Dolly Parton: Still Fab After All This Time

Alex Massie

Saturday, 25th April 2009

A lovely piece on the Queen of the Smokey Mountains, Dolly Parton, by Jesse Green in this week's edition of New York magazine. Here is the Backwoods Barbie in typically forthright, charming form:

“I’m an energy vampire,” she says. “I just suck off everybody’s energy, but I give it back.” She almost dares me to ask her something tawdry: “What else ya got?” But like the fan in the hilarious documentary For the Love of Dolly who finds Judy’s car in a mall parking lot and can think of nothing better to do once inside than lick the seat belt on the passenger side, I find myself deranged by her openness. The oddest thing I can think to ask is whether, with new deals in merchandising, real estate, touring, and recording all in development, she’ll ever say it’s enough.
“Never!” she answers. “I want to be like one of those little fainting goats that get scared and then just fall over. I want to go and go and then drop dead in the middle of something I’m loving to do. And if that doesn’t happen, if I wind up sitting in a wheelchair, at least I’ll have my high heels on."

Hurrah for that. And here she is performing My Blue Ridge Mountain Boy at the Ryman in Nashville way back in 1969. Great stuff.

Filed under: Americana (255 more articles) , Country music (29 more articles) , Music (35 more articles)

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Anthony

April 25th, 2009 2:05am Report this comment

Dolly Parton's great. Very smart lady. Only slight problem is that I saw a fairly recent photo of her and she did look terrifyingly like Zelda out of Terrahawks.

Susan Hill

April 25th, 2009 9:28am Report this comment

Alex, you and me, we`re soul mates. Dolly is fabulissimo, I adore her. Trouble is if I say that in public people give me funny looks. Who cares ? Dolly Parton is a legend. I must rush and put on Jolene right now.

Fergus Pickering

April 25th, 2009 3:17pm Report this comment

Susan Hill, we are soul mates. And about the same age too.

Susan Hill

April 26th, 2009 9:45pm Report this comment

Fergus Pickering. We Dolly birds must stick together. Just played 'Old Flames Can`t hold a candle to you.'

Paul B

April 27th, 2009 2:48pm Report this comment

Harper Valley PTA is booming through Chez Paul B right at this moment. Susan, Fergus, may I join the club? Dolly is indeed a legend and one that I adore. Islands in the stream, that is what are, Sail away with me, to a distant shore, if only I could Dolly, an all time classic, although not a Dolly original, but her and Kenny's version has to be one of the finest duets ever, full stop, period.

Paul B

April 27th, 2009 3:14pm Report this comment

To all who worship at Dolly's Tennessee Mountain home, heads up if you like Dolly, you will also enjoy the Dixie Chicks,apologies if you already know about them, but if not here are a couple of you tube samplers.

http://tinyurl.com/58zcs6

http://tinyurl.com/5s9v6f

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