Disco de Dolly Parton: “Best of Dolly Parton [1975]”

Dolly Parton has such a beautiful crystalline voice, and this album has some of her best early work. "Jolene" holds a certain memory for me from the 70's...whenever I hear it, it transports me back to a certain Christmas Day when I was 16 and working in a nursing home in the laundry room, and having to wash all the sheets out by hand as the washing machine had broken down. I was feeling very sorry for myself, and wanting to go home to spend Christmas with my family. And "Jolene" came on the radio, and miraculously it cheered me up...even though it wasn't a particularly happy song, but Dolly just seemed to have what was needed for that sad little 16 year old back then. This album holds some great songs, and I recommend it highly.

this cd was given to me by my husband for christmas and i have just about worn it out. it is such a great cd. dolly sings with such a pure, strong voice. Dolly Parton is the best!!!this is one of her many wonderful cd's. i highly recommend this to anyone-she is awesom !

Content-wise entirely different than the 1970 long-out-of-circulation "The Best of Dolly Parton", itself a must own. Blessed with a gorgeous soprano, even the twee "Love Is Like a Butterfly" has an aura that actually strengthens with the company kept here. This collection documents Dolly's genius as her sentimental-yet-strong self and it never finds her ever stooping to embarrassment. In her case, this can be a tough feat. But here she's shown as such a transcendent (and original) story writer that her mind-bending "Jolene", inventive "The Bargain Store", appreciative "Coat of Many Colors" and vivacious-but-dramatic "Traveling Man" all rank highly amongst country music's greatest songs. Her former musical partner, Porter Wagoner, contributes two inspirational moments for Dolly to wrap her voice on an album that's a ticket to life in the great Tennessee sticks.

This is a greatest hits collection, but it captures Dolly Parton, a powerful and uniquely talented artist, singer and composer, before she hit it so big that you might never recognize who she was at the beginning. "Jolene" and "I Will Always Love" are standouts but so are all the others, really worth getting.

I think this compilation is probably the best currently available for an introduction to all that's wonderful about Dolly Parton. From the crossover hit "Jolene," to the classic tearjerker "Coat of Many Colors," it gives a good sense of Dolly's range, even though she's dipping her toe into crossover right about this time. Apart from the two tracks mentioned above, my favorite tracks include "Tennessee Mountain Home," "The Bargain Store," and the jaunty "Touch Your Woman." "Tennessee Mountain Home" is melodic but not saccharine ("Love is Like a Butterfly" is just a little too sweet for my tastes); "The Bargain Store" is a perfect country "plea"; "Touch Your Woman" sees Dolly soar. But without doubt, the best track on here is Dolly's version of Porter Wagoner's "Lonely Coming Down." It's a classic country song -- melancholy, low key, and lyrically inimitable. When Dolly feels the "lonely dripping down her face," all I can do is sigh. Buy this cd, finally, for the really nice cover: thankfully, RCA have left it alone.