Dolly Parton
Jolene (1974)
In the course of a fifty-year career, Dolly Parton has released some 42 studio albums (approximately; it may be more than that). That's not to include live albums, movies, owning her own theme park....
Yep, it's fair to say Dolly is a phenomenon. A phenomenon of country music, no less, a genre that always seems to be the province of a fairly limited cross section of people. Yet Dolly Parton has managed over the years to transcend expectation and genre barriers, and appeal to a great range of people.
Jolene was her thirteenth album, and released in the middle of Dolly's country explosion; when she was arguably the leading light in country music. It propelled her to even greater heights thanks to two songs - the title track and I Will Always Love You, which was later covered by Whitney Houston (and consequently made Dolly zillions of dollars.)
Now, I don't like country music, so this is gonna be hard for me to review objectively, but I'll do my best.
The Album
Thankfully, it's short - clocking in at just 25 minutes or so, it's not a great stretch to listen to. That 25 minutes consists of ten songs, all country, with touches of bluegrass for good measure. Besides the standard acoustic guitar meat (mostly provided by Parton herself), there's pedal steel guitar, fiddles and banjos aplenty to add that country flavour.
Yet that all seems to pale in comparison to Dolly herself. There's a reason she's had such an amazing career - she's fucking talented beyond belief. Not only did she write the majority of the album's material, she is also a phenomenal vocalist. Nowhere is this more evident than on the title track, where she effortlessly nails a terrific, high range vocal (and somehow goes even higher to harmonise with herself). This track also manages to be the album's standout; a dark arrangement complements the lyrical content perfectly - it's Parton's desperate plea to a woman not to steal her man from her, and you can hear it in her voice - and there's touches of bluegrass guitar to pad out the moody guitar lines.
The other song of note - I Will Always Love You - is almost as good. None of the bullshit vocal gymnastics that amount to egotistical showing off that you find on the Houston cover are here, or at the very least they've been greatly toned down. Instead the emotion and feeling of the song comes through (Parton wrote it as a farewell tune to country legend Porter Wagoner, whose TV show Parton had been a star of for several years). It also (unlike the cover) doesn't outstay its welcome.
Elsewhere, it's tiny variations on the same country theme, and while that in and of itself is not a bad thing it doesn't make for a OMGWTFBBQ listening experience. Early Morning Breeze is more proof of Parton's vocal talent, while a nice pedal steel guitar lick simulates the titular breeze. Highlight Of My Life is a jaunty fiddle-filled country number with a decent pedal steel solo; it's pretty decent, as is Living On Memories Of You, which is resplendent with wistful harmonica lines and a bluegrass waltz motif. The upbeat Randy and the closing It Must Be You are also pleasant little diversions.
Basically, it's hard to hate.
The Verdict
Indeed, I didn't hate it. It was pleasant, listenable, and short. But like 99% of country music, it doesn't really go anywhere. It's at its best when it pairs lyrical content with musical evocations of emotion. Thankfully, Jolene does that a bit, which makes this slightly above your average country music album.
It won't change your life, nor will it leave a lasting memory (well, except for the title track, which is awesome) but it's a nice little distraction.
And Dolly? Well she deserves all the praise she gets.
My rating: 6.5/10
Standout Tracks
Jolene
I Will Always Love You
Highlight Of My Life
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