Bradley's Buzz

New Dollytunes

I was on a Dolly Parton kick last week before I even knew her birthday was coming up and the reason for this kick is that my pal Luther had taken two of my Dolly vinyl albums and put them onto CD for me, including fixing the sound, the skips, the crackles all that good stuff only a pro can do. One of the albums is 1980's Dolly Dolly Dolly which just happens to be The Leivas' favorite Dolly album ever, one that he still knows all the lyrics to. So I decided that the album had to be part of the Bubbatunes reissue series particularly since the album has never ever been released on CD. The other album Luther worked on is also from 1980, that Dolly liked to release multiple albums in one year, entitled 9 To 5 And Odd Jobs - probably one of her more famous albums. 9 To 5 .. has been released on CD and I happen to now own a copy of it but with all bubbatunes issues, we needed more bonus tracks, and finally I realized I had all the songs to MY favorite Dolly album 1977's Here You Come Again and after searching days and nights and weeks and months, I found enough artwork to actually create a very great version of Here You Come Again and again add a multitude of bonus cuts, so here are our newest entries into the Bubbatunes catalog - all thanks to that genius of hillbilly sense Dolly Parton.

bub 68 Dolly Parton - HERE YOU COME AGAIN (January 23, 2007)
Originally released in 1977, Here You Come Again was Dolly's first foray into full on pop, there are of course some country twinged moments but the album has the hit title track which is the poppiest Dolly had ever been, the album went gold and became Dolly's biggest seller of a career that had already been in existance for over 10 years. Rumor has it the old fans didn't care for it, but it would appear by the sheer magnitude of the hit that they also bought themselves a copy. I had this album when I was but a wee tyke and it always cracked me up how there were three Dolly's on the cover, and that wig! Holy crap, it's amazing she could keep her head up, but keep her head up she did. The album opens with the keyboard laden title track and that means it opens with a punch and just continues from there including the hit pop single "Two Doors Down", you know where they're laughing and drinkin' and havin' a party without Dolly, then there's the genius of the whole thing in the little nugget "Me & Little Andy" which I've talked about so many times I probably don't need to go into it again. But what threw me when I found all these songs and put them together all these years later is how good the other songs are as well, "Lovin' You" a cover of a Lovin' Spoonful ditty has become one of my favorite Dolly tracks ever, "Cowgirl & The Dandy" is a little ballad about Dolly the cowgirl hooking up with a classy man in the bar at a Tennessee airport where their flights are grounded, "I was Mogan David wine and he was Chablis '59/he was winters in Aspen and summers in Paree (Paris) and I was Grand Ole Opry Nashville, Tennessee", the simple ballad "Baby Come Out Tonight" has Dolly in full blown mistress mode where she's trying to hook up with her married lover one more time before he leaves town with his wife, an awesome version of the Kenny Rogers written "Sweet Music Man" is another big highlight, and so is the simplistic yet oh so Dolly "God's Coloring Book". In fact for such a long ago album I'm surprised how well it's stood up, definitely worth the work I've put into it.

For bonus cuts, we looked to the next two albums after Here You Come Again, and a special bonus in a live version of "Me & Little Andy" where Dolly shows she can still do that crazy little girl's voice so prominent in the original, from 1978's Heartbreaker album (an album that is in a remastered CD version in print even) comes the title track single, the pop disco hit "Baby I'm Burnin'" and a new found favorite in the single "I've Really Got The Feeling" and then from 1979's mostly covers album Great Balls Of Fire comes the original "Down", "Star Of The Show" and a hillbilly version of the Beatles' "Help!" which had people up in arms in 1979 but I think is a much better version of the song than the one Rock goddess Tina Turner did in 1984.

Here You Come Again (1977; 2007 bub 68)
Track list:
01. Here You Come Again
02. Baby Come Out Tonight
03. It's All Wrong But It's All Right
04. Me & Little Andy
05. Lovin' You
06. Cowgirl & The Dandy
07. Two Doors Down
08. God's Coloring Book
09. As Soon As I Touched Him
10. Sweet Music Man
bonus tracks 11. Me & Little Andy (live) 12. Baby I'm Burnin' 13. Heartbreaker 14. I Really Got The Feeling 15. Star Of The Show 16. Down 17. Help!

bub 69 Dolly Parton - DOLLY DOLLY DOLLY (January 23, 2007) When I was a kid my parents had the 8-track of Dolly Dolly Dolly and I remember playing it, little did I know across the country a teenaged Alfred was also playing the album and neither of us knew that oh so many years later our lives would cross and we'd be listening to it together but such is the power of Dolly's music. So in the spring of 1980 Dolly threw this album upon the world, following her poppy successes in 1977's Here You Come Again and again with 1978's Heartbreaker and perhaps a little less in 1979's Great Balls Of Fire, Dolly came up with this album, a full on pop album and one of the only albums where Dolly didn't write a single track. There are more pop strings and guitars than steel guitars and yodles, though the countrified pop does come through here and there. Dolly Dolly Dolly is interesting in the track list sequencing as someone came up with the genius idea of putting a ballad then an upbeat pop song then ballad then upbeat pop etc. all the way through these 10 songs. The album opens up with a pop and country hit "Starting Over Again", a ballad about the break up of a long term marriage written by Donna Summer and her husband, then the keyboards kick in and Dolly pops it out with "Same Old Fool" before going into the only true country song on the set and one that gave her another #1 on the country charts "Old Flames Can't Hold A Candle To You" and once again the poppy pops with "You're The Only One I Ever Needed" which is by far my favorite on the album. "Say Goodnight" is what was side one's closer before we get a couple more songs with 'fool' in the title, the boppy "Fool For Your Love" which is fun musically but not so much in its lyrics while the ballad "Even A Fool Would Let Go" probably could've done quite well had it been released as a single, and the upbeat pop of "Sweet Agony", then onto the Leivas' favorite cut the ballad, "I Knew You When" which softly tells the story of two lovers who go at it on prom night and hold onto their memories for the rest of their lives and include the subtle nicetys of Dolly's telling the man even when he feels like he's looking and getting old she will always remember him the way he was cause she knew him when, it really is a very pretty and heartfelt song, while Dolly Dolly Dolly ends with the upbeat but kind of strange "Packin' It Up" which is a rousing jaunt about closing up the shop and putting on fancy clothes to head into the city and party it up for the weekend.

The bonus cuts for Dolly Dolly Dolly all come from 1979's Great Balls Of Fire but they're really quite an eclectic jumble, starting with the sweet semi waltz of the Dolly written "Sandy's Song", it's a song Alf and I first heard on So You Think You Can Dance and it took me forever to figure out which album it came from. Luckily, I have all the songs from Great Balls Of Fire, another album never released on CD, so it was added to this collection for the sake of The Leivas' happiness, also here are the two singles from the 1979 album "You're The Only One" and "Sweet Summer Lovin'" two breezy ballads set at midtempo to give us just enough to love in Dolly's sweetness, then the strangely captivating cover of the title track which proves Dolly is no Jerry Lee Lewis but also proves she's above taking chances, then two more ballads, the somewhat boring "Almost In Love" and the highly intense and satisfying tones of both "Do You Think Time Stands Still" and "It's Not My Affair Anymore" which show attitude amidst the semi sweet lyrics. I am so happy I finally have this and I have to say even the semi Dolly delver can realize that Dolly Dolly Dolly is a great find.

Dolly Dolly Dolly (1980; 2007 bub69)
Track list:
01. Starting Over Again
02. Same Old Fool
03. Old Flames Can't Hold A Candle To You
04. You're The Only One I Ever Needed
05. Say Goodnight
06. Fool For Your Love
07. Even A Fool Would Let Go
08. Sweet Agony
09. I Knew You When
10. Packin' It Up
Bonus Tracks - 11. Sandy's Song 12. You're The Only One 13. Sweet Summer Lovin' 14. Almost In Love 15. Great Balls Of Fire 16. Do You Think That Time Stands Still 17. It's Not My Affair Anymore

bub 70 Dolly Parton - 9 To 5 AND ODD JOBS (January 23, 2007)
One of my favorite pictures of Dolly Parton ever is from the back side of the 9 To 5 single, which shows Dolly at the office in a hot skirt and huge high heels holding time cards and losing most of them as she tries to punch into her job, the album which used the same front cover as the single included the pic as a the inner sleeve and this version of the album also includes the picture, but believe me it took forever to find it, but alas I did. I also found out that 9 To 5 And Odd Jobs, unlike a lot of Dolly's late 70's early 80's stuff is actually available on CD, however the question remains if it's still in print. I found a used copy for about $11 but since I had already started working on the Bubbatunes version I just added the official songs to my disc. The thing with this album is that when it was released, it was released with 10 songs then a few months later RCA re-released it and got rid of the inner sleeve and pulled two songs from it, why I'm not sure but it doesn't seem right. As luck would have it, the 8 song mid priced 9 To 5 is the vinyl copy I have. But the Bubbatunes version includes all 10 of the original 9 To 5 And Odd Jobs songs plus some.

A concept album by our girl, we open with the title track which is Dolly's biggest hit ever, spending weeks at #1 on both country and pop charts and even scoring in the UK, the toe tapping song tells the story of the plight of the 1980's secretary in all her glory, but the secretary is but one of the working people Dolly puts into song on this album. We have everyone here from the migrant workers uncerimoniously killed in a plane crash in her cover of Woody Guthrie's "Deportee", to the working hooker in Dolly's cover of "House Of The Rising Sun" to the simple common man who puts everything together for everyone else in "Sing For The Common Man", a combination of both country and pop push through the album though the emphasis is on the pop side of Dolly, particularly on "House Of The Rising Sun" which has not one iota of country in it, though the closer "Poor Folk's Town" is the essential Dolly countrified pop song telling the story of the poor who are rich in everything but worldly possessions think a newer version of "Coat Of Many Colors" only brighter, "Hush-A-Bye Hard Times" is my ultimate favorite on 9 to 5 And Odd Jobs and probably the most country of all the songs, it's a fast jaunt that sounds like it's a cover of an old bluegrass ditty from the 20's but instead it's a Dolly original with Dolly singing acapella, "Many years you have lingered around my cabin door, oh hard times come again no more," before breaking into a jumpy country number while telling her baby (ies) they can't have the gingerbread cake or the bows or anything else they want cause there's a big wolf howling at the door bringing her some more hard times."Hush a bye baby don't cry no more/ your mama can't give you what you're crying for/ there's a wolf at the door with an angry, cold, hungry stare/ he keeps howling of hard times and the cupboard is bare/ hush a bye hard times, hush a bye baby" It sounds silly and perhaps it is a tad silly for 1980 let alone 2007 but I think it's great and this is all about me you know. Dolly's work aholic people continue in "Working Girl" which doesn't tell the story of just the business gal but every working girl ever including the hardest working of all, the mom. Some have argued that "But You Know I Love You", the other big hit (both pop top 40 and country #1) doesn't fit in with the working idea, but if you listen to the song it's really the most personal by Dolly though she didn't even write it, as it talks about having to be away on tour and at work all the time while trying to remind the listener that she still loves him.

For bonus cuts we had to cut the theme of the working stiffs though we got the similarly titled "Single Women" which is a hilarious yet tragic country song from 1982's Heartbreak Express album with the opening lines, "Single bars and single women..." and tells the tragic stories of one night stands from there, then we have the title track from Heartbreak Express, a sort of mixed bag of country and jump blues from the 50's, it's a great performance all around, also included are Dolly's other 1982 singles from the film version of The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas, the remake of her own "I Will Always Love You" and "Hard Candy Christmas", and the 1983 straight up rock infested pop of "Potential New Boyfriend" one of my all time favs by Dolly, before adding on (for the Leivas' mom and pop who will get a copy of this CD) "Islands In The Stream" with Kenny which I unceremoniously cut from our previous Dolly Ultimate CD (bub49) , and it all ends with her 1984 yoddling mix of "Tennessee Homesick Blues" from the 1984 film Rhinestone (with Sylvester Stallone .. does anyone remember that film? What were they thinking?), so I guess though I don't keep up with the working class theme in the bonus cuts I do keep up with her movie appreances and as for Dolly the album maker, a lot has been argued over the years that her albums particularly her late 70s and early 80s output on RCA Records isn't all it could've been, I have to put these three albums up for review because all three of them, Here You Come Again, Dolly, Dolly, Dolly and 9 To 5 And Odd Jobs really showcase Dolly at her best whether it be singing hillbilly covers, bluegrass working class anthems or straight up pop songs I think Dolly delivers quite nicely. As for the Rhinestone soundtrack of 1984 perhaps that's something else to discuss.

9 To 5 And Odd Jobs (1980; 2007; bub70)
Track List:
01. 9 To 5
02. Hush-A-Bye Hard Times
03. House Of The Rising Sun
04. Deportee
05. Sing For The Common Man
06. Working Girl
07. Detroit City
08. But You Know I Love You
09. Dark As A Dungeon
10. Poor Folk's Town
Bonus Tracks - 11. Single Women 12. Heartbreak Express 13. I Will Always Love You 14. Hard Candy Christmas 15. Potential New Boyfriend 16. Islands In The Stream (with Kenny Rogers) 17. Tennessee Homesick Blues

posted by swivek @ 8:40 AM