Perhaps this collection will have greater appeal to those who are less committed, and therefore don't have as many of these songs elsewhere. Of course, the two questions that all such die-hard fans have to ask are (a) is there enough they haven't got on CD to justify the cost? and (b) will more of the hitherto-rare songs be released again as further original albums are made available on CD? Each Dolly fan can only answer for themselves, but while I pondered long and hard, I knew that I couldn't resist once I decided I had just enough money to be able to afford it. One way or another, even the most die-hard Dolly fan (and that includes me) will find plenty here of interest. Some songs fit more than one category and you'll notice (for example) that there are duets on three of the four CD's. The four CD's each have a different theme, these being love, covers, mountain memories and duets. Apart from the track listing, these notes are not directly relevant to the contents and could just as easily be included in a greatest hits compilation however, there are further notes on the inside of each digipack that discuss the contents of the CD contained therein. The track listing for the covers CD helpfully lists the original artist for each song, but there is at least one major blunder (Engelbert Humperdinck did NOT record the original version of Release me). The booklet gives extensive notes about Dolly's career as well as a track listing for each CD. A ribbon attached at one end to the inside rear base allows the contents to be removed easily. Inside, there are four digipacks each housing a single CD with a 30-page booklet sitting on top of the lot. Instead, it comes in a cardboard gift box with a lid. I'd heard that it was going to be housed in a tin box, but this was not to be. The packaging is different from any boxed set I've previously seen, although I don't suppose it's unique. While this has some of her pop-sounding music (most famously Islands in the stream, Save the last dance for me), I don't think fans who enjoy that music to the exclusion of her more traditional sounds will find much to get excited about here.
), most Dolly compilations tend to lean towards the more pop-sounding material. Aside from those that focus exclusively on the early stuff (notably This really is, for the most part, a collection for country music fans. There are also some duet tracks that are making their debut on a Dolly compilation, but which have appeared on albums by the various duet partners. I'm sure that a lot of fans would have been happy for this collection to completely avoid the obvious classics (I know that I would) but I guess that commercial reality necessitated the inclusion of some of them.Īt the other end of the spectrum, nine tracks (Bubbling over, Love with me, Because I love you, Most of all why, Robert, Chas, I'm doing this for your sake, Take me back, Blackie Kentucky) are making their debut on CD here while there are others that have appeared only on CD's that are now out of print or only available at a premium price (Love you're so beautiful tonight, Just the way I am, Daddy come and get me, Carroll county accident, Cowgirl and the dandy) and if you didn't buy those CD's, may be hard to find now outside this boxed set. This is not, and was never meant to be, a hits collection. The first thing to say about this collection is that although some of Dolly's hits are here, a lot of them are missing including Jolene, 9 to 5, Here you come again, Coat of many colors, Two doors down, Joshua, Bargain store, The seeker, Old flames and You're the only one (to name a few). When I Get Where I'm Going Dolly Parton and Brad PaisleyĪ Violet And A Rose Dolly Parton and Pam Tillis Love Is Strange Dolly Parton and Pam Tillisīaby It's Cold Outside Dolly Parton and Rod Stewart Lovesick Blues Loretta Lynn, Dolly Parton and Tammy Wynette I Don't Believe You've Met My Baby Dolly Parton and Porter WagonerĮverything Is Beautiful (In Its Own Way) Willie Nelson and Dolly Parton When You Tell Me That You Love Me Dolly Parton and Julio Iglesias Islands in the Stream Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers Video Romeo Billy Ray Cyrus, Kathy Mattea, Dolly Parton, Pam Tillis, Mary Chapin Carpenter and Tanya Tucker Video In The Good Old Days (When Times Were Bad) (Your Life Has Lifted Me) Higher and Higher Real Love Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers Video I Will Always Love You - Original Version