The length and breadth of the public’s tribute to Dolly Parton has been stunning. It was also immediate. Celebrities from every walk of life. Us common folk from the entire political and cultural spectrum. I’m old and therefore active on Facebook.
I have never witnessed so many of my FB friends offer condolences. It seems that all of us, wondering if our country has been irreparably cleaved by the last ten years of political warfare, missed what was right in front of us.
The country still had one point of connection. We all loved Dolly.
11 of Dolly Parton’s greatest collaborations
So did her fellow artists. The word I saw more than any other yesterday was “generous.” Generous with her time and with her spirit and with her talent. Dolly had extraordinary success as a soloist, but many of her best moments came when she blended that expressive, heavenly voice with another.
She did it often early in her career. Then, later in life, she returned to it. In the process, Dolly Parton left us with some of the best collaborative songs we have ever heard. Here are eleven of the best.
This is not an “eleven best” list. I don’t know if I could manage one of those. This is designed to present a cross-section of her best work with other musicians. It will feature plenty of hits, but also may have some deeper tracks. And, in an effort to provide said cross-section, I am limiting myself to one song per album … a near-impossible task at times.
In chronological order…
“Daddy Was an Old Fashioned Preacher Man” with Porter Wagoner (1970)
Wagoner gave Dolly her start, and she remained grateful to him her entire life. But it became clear early on that this was a bit of a “Star is Born” situation. Wagoner was indeed a star, possessed of a fine, rich voice. But Dolly was a superstar and everybody, including Wagoner, knew it.
Dolly was releasing her own solo albums alongside her duets with Wagoner in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s. They had a string of top ten hits on the country charts. Dolly co-wrote “Daddy Was an Old-Fashioned Preacher Man” for their 1970 album Once More.
The up-tempo nostalgic number uses a common structure. They sing together on the chorus, then trade off on the first two verses. At the end, they sing the final verse together with an unobtrusive chorus backing them up. It makes you ready for a revival meeting.
“The Pain of Loving You” with Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris (1987)
Dolly certainly continued doing duets once her solo career was in full swing. One of her biggest hits, “Islands in the Stream” with long-time friend Kenny Rogers, came in 1983. But she at times found it difficult to arrange schedules and manage label restrictions to do it as often as she might have liked. That was certainly the case with her remarkable Trio albums.
Dolly had been singing with Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris for about a decade, but all the public had were occasional live performances and bootleg tapes. They finally put their voices together on record in 1987, and the result was even better than expected.
“The Pain of Loving You,” a song originally written and recorded by Dolly and Porter in 1971, opens the album, and the harmonies are instantly sublime.
“Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” with Ladysmith Black Mambazo (1995)
Dolly went international when she joined the South African group Ladysmith Black Mambazo on a lovely rendition of Bob Dylan’s song. Where Dylan’s is mournful, Dolly and LBM manage to infuse it with a spiritual energy that opens a new vista on the relatively simple number.
They would sing together the following year on Cat Stevens' “Peace Train.” In one of the many tributes that poured in after her death, the band called her “a cultural ambassador and philanthropist who touched countless lives worldwide.”
“After the Gold Rush” with Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris (1999)
Twelve years after Trio, the gang reunited for a follow-up. Neil Young’s 1970 lament over the state of the environment was the second album’s highlight.
I’m not sure how to describe this song. I said this wasn’t an “eleven-best” list, but if I were ranking these songs, I don't think anything would top this one. It is simply one of the most beautiful mergers of melody, lyric, and harmonized voices I have ever heard.
“Creepin’ In” with Norah Jones (2004)
Norah Jons admitted she didn’t exactly know what to expect when she asked Dolly to sing on a song her bass player had written for her second album, Feels Like Home. She wasn’t sure how their voices would blend on an upbeat bluegrass number like “Creepin’ In.”
She needn’t have worried. Dolly could sing with anyone. These two powerful voices both trim back the top end of their instruments to fit together – without losing a thing.
“The Cruel War” with Alison Krauss, Mindy Smith, and Dan Tyminski (2005)
Those Were the Days, Dolly’s 2005 album release, poses problems for this type of article. The entire album is comprised of collaborations, and so many of them are outstanding that it’s nearly impossible to choose one.
Do I pick Dolly singing Dylan along with Nickel Creek? Or doing a Yusuf/Cat Stevens number with the writer himself? She even takes a stab at “Crimson and Clover” with Tommy James.
But I’m going with the old standard “The Cruel War,” which features some of Dolly’s most expressive and desperate vocals. Singing along with Krauss and Tyminski from Krauss’s Union Station, and Smith, who had just recorded her debut with a fabulous version of Parton’s iconic “Jolene,” once again seems utterly seamless.
“Viva Las Vegas” with the Grascals (2005)
The Grascals had been a top-flight backing band on the bluegrass scene for a couple of decades before they began releasing material under their own name. On their first album, they asked one of the many legends they had supported live to sing along. Of course, Dolly said yes.
It turns out to be a thrilling blend of rock, pop, and bluegrass. Dolly’s voice elevates a fun song to sensational.
“Here I Am” with Sia (2018)
In 2018, Dolly added yet another achievement to her extraordinary career. She teamed up with 4 Non Blondes’ Linda Perry to write original songs for the Netflix movie Dumplin’. The lead track features Sia, trading vocals with Dolly on a powerful statement of identity that uses another choir background to great effect.
Their original song “Girl in the Movies” was much lauded when the movie came out. Dolly sings solo on that one. But “Here I Am” equals it – providing an anthemic counterpoint to the more delicate emotions expressed in “Girl in the Movies.”
“Christmas Is” with Miley Cyrus (2020)
Dolly released her first Christmas-themed album in 1984 – a collaboration with Kenny Rogers. She followed it up six years later with a second holiday collection. It would be another thirty years before A Holly Dolly Christmas. She is clearly having a lot of fun doing duets with the likes of Michael Buble, Willie Nelson and even Jimmy Fallon.
But it was the song with her goddaughter Miley Cyrus that stole the show. They sang together live many times and put several of their duets on record. This one, a Dolly original, is a straightforward love song to the Christmas spirit performed by two powerful voices.
“Does He Love You” with Reba McEntyre (2021)
Reba was another old friend – one of the few singers who can rival Dolly’s iconic status in the world of country music and beyond. In 2023, McEntyre released Not That Fancy, along with her book of the same name. McEntyre produced a whole bunch of new, stripped-down acoustic versions of many of her hits.
One of the highlights was this take on her 1990 song “Does He Love You,” originally a duet with Linda Davis. Though stripped down to mostly piano, the two voices form a potent force.
“I Hate Myself for Loving You” with Joan Jett and the blackhearts (2023)
Picking just one song from Rockstar – Dolly’s final album – is not easy. She said she wanted to earn her induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and so, after the fact, she produced a mammoth rock album, with guests from every genre of modern popular music. Of all the tracks, a version of Joan Jett’s blistering rocker seemed least likely.
It was awesome. You even have to forgive Dolly’s penchant for goofy dialogue intros that she puts on display here. Once the song starts, Dolly does indeed earn her spot in the RRHOF.
One note: I’ve confined myself to collabs Dolly put on record during her long career. There are innumerable other live performances floating around in cyberspace. Do a little searching today, and you won’t be disappointed. Start with any of the “Jolenes” she sang with Miley Cyrus.
What’s really notable is the way a larger-than-life figure like Cyrus defers to her godmother. When Miley sings “I could not compete with you,” it is one more tribute to one of the most generous performers of our lifetime.
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