Album cover. Columbia (CK 53414) (1993)
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Honky Tonk Angels is a collaborative studio album by Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn, and Tammy Wynette. It was released on November 2, 1993, by Columbia Records. The album was produced by Dolly and Steve Buckingham. It peaked at number six on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart and number 42 on the all-genre Billboard 200. The only single, "Silver Threads and Golden Needles", peaked at number 68 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. "Silver Threads and Golden Needles" was nominated for Best Country Collaboration with Vocals at the 37th Annual Grammy Awards. The album has been certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America.
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Track listing
- It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels (with special guest Kitty Wells) (J.D. Miller) 2:51
- Put It Off Until Tomorrow (Dolly Parton, Bill Owens) 2:38
- Silver Threads and Golden Needles (Jack Rhodes, Dick Reynolds) 2:25
- Please Help Me I'm Falling (In Love with You) (Don Robertson, Hal Blair) 2:36
- Sittin' on the Front Porch (Buddy Sheffield) 2:35
- Wings of a Dove (Bob Ferguson) 2:54
- I Forgot More Than You'll Ever Know (Cecil A Null) 2:12
- Wouldn't It Be Great (Loretta Lynn) 3:03
- That's the Way It Could Have Been (Tammy Wynette) 2:55
- Let Her Fly (Dolly Parton) 3:04
- Lovesick Blues (with special guest Patsy Cline) (Cliff Friend, Irving Mills) 2;18
- I Dreamed of a Hillbilly Heaven (Eddie Dean, Hal Southern) 2:32
Background
The album had been a long-rumored project between the country singers for over a decade. It was mostly Dolly's idea to bring together the women who made their musical breakthroughs in the 1960s. These were also the women who changed the texture of the music by weaving strands of modern life into the traditional country patterns they grew up with and helped enlarge the audience for country music. Once Dolly talked the others into doing the project – an easy argument, by all accounts – she asked Steve Buckingham to co-produce the record with her.
Recording
The album was recorded at three studios in Nashville, Tennessee; Nightingale Studio, Masterfonics, and The Doghouse.
Billboard advertisement, October 16, 1993.
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ContentThe album features many country standards, including "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels" (which features a guest appearance by the song's originator and original country queen, Kitty Wells), "Wings of a Dove" (a 1960 hit for Ferlin Husky), "I Forgot More Than You'll Ever Know" (a 1953 hit for the Davis Sisters), "Put It Off Until Tomorrow" (a 1966 Bill Phillips hit that was Dolly's first success as a songwriter), "Lovesick Blues" (a pop standard known for Hank Williams' 1949 rendition; here the trio sings along with a vintage recording of the song by Patsy Cline), and "I Dreamed of a Hillbilly Heaven", Tex Ritter's 1962 classic that features new spoken dialogue written by Dolly.
The original compositions by Loretta Lynn and Tammy Wynette are solo performances by each of them and "Sittin' on the Front Porch Swing" is a Dolly solo. The album features liner notes written by Ralph Emery. Dolly previously recorded "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels" for the 1963 compilation, Hits Made Famous by Country Queens. |
Bill Phillips recorded a version of "Put It Off Until Tomorrow" featuring uncredited harmony vocals by Dolly for his 1966 album. Dolly included a solo version on her 1967 album, Hello, I'm Dolly. That version of the song would be overdubbed with new instrumentation and vocals from Kris Kristofferson for the 1982 compilation album, The Winning Hand. Dolly also recorded a duet version with Porter Wagoner for their 1968 album, Just Between You and Me. Dolly recorded an alternate version titled "I'll Put It Off Until Tomorrow" from the perspective of the person leaving the relationship. It was included as the B-side of "The Little Things" in 1966. Dolly revisited the song again as a duet with Bill Owens, her uncle and the song's co-writer, for the 2024 family album, Smoky Mountain DNA: Family, Faith and Fables.
Release and promotionThe album was released November 2, 1993, on CD and cassette.
SinglesThe album's single, "Silver Threads and Golden Needles", was released on November 8, 1993. It debuted at number 75 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart dated December 25, 1993. It peaked at number 68 on the chart dated January 15, 1994. These were the only two weeks the single charted. A music video directed by Deaton Flanigen was released to accompany the single.
Television performancesDolly, Tammy, and Loretta performed "Silver Threads and Golden Needles" at the 27th Country Music Association Awards on September 29, 1993.
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Music City News cover, November 1993.
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Critical reception
The review published in the November 27, 1993 issue of Billboard said that the album is "a spirited collaboration that brings together three country music cornerstones and throws in a pinch of Patsy Cline and Kitty Wells for good measure." The review went on to say, "There are a few musically inspired moments here, notably Parton's "Sittin' on the Front Porch Swing" and Wynette's "That's the Way It Could Have Been". But, for the most part, this is more of a nostalgic look back than a celebration of present–day glories."
Alanna Nash gave the album a B rating in her review for Entrainment Weekly. She described Dolly, Loretta, and Tammy's voices as "creating a choir of angels from the voices that defined the third generation of female country singers." She said that "nearly everything about this album, including its production, has a '50s and '60s feel to it."
Kelly McCartney of AllMusic gave the album 3 out of 5 stars, saying that "for fans of traditional country or great singers, this is a fun listen because it nicely captures three of the best voices around."
Alanna Nash gave the album a B rating in her review for Entrainment Weekly. She described Dolly, Loretta, and Tammy's voices as "creating a choir of angels from the voices that defined the third generation of female country singers." She said that "nearly everything about this album, including its production, has a '50s and '60s feel to it."
Kelly McCartney of AllMusic gave the album 3 out of 5 stars, saying that "for fans of traditional country or great singers, this is a fun listen because it nicely captures three of the best voices around."
Billboard review. November 27, 1993.
Commercial performance
The album debuted and peaked at number six on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart dated November 20, 1993 and charted for a total of 24 weeks. It also debuted and peaked at number 42 on the Billboard 200 chart dated November 20 and spent 16 weeks on the chart. In Canada, the album peaked at number six on the RPM Country Albums chart and number 44 on the RPM Top Albums chart. The album peaked at number 177 in Australia.
Accolades
The album and its single were nominated for several awards. The album was nominated for Album of the Year at the 1994 CMT Awards (known as the TNN/Music City News Country Awards at the time) and "Silver Threads and Golden Needles" was nominated for Vocal Collaboration of the Year. "Silver Threads and Golden Needles" also received a nomination at the 37th Annual Grammy Awards in 1995 for Best Country Collaboration with Vocals.
The album was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America on January 4, 1993, for shipment of 500,000 copies. It was certified Gold by Music Canada on April 11, 1994, for sales of 50,000 copies.
The album was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America on January 4, 1993, for shipment of 500,000 copies. It was certified Gold by Music Canada on April 11, 1994, for sales of 50,000 copies.
Personnel
Credits are adapted from the album liner notes.
Performance
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Production
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Other personnel
- Steve Buckingham – liner notes
- Ralph Emery – liner notes
- Bill Johnson – art direction, design
- Beth Kindig – art assistance
- Rollow Welch – art direction, design
- Bruce Wolfe – cover painting