Dolly Parton
Jolene (Buddha 7446599675)

Jolene, like many country albums, isn't the greatest album ever made, but it's full of great songs, great playing, and of course, Dolly's phenomenal voice. Released in 1974 to capitalize on the success of the title track, this album is twenty-four minutes of down-home goodness. Twenty-four minutes? Yes indeed, ten songs in total, and I bet Dolly couldn't get her wig on by the time the album ends. Certainly this would have made more sense as a two-fer, but for the moment let's just take in the songs.

"Jolene," of course, is one of Dolly's finest moments, a brooding and magnificently conceived thing that takes you quite by surprise if you only know her from "9 to 5" and/or eternal breast jokes. The other huge hit on this album is "I Will Always Love You," the original version that still puts Whitney's remake to shame.

Eight of the ten tracks are Dolly compositions, as sweet and honest as the great lady herself: "When Someone Wants to Leave" is an emotional highlight ("It's a sad situation, I must say/When someone wants to leave as bad as you want them to stay").

The great thing about Dolly's early songwriting is how it's so distinct from, for example, the personae that Tammy Wynette tended to project. Rather than allowing her man to walk all over her and just remaining passive, Dolly's always letting her man go, with her sweet blessing. It's ultimately just as pathetic, I suppose, but it makes for some really gut-wrenching material.

There's some good-time moments as well, like "Highlight of My Life" ("Darling, you're the highlight of my life…") and a song of new love, "Randy." "Early Morning Breeze" is a cool little backwoods tune, not too far off from her later "Me and Little Andy," but minus the bizarre gothic subject matter.

The album takes an emotional journey through mostly painful break-up and/or post-break-up songs, a lot of which blend together a bit, but like a good beer when your baby's up and left, it hits the spot. When she hits "Lonely Comin' Down," your heart is cryin' out to be soaked in beer. Don't ask me what my beer fixation is, especially since I only drink Zima.

The disc closes on an up-note with "It Must Be You," giving an optimistic ring to the album as it ends. In 1974, country music still had a purity to it that was tainted by the country-pop of a few years hence (though I love tons of that stuff too), and this is great classic country.

Not every song on here is a Nashville masterpiece, or for that matter, necessarily a Dolly masterpiece, but Dolly never sang a note she didn't mean with all her heart, and that carries the album an awful long way. Well, as long as twenty-four minutes will allow for, anyway.

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Review by Clean Mr. Gene