Months after recording a duet with local sob baroness Isabelle Boulay, country queen Dolly Parton is indeed looking for a Better Day on this rather disappointing 41st album. Three years after Backwoods Barbie, a CD on which the blonde singer went back to mainstream pop-country after a couple of surprising bluegrass records, Parton is now struggling to catch up to contemporaries like Taylor Swift and co. While Dolly’s voice sounds astonishing, the sugar-coated overall production of Better Day makes even earnest ballads like I Just Might seem unfortunately hackneyed. Worse, songs like Together You and I are bland pop messes that could easily pass as Carrie Underwood tunes. Can someone please forward Jack White or Rick Rubin’s numbers to Miss Parton?
Dolly Parton
1 comment
Hello,
I had a chance to listen to Dolly Parton’s new Better Day CD this week and I was very pleasantly surprised. I really thoroughly enjoyed it. I loved the song Better Day itself, the Sacrifice is excellent, Get out and Stay out, to name just a few. I really got a kick out of the words and have been drawn back to listen to the album several times. There is a fine mix of poingnancy from Dolly’s voice whch makes more than just a heppy album. For me the prroof is after listening, I had many of the tunes in my head all day. She has written all the songs and her voice is ageing beautifully. Naturallly, everyone has different tastes and there is room for all. She’s been doing it her way for a long time.