release in the series yet.

If you haven't given it a listen yet, The Crops Came In is available from all streaming platforms and on CD from the Smoky Mountain DNA store.

To learn more about Freida and her music visit her page on The Owens-Parton Family Discography here or her official website here.