After just one listen to Dolly Parton’s 42nd new album, Blue Smoke, it’d be easy to forget that she’s 68 years old. The icon’s latest finds her dipping her toes into the rustic Bluegrass, some current country/pop and visiting a couple other songs, most notably a Bon Jovi song (yes Bon Jovi) and a song from Bob Dylan.
The record finds Dolly Parton in fine voice throughout the record and it opens up with the sing-a-long new anthem of a title track, a song that could very well become a modern Bluegrass standard in the years to come. In between there’s a pair of duets with fellow Country Music icons Willie Nelson and Kenny Rogers. Both these duets also appear on those gentlemen’s albums from 2013. Kenny duets on “You Can’t Make Old Friends,” a slightly sweet tale of sticking by a friend through thick and thin while Willie sings with Dolly on “From Here to The Moon And Back,” a song fans may notice from Dolly’s 2012 film Joyful Noise.
“Banks Of The Ohio” is a classic folk murder ballad that has become an iconic Bluegrass track and and is revisited by Dolly here. The album’s classic Gospel moment is a surprise where Dolly takes on “Lay Your Hands On Me,” interpreting it as a Gospel song not a sleazy love song. The star’s trademark songwriting is clearly the highlight of the record with her having solely written 7 of the 12 tracks and co-written the fantastic “Home” with longtime production partner Kent Wells. If it was given a shot at radio, “Home” could keep Dolly on the charts.
Dolly’s trademark humor is heard on “Lover Du Jour” while her uplifting personality is felt on both “Home,” and “Try,” a song about doing something, even if it may seem daunting to do. All in all, Blue Smoke finds the icon showcasing why she’s still very much a vibrant artist with a fantastic voice and the ability to write better than many of the top writers in any genre of music in the world.
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