Americana Music Reviews

 

Dolly Parton
Halos and Horns
Sugar Hill

by David Pilot

Dolly Parton is an artist who's seen the ebb and flow of country music's riptide over the decades, from its early days of down-home purity through the countrypolitan fluff and rhinestones on into the new traditionalists of the late '80s/early '90s and into today's Dixie Chick/Shania/Faith Grrrrls with drawls and guitars pulpfests. She did her time at the forefront of the countrypolitan stuff back when, making magic, albeit not always country magic, with Kenny Rogers et al., and brightening the dreams of adolescent boys nationwide who wouldn't have known Hank if he'd reappeared from beyond to put a boot upside their pubescent heads. Then she dropped off the radar for a good while, making critically acclaimed and fan-loved records but not really making waves.

That changed a bit over the last few years, with songs from Heartsongs and Eagle When She Flies cracking playlists here and there in major markets worldwide. Now she's made a world-beater with this year's Sugar Hill release of Halos and Horns. Dolly's an artist who's never been afraid to mix genres like an alchemist on speed without an instruction book. Perhaps one of the greatest legacies she'll leave is the fact that her pure "up home" mountain country voice can be so easily molded to fit music aeons above and beyond the melodies most of America associates with O Brother, both its predecessors and knock-off would be next acts.

That said, this disc rumbles into gear on a title track that sounds just like the Soggy Bottom Boys, rippling above abundant banjo and mandolin like an Appalachian stream while Parton's unmistakable voice brings shivers:

Halos and horns
Sinners and saints
Hearts that are torn
Between what's wrong and ain't

Just because it feels right
Does not make it so
So we struggle through life
In horns and halos

The word "incomparable" comes to mind when first you spin this track. It stays a spell with repeated listens, and as of this writing I can't tell you I see the impression leaving anytime soon. As lead-off cuts go, this one offers the promise of rapture. Seems like a lock for a great hour or so of listening when the next song, "Sugar Hill," leads off with a muted acoustic guitar and Ms. Parton's warm, beautifully aged voice paints a brilliant and vivid picture of hidden swimming holes, skinny dipping and coming of age in a world where a man's worth is judged by his work. It's a bit of a surprise, then, when Dolly slows down to a solemn pace and goes for the heartstrings with "Not Me." The song is diametrically opposed to the mountain rhythms of the first two, full of melancholy and sadness, and showcases lead and harmony vocals blended in jaw-dropping fashion. Dolly notes that this particular song has been around some thirty-five years, just before she left home for Nashville near as she can reckon, and it's never been recorded prior. It's a bit emotional to hear the voice of four decades in Music City translate a lyric written in naivete at the start of the journey, and long-time fans will find this an unparalleled treasure.

"Hello God" was born of the terrorist attacks last September, and takes a tack not yet explored by country's stars. Where Alan Jackson found pain, comfort and ultimately meaning in the distant yet deeply personal experience while Toby Keith and Charlie Daniels exhibited a far more hands-on and apocalyptic response, Parton found herself turning back to faith and looking for deeper meanings. No matter your particular take on that day's events, you may find this song one to think through on an iced-tea night while you take a break from the whiskey-fueled rage and thirst for vengeance that eat at your soul if you've reacted to 9/11 the way I did.

Hello God
Are you out there?
Can you hear me?
Are you listening anymore?
Hello God
If we're still on speaking terms
Can you help me like before?
I've questioned your existence
My resistance leaves me cold
Can you help me
From a distance?
Hello, God. . .hello

Faith is a personal thing, not a subject open for debate when it comes right down to it. Seldom has an artist exhibited his or her own personal faith in a manner so clearly genuine as Dolly on this track. It's a gem.

On the heels of such apparent sincerity, it's odd to hear the old Bread standard "If" translated through the voice of Appalachia. "If a picture paints a thousand words/Then why can't I paint you" ... Argh. If you're a longtime Dolly fan, you'll likely get and appreciate this track. Same if you're a Bread fan. The rest of you, hit Skip on this'n.

The mountain's back with "Shattered Image," an old chestnut from Dolly's collection pulled out and polished to, as she says, provide a proper response to "all the shit that comes out in the tabloids." One must wonder just what kind of country we've built when a woman like Dolly Parton has to contend with the stones from the peanut gallery. If we're only as strong as our weakest links. . . damn. Parton's not stuck in contemplation on the subject, though, as she rips into another back-porch beauty, "These Old Bones," using a mimicked version of her Mama's voice and shining a spotlight on the inner strength of the people who made the country to begin with.

From this juncture it's point and counterpoint the rest of the way, with cuts like "What a Heartache," "Raven Dove" and "If Only" showcasing Dolly's adroit manipulation of fare best heard on stations playing adult contemporary and Today's Hot New Country, while cuts like "I'm Gone" and "Dagger Through the Heart" inject the banjo and raw intuitive appeal of the mountains as firebreaks in between. Taken as a whole, the five-song segment serves as a beautiful, poignant, even stunning Cliff's Notes take on the variety and consistent excellence Dolly has parlayed into a Hall of Fame career over the decades. Each track deserves an in-depth look here, but we don't have the space. I hope you have the money and the time, because these are sheer beauty regardless of the genre each espouses.

That leaves us with one track to cover, likely the one you've heard about already and are wondering just what the hell it's all about. The rumors are true, folks, Dolly covered "Stairway to Heaven" as the finale for Halos and Horns. In her words, the reasons were simple:

It was a song I loved and a song that [husband] Carl loved. We used to love it together. To me, it's like "After the Goldrush." It's an abstract song. You really don't know what it means. It sounds Old World. On the last couple of albums, I did "Shine," "I Get a Kick Out of You" and "Traveling Prayer," so everybody is expecting me to do something "different" on this album, too. Well, I'm the only person to have the nerve to deal with classics. That's why I took it, ad-libbed it and made it more spiritual.

I didn't do it just for the gimmick ­ my love for the song comes from a very real place. It's not just about making it work ­ it's about it really being a part of you. So I thought, "What the hey ­ I'm just going to go with it, and if it didn't turn out good, nobody would ever know I even tried it." I knew I was walking on sacred ground because it is a classic.

It's safe to say this is a different take on the work sometimes called "the greatest rock and roll song ever." I'll leave that debate to those who care; what I will say for posterity is that Ms.Parton's turned "Stairway" into something altogether different. The lyric still makes about as much sense as a woman in the midst of that time of the month, but the feel of the song here transforms into something oddly spiritual and reflective. Maybe it makes sense in a Zen voodoo sort of way and touches the soul; maybe it'd all come together if I'd just get some good weed. Dunno, won't find out. But I like it anyway.

There you have it, Dolly Parton's new yet old and wildly genre-melding Halos and Horns. It's the most striking disc to hit my desk this year, and works on a multitude of levels. I highly recommend getting a copy for yourself and finding the parts - - or the whole - - that work for you. Find a wealth of information on the CD at www.dolly.net, along with plenty of other info about the artist herself. She's made an impact on country, bluegrass and other genres for a reason over the years. You'll find a terrific primer on the woman and her abilities here.

Contact David Pilot at: tailgunner-at-rockzilla.net

 
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