Forty-two years ago Tuesday, Dolly's cover of Petula Clark's “Downtown” debuts on the adult contemporary singles chart; it reaches No. 36 country, No. 80 pop and No. 20 adult contemporary. Twenty-two years ago Tuesday, Dolly receives the Living Legend Award from the U.S. Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. Fifty-one years ago Wednesday, Porter and Dolly record “Is Forever Longer Than Always;” their only unreleased material issued to the public between their 1976 break-up and their 1980 lawsuit-settlement album, it makes it to No. 8 as a single 13 months later. Fifty-four years ago Friday, NASA's Apollo 16 mission, the second-to-last to walk on the moon, lifts off and features a special cassette of country music recorded live exclusively for the astronauts to listen to during the trip to space, including a special performance of “Joshua” by Dolly as the first track on the collection. Forty-five years ago Saturday, 9 to 5 and Odd Jobs marks its final of 10 weeks at No. 1 on the country album charts (Dolly's fourth and longest stay atop the chart); it also reaches No. 11 pop and gold status for more than 500,000 copies sold (Dolly's fifth). That same day, “But You Know That I Love You” debuts on the adult contemporary singles chart, where it would peak at No. 14; the song also becomes Dolly's 15th country No. 1 and reaches No. 41 pop. Thirty-four years ago Saturday, the Straight Talk soundtrack debuts on the album charts; it reaches No. 22 country, No. 138 pop. Thirty-three years ago Sunday, Slow Dancing With The Moon is certified gold (the 11th of her gold albums) for sales in excess of 500,000 copies; it passes the million mark for platinum certification (Dolly's sixth) six months later.
Upcoming television appearances
(All times Eastern unless noted)
April 15, 3 a.m., TMC, Steel Magnolias
April 15, 11 p.m., Showtime Family, Steel Magnolias (re-runs 2 p.m. April 20)
The RCA Sessions (1968-1976), 22-song digital collection of rare Porter & Dolly songs first released on the 2014 complete recordings boxed set, April 5
Love & Music 1973 Porter & Dolly album, digital release, March 29
We Found It 1973 Porter & Dolly album, digital release, Feb. 1
Belle's collaboration with Dolly on her answer song “Son Of Jolene” becomes available Friday. Check out the singer meeting Dolly for the first time to listen to the final mix of their duet here or in the media player above. And pre-order the track for downloading here.
'Forbes' Names Dolly 7th Greatest Self-Made American
Forbes magazine last week named Dolly the seventh greatest Self-Made American on their list of the 250 greatest individuals “who started with nothing” and were ranked according to their “financial success, obstacles overcome and enduring impact.” Oprah Winfrey was No. 1, and for context President Bill Clinton was one spot behind Dolly at No. 8. Read the entire list here and check out a story announcing the list from MSNow here or in the media player above.
New Poll Finds Dolly America's Most Liked Person A new poll released last week by the influential polling group at the University of Massachusetts at Lowell found Dolly to be the country's most popular individual, ranking way above all other celebrities and politicians with a net positive approval rating of +65 percent. This comes from her overall favorable rating of 70 percent nationwide minus her unfavorable rating of 5 percent. Interestingly, she is more popular with women (+69) than men (+59) and most popular with older folks (+86 with age 65 and older, +75 with ages 45-64, +47 with ages 30-44, and +45 with ages 18-29, although she remained the most popular individual listed for each age group). She was more popular with college graduates (+75) than those with less than a college degree (+63) and most popular with whites (+74 versus +51 with Blacks, +45 with Hispanics, and +57 with other races). She was also most popular with higher income levels (+70 for $100K and above, +68 $50K-$100K, and +60 under $50K). She was also favored pretty evenly by both political parties (+76 Democrats and +70 Republican but just +44 Independents) and across ideological groups (+69 liberals, +60 moderates, and +73 conservatives). It has been public knowledge for years that Dolly has the highest Q Score, a measurement of celebrity likability that helps them land endorsement and product deals, as the world's most favorable and least unfavorable scores on that survey, and this completely different survey mirrors those findings.
NYC Mayor Quotes Dolly New York City Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani last week invoked the image of Dolly and recited some lyrics from her classic “9 To 5” in announcing the city's new initiative to expand 2-K education universally to full-day and year-round childcare to help working families. Read the transcript of the announcement here.
SNP Backs Dolly's Library Program The Scottish National Party, one of the major political parties in Scotland, has adopted Dolly's Imagination Library early childhood literacy program as one of its strategic initiatives to support nationwide, it was announced last week. Read more here.
Dollywood Readies Flower & Food Fest Dollywood's Flower & Food Festival opens Saturday with elaborate floral installations and large Mosaiculture creations throughout the park such as Dolly's mother crafting her Coat of Many Colors. “I've sung for many years about God's Coloring Book,” Dolly said in a press release, “and I truly believe some of the most beautiful reflections of that can be seen in the Smoky Mountains each spring when His beauty starts blooming to life. It's a season that allows us to celebrate what's new while also remembering how important it is to spend meaningful time together. I hope families will visit Dollywood to experience that beauty for themselves, but more importantly, to enjoy one another while having fun and making lasting memories.” The festival features several specialty dishes such as pesto caprese sandwich, sunflower lemonade, beef & sausage bread bowl, and the blueberry lemon sweet roll, all available on the Festival Tasting Pass. Umbrella Sky returns above Showstreet, while “From The Heart: The Life And Music Of Dolly Parton” continues and singer-songwriter Jessica Horton performs on the steps of the Robert F. Thomas Chapel. The festival concludes June 7.
U.K., U.S., Aussie Chart Updates Across the pond, Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 retains the top spot on the British country compilation albums chart at No. 1, while Diamonds & Rhinestones, The Greatest Hits Collection rises two to No. 6, The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe falls back out of the top 20, and Linda Rondstat's installment in the Original Album Series (which contains several collaborations with Doily) gains two to No. 17. Sabrina Carpenter's Short & Sweet Deluxe Edition, with its Dolly duet, finds itself at No. 15 U.K. pop. Beyonce's Cowboy Carter, with its Dolly appearances, falls out of the top 40 Americana albums, down from No. 11, and Post Malone's F 1 Trillion, with its Dolly duet, ascends four to No. 16 British country albums.
Stateside, Carpenter is No. 29 U.S. pop albums, while Malone is No. 18 country and No. 103 pop.
Down Under, Carpenter is No. 11 pop albums, Malone No. 6 Australian country albums and No. 47 pop, and Beyonce at No. 27 country.
First created as "Duane's Dolly Pages" in 1996, and becoming Dollymania in 1998, this is the oldest continually operating Internet site dedicated to Dolly Parton and the ONLY regularly-updated resource about her available anywhere in the world!
Past news
April 7: Get Some New Joleans Jeans Dolly last week launched the third release of denim fashion through her Joleans clothing line with Good American available through their website and at Macy's. Read more from WWDhere.
Indiana, Kentucky Library Updates After the state's Republican first lady completed a private fundraising campaign to replace state matching funds eliminated by Republicans in the state budget, Indiana announced this week that Dolly's Imagination Library early childhood literacy program has launched in all 92 counties statewide. Read more from The Indy Starhere. In related news, the Kentucky legislature reinstated full funding for the statewide program there, which had been proposed in the new budget to be lowered from a 50 percent match to a 33 percent match, Lexington Channel 18 reports here.
Public Employee Tickets Offered At Dollywood Dollywood has announced that its longstanding public employee appreciation days will return this spring with $59 tickets for members of the military, first responders, school system employees, government employees, and medical employees nationwide at Dollywood.com/PublicEmployee starting April 13. Tickets may be used April 13 through May 17 and are limited to up to six one-day admissions for employees verified through ID.me. This year, season passes will also be sold through the link with a $35 per pass discount, and 15 percent discounts for DreamMore and HeartSong resort guests are also available.
'Very Best' Back On Top In UK Across the pond, Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 regains the top spot on the British country compilation albums chart, rising one to No. 2, while Diamonds & Rhinestones, The Greatest Hits Collection slips three to No. 8, The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe gains two to No. 1, Emmylou Harris' first installment in Original Album Series falls out of the top 20, down from No. 16, as Linda Rondstat's installment (both contain collaborations with Doily) re-enters the top 20 at No. 19, and Dolly's Live from London falls back out of the top 20, down from No. 20. Sabrina Carpenter's Short & Sweet Deluxe Edition, with its Dolly duet, finds itself at No. 22 U.K. pop. Beyonce's Cowboy Carter, with its Dolly appearances, is at No. 11 Americana albums, and Post Malone's F 1 Trillion, with its Dolly duet, re-enters the top 20 country albums at No. 20.
Stateside, Carpenter is No. 22 U.S. pop albums, while Malone is No. 17 country and No. 87 pop.
Down Under, Carpenter is No. 13 pop albums, Malone No. 7 Australian country albums and out of the top 50 pop (down from No. 45), and Beyonce at No. 27 country.
March 31: Hospital CEO Talks Of Dolly's 'Transformational' Gift The CEO of the recently-renamed Dolly Parton Children's Hospital in Knoxville gave an interview to Chief Health Care Executivehere about Dolly's "transformational" gift to the facility which prompted them to rename it after her. Again, when asked, he declined to disclose the size of her gift, but remember she was granted $100 million by Jeff Bezos to distribute to charity, so it likely included part of that.
U.K., U.S., Aussie Chart Updates Across the pond, Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 retains its No. 2 spot on the British country compilation albums chart, while Diamonds & Rhinestones, The Greatest Hits Collection dips one to No. 5, The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe re-enters the top 20 at No. 19, Emmylou Harris' first installment in Original Album Series falls two to No. 16 and Linda Rondstat's installment (both contain collaborations with Doily) drops back out of the top 20, down from No. 17, while Dolly's Live from London re-enters the top 20 at No. 20. Sabrina Carpenter's Short & Sweet Deluxe Edition, with its Dolly duet, finds itself at No. 14 U.K. pop. Beyonce's Cowboy Carter, with its Dolly appearances, re-enters the top 20 Americana albums at No. 14 and falls back out of the top 20 country albums, down from No. 20 country. Post Malone's F 1 Trillion, with its Dolly duet, also falls off the top 20 country albums, down from No. 19.
Stateside, Carpenter is No. 24 U.S. pop albums, while Malone is No. 17 country and No. 91 pop.
Down Under, Carpenter is No. 11 pop albums, Malone No. 7 Australian country albums and No. 45 pop, and Beyonce at No. 35 country.
March 24: Fleming, Fleck Collab On 'In The Pines' Released
Opera legend Renee Fleming and bluegrass legend Bela Fleck last week announced an upcoming album, The Fiddle and the Drum, featuring many guest performances, including Dolly on its first single released Friday, a version of the traditional Appalachian tune "In The Pines." The full album comes out May 29. "It was a dream to have the incomparable Dolly Parton sing on the album," Fleming said in a press release. "I have always loved her pristine sound, and her iconic status is no accident—her artistry and goodness come through in every beautiful note. It's the same spirit that drives her constant, creative philanthropy." Fleck added: "Pure music, heart, generosity, and authenticity—all in the same remarkable person." And Dolly herself exclaimed: "I was so happy to join the wonderful, talented Renée Fleming on a version of 'In The Pines.' I grew up singing that song in the Smoky Mountains, then I sang it with my family on my TV show back in the '70s, and then years later I released it on my Heartsongs album. I love that I get to do it again, this time as a duet with Renée Fleming." Stream the track on YouTube in the media player above or by visiting here and download it from Amazon here.
Dolly Congratulates State Champs
The girls' basketball team at Dolly's alma mater Sevier County High School took home the Tennessee Secondary Schools Athletic Association's Division I Class 4A state championship and Dolly shared a congratulatory video with them last week which was released on their social media here and in the media player above.
More Photos From Dollywood Two new galleries of Dolly's annual Grand Opening appearance last weekend at her theme park has been added to that section of the website here. In related news, Dollywood has been nominated for 10 categories in USA Today's 10Best Readers' Choice Awards: Best Theme Park, Best Roller Coaster, Best Theme Park Entertainment, Best Theme Park Restaurant, Best Outdoor Water Park, Best Lazy River, Best Water Coaster, Best Water Slide, Best Wave Pool, and Best Theme Park Hotel. Voting – access links here == is once per day and ends April 20. In addition, the park has scheduled two more hiring events, which take place Wednesday at Splash Country and Friday at DreamMore Resort. Job descriptions are available here. Finally, the park was named last week to Newsweek's list of America's Greatest Workplaces for Entry Level Employees.
New Kevin Cronin Duet Coming REO Speedwagon front man Kevin Cronin revealed in an interview last week that he has recorded and will soon release a new duet with Dolly on the band's classic track "Time For Me To Fly," which was a hit for them in 1978 and which Dolly covered in bluegrass style in 1989. He described the new collaboration a piano-oriented slowed down tempo version. The two previously collaborated on a cover of the band's "Keep On Loving You" on her Rockstar album in 2023. Read more from Rock 929 here.
Miley Says Dolly Helped 'Hannah' Anniverary Special Miley Cyrus said Dolly is to thank for Disney+ producing a Hannah Montana 20th anniversary special. She said she learned from Dolly that if you really want to do a project announce it before it's planned and it makes it more difficult for the people in power to tell you no. So she announced plans for an anniversary special, collected the fan feedback to document it was wanted, and used that to convince the network to greenlight it. Learn more from her interview in Varietyhere.
Dolly Bathroom Helped With Grief A Texas widow who relocated to Tennessee has dedicated her home's Powder Room into a tribute to Dolly to recognize how her strength helped get her through the grief process after her husband died. Watch a report from WSMV here.
Kentucky Library Still Threatened Although a previous effort to end all state funding for Dolly's statewide Imagination Library program in Kentucky was dropped recently after public outcry, legislators are again debating the funding, with the current version of the state budget cutting the state's share of local fundraising from half down to one-third, which if passed would leave local communities with having to raise two-thirds of the book printing and postage costs for their local children instead of just half of that share. Public funding has been at half of local share since first approved in a bipartisan effort in 2021. Read more from WTVQ here.
U.K., Aussie, U.S. Chart Updates Across the pond, Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 loses its pole position on the British country compilation albums chart, losing one to No. 2, while Diamonds & Rhinestones, The Greatest Hits Collection dips two to No. 4, The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe falls out of the top 20, down from No. 14, Emmylou Harris' first installment in Original Album Series falls three to No. 14 and Linda Rondstat's installment (both contain collaborations with Doily) drops three to No. 17. Sabrina Carpenter's Short & Sweet Deluxe Edition, with its Dolly duet, finds itself at No. 14 U.K. pop. Beyonce's Cowboy Carter, with its Dolly appearances, falls out of the top 20 Americana albums, down from No. 14, and inches down two to No. 20 country. Post Malone's F 1 Trillion, with its Dolly duet, is No. 19 British country albums.
Stateside, Carpenter is No. 26 U.S. pop albums, while Malone is No. 15 country and No. 94 pop.
Down Under, Carpenter is No. 8 pop albums, Malone No. 5 Australian country albums and No. 46 pop, and Beyonce at No. 30 country.
March 17: Dolly Opens Dollywood For 41st Season
In her first public appearance since she was sidelined in mid-September with kidney stones and an infection, Dolly on Friday welcomed Diamond season passholders, media, and VIP guests to a media event at Dollywood for its 41st season opening. She addressed her health issues, saying she's fine now, and tabloid rumors she is remarrying following the passing of her longtime husband, Carl Dean. She took a few questions from the press, and she and Dollywood President Eugene Naughton previewed the under-construction NightFlight Expedition immersive indoor coaster. She also conducted her standard park tour parade through the park grounds Friday afternboon for thousands of guests lining her route.
"I've been missing you!" she told the crowd to screams and applause. "You been missing me?" She joked that some might mistake Naughton as the new husband the tabloids have been claiming she has, to which he noted his wife was in the audience that day. "I don't think I'll ever be married but once," Dolly explained. "I think Carl Dean's waiting for me on the other side. If I should show up to the pearly gates with someone else, he would not like that. He'd be saying 'Who is that little pisser? You leave him outside the gates and if the Lord wants him in He'll bring him. You get on in here with me!'"
She added that although she hasn't been touring she was "taking good care" of her health issues.
"I just kinda got wore down and wore out grieving over Carl and a lot of other little things going on, I just got myself kinda, you know, where I needed to build myself back up spiritually and emotionally and physically. But all is good. It didn't slow me down," she said as she pulled a stray wig hair. "I got a wild hair there. See I'm back to normal!"
Dolly revealed she has been re-working songs in her Broadway musical that tested in Nashville last summer prior to its move to Broadway this coming fall and overseeing renovations at her new Nashville SongTeller Hotel and its new Life of Many Colors Museum.
"I've just been doing a lot of writing, a lot of thinking, a lot of praying, and a lot of getting ready for a lot of new stuff coming up, you know, well, actually for the rest of this whole year. So be ready for me! I ain't done!"
The pair then talked about the new NightFlight Expedition indoor immersive coaster with four experiences in one: a nighttime flight over the Smokies, a whitewater rafting expedition through 500,000 gallons of surging water, a coaster up and over a mountain ridge, and a ride on a mysterious shimmering lake. The five-and-a-half-minute ride and its 44,000-square-foot building remain under construction with plans to open in late spring and will operate all season with temperature controls.
The park's I Will Always Love You festival continues through April 12 with the new "Artrageous" and its musical performances while speed-painting canvases and new "Moto Motion: Freestyle Showdown" with its extreme riders, breakdancers, and aerial daredevils, plus the return of "Sing-a-long With Dolly" and the third season of her bio-musical "From the Heart: The Life & Music of Dolly Parton."
The nation's 250th birthday will be celebrated with a special new fireworks and drone show over the summer, Dolly announced, and Naughton explained a special nighttime Splash Country experience and Run Dollywood race will also come this spring with butterfly medals – which Dolly joked she won't be participating in because she'd black both eyes and couldn't find high-heel running shoes. And a special separately-ticketed Boo Bash for kids to trick-or-treat will be added to the Great Pumpkin LumiNights.
Asked what the secret to the park's success, with over 4 million visitors last year, can be attributed to, she said she prays a lot and that the biggest ingredient in their success are the people who work there and administer it.
She was also asked about her upcoming Music City hotel, which she said will open in late summer or early fall, and what advice she'd give people: "Never forget who you are. Never forget where you came from." Asked about the new ride, she said she likes that people can see the beauty of the Smokies at night safely from the attraction, recalling that black bears used to come onto their property when she was little.
In a construction walk-through later on Friday (without Dolly), Naughton told a Dollymania correspondent that plans are to continue developing Wildwood Grove with at least one additional medium ride and several small flat rides plus an additional entrance/exit to access that section of the park, which may require relocating the train tracks. In addition, they are considering a second train station in that area so that guests may use it for transportation instead of just a round-trip ride.
Additional coverage is available from The Knoxville News-Sentinelhere, here, and here, WVLT here, here, and here, NBC News here, WBIR here, WATE here, WLOS here, and WCYB here.
Dolly's 'Buffy' Reboot Slayed By Hulu Disney's Hulu has chosen not to pick up the rebooted Buffy The Vampire Slayer series, star Sarah Michelle Geller announced over the weekend on social media here. The streamer had greenlit a pilot, which was filmed with the original producers, including Dolly being credited this time as Executive Producer with her Sandollar Films (her co-owner Sandy Gallin was credited on the original series as Executive Producer for Sandollar). No news on whether the reboot will be re-written or shopped around to another network, or if the show has come to an end again.
California Librarian Grilled Over Missing Funds The State Librarian of California was under fire last week from both Republicans and Democrats over his inability to account for $650,000 in state funds allocated for the statewide expansion of Dolly's Imagination Library early childhood literacy program. California is one of the about half of the U.S. states that have taken the program statewide. The model to accomplish this is to establish a 501c3 nonprofit to which tax dollars are allocated to cover half of the local share of required funding, which is then directed by the nonprofit to each local charity administering the local program in each individual county (the local charity is then required to raise the other half of local funding for book printing and postage, about $12.50 per child annually, to match the state dollars). The California legislation allowed a percentage of the funds to be used for administrative costs, but of the $1.2 million spent, the state nonprofit headed by the Librarian can only document $555,000, leaving $650,000 spent but unaccounted for. Read more from the New York Posthere. In related news, after the Republican Indiana legislature rescinded its legislation to provide state funding for its statewide program there, the state's first lady began personally fundraising to replace the funding with private philanthropy and has collected pledges to fund the program through June of next year, it was announced this week here.
U.S., U.K., Aussie Chart Updates Across the pond, Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 remains at No. 1 on the British country compilation albums chart, while Diamonds & Rhinestones, The Greatest Hits Collection rises five to No. 2, The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe slips one to No. 14, Emmylou Harris' first installment in Original Album Series rises three to No. 11 and Linda Rondstat's installment (both contain collaborations with Doily) gains three to No. 13, while Glen Campbell's Ghost On The Canvas Sessions with a Dolly duet, falls back out of the top 20, down from No. 20. Sabrina Carpenter's Short & Sweet Deluxe Edition, with its Dolly duet, finds itself at No. 17 U.K. pop. Beyonce's Cowboy Carter, with its Dolly appearances, is No. 14 Americana albums and re-enters the country top 20 at No. 18. Post Malone's F 1 Trillion, with its Dolly duet, is No. 14 British country albums.
Stateside, Carpenter is No. 28 U.S. pop albums, while Malone is No. 17 country and No. 110 pop.
Down Under, Carpenter is No. 11 pop albums, Malone No. 5 Australian country albums, and Beyonce at No. 27 country.
March 10: Kentucky Senator Tries To Kill Imagination Library A Republican state senator in Kentucky learned last week not to mess with Dolly or her signature early childhood literacy program. Sen. Cassie Chambers Armstrong, a Democrat, had sponsored a joint resolution in the legislature to encourage the state to find ways of increasing participation in Dolly's Imagination Library statewide in the Bluegrass State. Then Sen. Michael Nemes, Republican, filed an amendment seeking to end the public funding from the state's general fund that subsidizes the program by paying half of each community's local share for book printing and postage (the public-private funding structure that has allowed almost half of U.S. states to take the program statewide). News coverage set off a flood of condemnations from voters of the senator's attempt to take books out of the hands of children, and within days of his amendment becoming reported, he voluntarily removed it from the resolution, which then passed unanimously with all Republicans and Democrats in the Senate supporting it. Read more from MSN here.
Allegiant Adds Second Dolly Flight After the first Dollywood Flight 925 from Orlando to Knoxville sold out, Allegiant airlines and the park last week announced the addition of a second Dolly-themed Flight 2925 on Nov. 6, WATE reported here.
SongTeller Sign Lit Up Dolly's SongTeller Hotel in Nashville last week lit its rooftop sign. Watch the lighting on their Facebook page here.
Stateside, Carpenter is No. 23 U.S. pop albums, while Malone is No. 12 country and No. 97 pop.
Down Under, Carpenter is No. 12 pop albums, Malone No. 5 Australian country albums, and Beyonce at No. 27 country.
See You At Dollywood! Dollywood has a dress rehearsal for season passholders Thursday and then open for the season with Dolly on Friday, and your webmaster expects to be there. Look for coverage here next week plus follow Duane Gordon on Facebook to see updates from the park!
March 3: Dolly Children's Hospital Announced
East Tennessee Children's Hospital in Knoxville last week revealed it was being renamed the Dolly Parton Children's Hospital, or "Dolly Children's" for short. The nearly 90-year-old institution unveiled the new name, logo, and website (DollyChildrens.org) with a video on Today. Although the amount of Dolly's contribution was not revealed in the announcement, the hospital noted her partnership will ensure "every child who walks through our doors receives the treatment they deserve." In a press release, Dolly said: "Being fortunate to have grown up in the mountains of East Tennessee, I learned early on what it means to take care of one another Every child deserves world-class care, wrapped in kindness and love. I'm so honored to stand alongside this hospital and do my part to help bring more hope, more comfort and more healing to children and families." Check out the announcement video here or in the media player above and the Today story and segment here. The announcement also prompted Fortune magazine to examine her philanthropy with a piece here.
Dolly To Appear At Dollywood March 13
Dollywood is preparing for a visit by Dreamer In Chief Dolly herself on Friday, March 13, to launch the park's 41st season during a media event on the park's public opening day. She is expected to take her usual open-car park tour that afternoon weather-permitting, but whether seats at the media event will be available for fans has yet to be revealed (in past years, availability of tickets for season passholders has typically been announced about a week in advance). While they announced the previously-shelved passholder preview day was returning after all (in an abbreviated fashion for the afternoon-only on March 12 with limited ride, shop, show, and restaurant operation and requiring advanced reservations which will be limited as well, so they're calling it a "dress rehearsal" for opening day), it has not been revealed whether Dolly will make any appearances that day or on Saturday. Also announced was that the park's two coal-fired locomotive engines had been converted back to the original oil-burning engines that they had when the park first acquired them, eliminating the coal embers that would get on riders' clothing, occasionally in their eyes (requiring the First Aid station to remove the embers), and sometimes lighting small wildfires along the route. The "I Will Always Love You" Festival March 13-April 12 will debut the MotoMotion Freestyle Show and a 3D visual concert called Artrageous in addition to the returning "From The Heart: The Life & Music of Dolly Parton" theatrical performances. Check out your Dollymania video recap from Dolly's season opening appearance last year here or in the media player above, The upcoming event marks her first return to the park and first in-person public appearance since she cancelled a string of planned appearances last fall and winter – including announcing the park's new indoor coaster that is currently under construction – to deal with kidney stones and a resulting infection.
Pre-Order 'Son Of Jolene' For April 17
The release date for Belle's collaboration with Dolly on "Son Of Jolene" has been announced as April 17, and the artist has been teasing the track with a little snippet of her vocals with Dolly in social media videos such as the one available here or in the media player above. Check out a story about the duet from Paradehere and pre-order the track from Amazon here.
Dolly Honors Ozzy At Brit Awardsa
Dolly appeared remotely over the weekend at the Brits, the British music awards, to present the Lifetime Achievement Award posthumously to Ozzy Osborne. His wife, Sharon, and daughter, Kelly, accepted the award. Watch part of Dolly's tribute here or in the media player above.
Dollar General Unveils Spring Home Collection Dolly's new spring homegoods collection has debuted at Dollar General, the retailer announced last week. Check out some of the items on their website here.
Stateside, Carpenter is No. 20 U.S. pop albums, while Malone is No. 14 country and No. 102 pop.
Down Under, Carpenter is No. 14 pop albums, Malone No. 7 Australian country albums, and Beyonce at No. 24 country.
Feb. 24: Fly 925 With Dollywood And Allegiant Dollywood and Allegiant airlines have partnered for a special Nov. 6 flight from Orlando to Knoxville numbered Flight 925 with a Dolly theme. The flight will feature Dolly gate celebrations, live Dolly-themed entertainment, an in-flight trivia contest, exclusive merchandise, and themed food and drinks. Also available is a special Dollywood Resorts lodging package to stay on park and receive Dollywood tickets with special exclusive ride times, reserved show seating, treats, and more. Read more from WATE here.
Belmont Creates 'Billy The Kid' Stage Play Belmont University students have created a live theatrical adaptation of Dolly's children's book Billy The Kid Makes It Big as part of its Dolly U curriculum and will tour it this spring to local Nashville-area elementary schools, Music Row reports here.
U.K., U.S., Aussie Chart Updates Across the pond, Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 remains at No. 1 on the British country compilation albums chart, while Diamonds & Rhinestones, The Greatest Hits Collection stays at No. 3, The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe falls out of the top 20, down from No. 15, Emmylou Harris' first installment in Original Album Series inches down one to No. 15 while its second installment rises two to No. 14, and Ultimate Dolly Parton re-enters the top 20 at No. 20. Sabrina Carpenter's Short & Sweet Deluxe Edition, with its Dolly duet, finds itself at No. 10 U.K. pop. Beyonce's Cowboy Carter, with its Dolly appearances, is No. 9 Americana albums and falls out of the top 20 British country albums, down from No. 17. Post Malone's F 1 Trillion, with its Dolly duet, is No. 9 British country albums.
Stateside, Carpenter is No. 21 U.S. pop albums, while Malone is No. 11 country and No. 100 pop.
Down Under, Carpenter is No. 13 pop albums, Malone No. 5 Australian country albums, and Beyonce at No. 25 country.
Feb. 17: 'Broken Angels' Music Video Drops
"Broken Angels" with The Grascals, originally released a little over four months ago, last week got its official music video featuring Dolly in studio with the band. (Presumably, she couldn't tape the video last year when she was experiencing her health issues, but she hasn't cancelled any planned appearances since November and her producer said she was recently in his studio and appeared to be in good health.) Watch the video on YouTube here or in the media player above, and download it from Amazon here.
Dolly Joining 'Son Of Jolene' Artist Belles earlier this month released her original song that's a sequel to Dolly's "Jolene" about the titular character's cheating offspring, "Son Of Jolene." She sent the song to Dolly, who liked it so much she is recording vocals to add to the track. Read more from Upworthyhere.
U.S., U.K., Aussie Chart Updates Dolly's new recording of "Light Of A Clear Blue Morning" to raise funds for pediatric cancer research at Vanderbilt with vocals from Queen Latifah, Reba McEntire, Lainey Wilson, and Miley Cyrus has fallen off the charts, down from No. 6 Country Digital Song Sales and No. 22 Digital Song Sales in its second chart week, the Feb. 14 charts released last week showed.
Across the pond, her 1977 original version of the song falls off the top 100 British download singles, down from No. 93 in its third week, and British singles sales chart, down from No. 100 in its second week.
Elsewhere on the U.K. charts, on the British country compilation albums chart, Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 remains at No. 1, Diamonds & Rhinestones, The Greatest Hits Collection slips one to No. 3, Glen Campbell's Ghost On The Canvas Sessions with a Dolly duet, falls out of the top 20, down from No. 20, The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe falls four to No. 15, Emmylou Harris' first installment in Original Album Series inches up one to No. 14 while its second installment re-enters the top 20 at No. 16, Live From London falls four to No. 18, Dolly Parton & Family: Smoky Mountain DNA -- Family, Faith & Fables re-enters the top 20 at No. 20, and Ultimate Dolly Parton and Essential Dolly Parton both fall out of the top 20, down from No. 9 and No. 13, respectively. Sabrina Carpenter's Short & Sweet Deluxe Edition, with its Dolly duet, finds itself at No. 13 U.K. pop. Beyonce's Cowboy Carter, with its Dolly appearances, is No. 17 British country albums and No. 11 Americana albums. Post Malone's F 1 Trillion, with its Dolly duet, is No. 3 British country albums.
Stateside, Carpenter is No. 20 U.S. pop albums, while Malone's F 1 Trillion is No. 11 country and No. 89 pop.
Down Under, Carpenter is No. 11 pop albums, Malone No. 5 Australian country albums and No. 48 pop, and Beyonce at No. 23 country.
Feb. 10: Nashville Symphony Proclaims Dolly Summer The Nashville Symphony Orchestra last week announced this will be the Summer of Dolly in Music City with a seven-week engagement of her Threads: My Songs In Symphony will run at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center June 16 through July 31. Tickets are available here. The engagement coincides with this summer's opening of her new SongTeller Hotel in downtown Nashville which includes her new Life of Many Colors Museum and the continuing exhibit "Dolly Parton: Journey of a Seeker" at the Country Music Hall of Fame.
Dolly Joining Musicans Hall Of Fame It was announced last week that multi-instrumentalist Dolly is among the inductees in this year's Musicians Hall of Fame. No official word on whether she will attend the concert and induction ceremony at Belmont University's Fisher Center in Nashville at 7:30 p.m. April 28, but in case she does, tickets go on sale to the public for $65-$225 at 11 a.m. Tuesday here. Other inductees this year are Dann Huff, George Thorogood & The Destroyers, John Boylan, Keith Urban, Leland Sklar, Michael McDonald and Nicky Hopkins (posthumously). Presenters and performers are to be announced.
'Light' Gets Second Week On Sales Charts Dolly's new recording of "Light Of A Clear Blue Morning" to raise funds for pediatric cancer research at Vanderbilt with vocals from Queen Latifah, Reba McEntire, Lainey Wilson, and Miley Cyrus earned a second week on the Feb. 7 Billboard charts released last week. The track slips five from the top of the Country Digital Songs Sales chart to No. 6 and from the second position on the overall Digital Song Sales chart to No. 22. It falls off the Country Airplay chart after one week at No. 41. It still didn't get enough streams to appear on any streaming charts or the overall Hot Country Songs or all-genre Hot 100 charts, both of which rely heavily on streaming credits to chart. Across the pond, her 1977 original version of the song gains five spots to No. 93 British download singles chart in its third week and re-enters the British singles sales chart at No. 100.
Elsewhere on the U.K. charts, "Islands In The Stream" with Kenny Rogers falls back off the top 100 downloads, down from No. 99. Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 falls back off the top download albums chart, down from No. 24, while her Rockstar: Deluxe falls back off the same tally, down from No. 78. On the British country compilation albums chart, Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 remains at No. 1, Diamonds & Rhinestones, The Greatest Hits Collection stays at No. 2, Glen Campbell's Ghost On The Canvas Sessions with a Dolly duet, slidfes four to No. 20, The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe inches up one to No. 11, Emmylou Harris' first installment in Original Album Series drops five to No. 15, and Ultimate Dolly Parton dips one to No. 9, Essential Dolly Parton loses two to No. 13, and Live From London rises four to No. 14. Sabrina Carpenter's Short & Sweet Deluxe Edition, with its Dolly duet, finds itself at No. 17 U.K. pop. Beyonce's Cowboy Carter, with its Dolly appearances, is No. 17 British country albums and No. 11 Americana albums. Post Malone's F 1 Trillion, with its Dolly duet, is No. 7 British country albums.
Stateside, Carpenter is No. 23 U.S. pop albums, while Post Malone's F 1 Trillion, with its Dolly duet, is No. 14 country and No. 109 pop.
Down Under, Carpenter is No. 8 pop albums, Malone No. 4 Australian country albums and No. 42 pop, and Beyonce at No. 24 country.
'Trio' Coming Out On Special Acoustic Releases High-end audiophile boutique Acoustic Sounds is celebrating its 40th anniversary with limited edition releases of 40 albums on Hybrid Stereo SACD and LPs and they have announced the inclusion of 1987's Trio by Dolly, Linda Ronstadt, and Emmylou Harris. The album is remastered to DSD from the original master tapes and will be released both on a Hybrid Stereo SACD and a 180-gram double LP at higher-fidelity 45 rpm speed instead of standard 33. The release date has yet to be announced, but the title is up for pre-order on their website for the vinyl here and CD here.
Imagination Library Study Finds Major Impacts Dolly's Imagination Library early childhood literacy program has significant positive impacts on participating children, according to the largest-ever study of the program worldwide. More than 86,000 caregivers in the program in the U.S., Canada, U.K., Australia, and Ireland were surveyed by United Way Australia and compared to responses from almost 38,000 caregivers in those countries whose children were not enrolled in the program. The study found that across all countries evaluated, Dolly's Library produces stronger early literacy outcomes and richer reading experiences at home—helping close early literacy gaps by strengthening foundational skills, increasing the frequency of children being read to, and boosting children's interest and engagement during shared book reading. It also shows the program builds positive family reading habits and traditions, with caregivers more likely to interact in meaningful ways (like talking about pictures and encouraging children to hold the book), reinforcing a warm, consistent home literacy environment that supports children's learning and long-term success.
Feb. 3: 'Light' Collaboration Debuts At No. 1 Digital Country Singles Dolly's new recording of "Light Of A Clear Blue Morning" to raise funds for pediatric cancer research at Vanderbilt with vocals from Queen Latifah, Reba McEntire, Lainey Wilson, and Miley Cyrus debuted last week on the Jan. 31 Billboard charts with 8,000 downloads sold in its first week and 2.5 million audience impressions from radio airplay. The track debuts at No. 1 Country Digital Song Sales (Dolly's third No. 1 on that tally which began in 2010), No. 2 all-genre Digital Song Sales, and No. 41 Country Airplay (her 28th entry on the airplay list since it was introduced in 1990). It gives her a 55-year span of No. 1 songs between "Joshua" on Hot Country Songs in 1971 and this track on Country Digital Song Sales. Read more from the magazine here. The song didn't garner enough streams in its first week to allow it to debut on the overall Hot Country Songs chart or Hot 100 all-genre songs chart because both are dependent mostly on streams rather than downloads or airplay. Across the pond, her 1977 original version of the song tumbles from No. 10 on British single sales chart and British download singles chart, falling off the sales chart and dropping to No. 98 downloads.
Elsewhere on the U.K. charts, "Islands In The Stream" with Kenny Rogers re-enters the top 100 downloads at No. 99. Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 rises 45 places on the top download albums chart to No. 24, while her Rockstar: Deluxe re-enters at No. 78. On the British country compilation albums chart, Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 remains at No. 1, Diamonds & Rhinestones, The Greatest Hits Collection rises five to No. 2, Glen Campbell's Ghost On The Canvas Sessions with a Dolly duet, gains one to No. 16, The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe inches up one to No. 12, and Emmylou Harris' first installment in Original Album Series increases one to No. 10 while her second installment falls back out of the top 20, down from No. 15, as both feature several Dolly appearances, and Ultimate Dolly Parton, Essential Dolly Parton and Live From London re-enter the top 20 at No. 8, No. 11, and No. 18, respectively thanks to attention to her 80th birthday. Sabrina Carpenter's Short & Sweet Deluxe Edition, with its Dolly duet, finds itself at No. 19 U.K. pop. Beyonce's Cowboy Carter, with its Dolly appearances, is No. 13 British country albums and No. 10 Americana albums.
Stateside, Carpenter is No. 20 U.S. pop albums, while Post Malone's F 1 Trillion, with its Dolly duet, is No. 13 country and No. 102 pop.
Down Under, Carpenter is No. 9 pop albums, Malone No. 4 Australian country albums and No. 42 pop, and Beyonce at No. 28 country.
Producer: Dolly Appears Over Her Health Problems Longtime Dolly co-producer and band leader Kent Wells told Parade last week that she is doing "great" and appears to be back in good health following a health scare that caused the cancellation of several fall appearances. He explained she was in his studio the previous week recording, adding "And she seems great. She's singing great, she looks fantastic and seems perfectly fine." Read more here.
New Museum Lead Staff Hired Dolly's upcoming Life of Many Colors Museum inside her Songteller Hotel in Nashville last week named its new lead staff. Dolly Parton Archives Director Rebecca Seaver, Dolly's niece, will serve as Executive Director, Jen Molyneux will be Events and Group Sales Manager, and Shannon Carpenter Marketing Operations Coordinator. Read more from Country Insiderhere.
Dolly U Continues At Belmont The next five courses in Belmont University's "Dolly U" course of study have launched for the spring semester. Learn more from Music Rowhere.
'Morning' Makes U.K. Chart With the attention brought by release of the new multi-artist version of Doly's "Light Of A Clear Blue Morning," the original 1977 track debuts this week at No. 10 on both the British single sales chart and British download singles chart. However, the song didn't have enough streams to push it into the top 100 pop chart across the pond. Elsewhere on the U.K. charts,
Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 re-enters the top download albums chart at No. 69 while holding its No. 1 spot on the British country compilation albums list as her Diamonds & Rhinestones, The Greatest Hits Collection rises three to No. 7, Glen Campbell's Ghost On The Canvas Sessions with a Dolly duet, re-enters the top 20 at No. 17, The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe climbs five to No. 13, and Emmylou Harris' first installment in Original Album Series re-enters the top 20 at No. 11 while the second installment holds steady at No. 15, as both feature several Dolly appearances. Sabrina Carpenter's Short & Sweet Deluxe Edition, with its Dolly duet, finds itself at No. 20 U.K. pop. Post Malone's F 1 Trillion, with its Dolly duet, falls out of the top 20 country albums, down from No. 20. Beyonce's Cowboy Carter, with its Dolly appearances, is No. 13 British country albums and No. 11 Americana albums.
On the Jan. 24 U.S. charts, Carpenter is No. 16 U.S. pop albums, while Malone is No. 11 country and No. 98 pop.
Down Under, Carpenter is No. 8 pop albums, Malone No. 4 Australian country albums and No. 35 pop, and Beyonce at No. 25 country.
Jan. 20: Happy, Happy 80th Birthday, Dolly!
On Monday, the lady herself turned 80 years old, and the world celebrated its most beloved celebrity. USA Today collected well wishes from fellow country artists here including Keith Urban playing a recording of him singing "Applejack" at age 10 and sounding almost exactly like Dolly. The Tennessean shared a longer version of the video on YouTube here or in the media player above. As was previously announced, and has been her habit in past years, she for the fourth time did not attend the Grand Ole Opry birthday tribute to her Saturday night, but she did accept a Coat of Many Colors cake from an Arkansas baker here and a bagpipe serenade sent from Bono and U2 here. The Governor of Tennessee declared Monday Dolly Parton Day in honor of her milestone birthday, and People shared an exclusive interview about the occasion here. Cracker Barrel restaurants used the opportunity to announce its new Dolly section of its stores featuring her home goods. And multiple career retrospectives aired including from WBIR here, NBC's Todayhere and Extrahere.
New 'Light Of A Clear Blue Morning' Released
Dolly on Friday released a new recording of her 1977 song of liberation from her decade under Porter Wagoner's thumb, "Light Of A Clear Blue Morning," as a celebration of her 80th birthday and as a fundraiser for pediatric cancer research at the Monroe Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt University in Nashville. Joining her on the song to inspire Americans to hope for a better tomorrow were Lainey Wilson, Miley Cyrus, Queen Latifah, Reba, Christ Church Choir, and David Foster on piano (who also played the recognizable piano parts on her 1970s singles "Here You Come Again" and "Heartbreaker" in addition to producing her Christmas album with Kenny Rogers). Watch the video of them recording in studios here or in the media player above, and download the track from Amazon here.
Opry's Dolly Mic Stand Up For Auction The Grand Ole Opry is auctioning off a custom-designed 100th anniversary microphone stand honoring Dolly and used on the program. Check it out from Juliens Auctions here.
U.K., U.S., Aussie Chart Updates Across the pond, Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 holds its No. 1 spot on the British country compilation albums list, while her Diamonds & Rhinestones, The Greatest Hits Collection slides three to No. 10, as Dolly's Live from London and Glen Campbell's Ghost On The Canvas Sessions with a Dolly duet, both fall back out of the top 20, down from No. 15 and No. 16, respectively, while the second Emmylou Harris installment in Original Album Series, featuring several Dolly appearances, and The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe both re-enter the top 20 at No. 15 and No. 18, respectively. , Sabrina Carpenter's Short & Sweet Deluxe Edition, with its Dolly duet, finds itself at No. 13 U.K. pop. Post Malone's F 1 Trillion, with its Dolly duet, is at No. 20 country albums. Beyonce's Cowboy Carter, with its Dolly appearances, is No. 13 British country albums and No. 10 Americana albums.
On the Jan. 17 U.S. charts, Carpenter is No. 14 U.S. pop albums, while Malone is No. 10 country and No. 86 pop.
Down Under, Carpenter is No. 8 pop albums, Malone No. 4 Australian country albums and No. 33 pop, and Beyonce at No. 24 country.
For the archive of monthly news stories, click here.
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