With platinum blonde hair reaching to the heavens and a penchant for blindingly bedazzling stage costumes, Dolly Parton is an easy artist to pigeonhole. However, it didn’t take audiences long to realize that the “Jolene” singer was in on the joke. In the nearly six decades since debuting with 1967’s Hello, I’m Dolly, Parton has demonstrated incredible business savvy, building not so much a career as an entire empire—all while refusing to ever “tone down” her look, East Tennessee accent, or over-the-top persona. In particular, the 11-time Grammy Award winner seized control of her career on her self-produced album New Harvest…First Gathering, released on this day (Feb. 14) in 1977.
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Dolly Parton Wanted To Indulge Her “Outrageous” Side
Prior to 1977, Dolly Parton’s highest pop placement was “Jolene” at No. 60. With New Harvest…First Gathering, however, the “Queen of Country Music” was aiming squarely at the pop charts.
Parton meant to make a statement with the entire album, starting with its title. She co-produced New Harvest… First Gathering with Gregg Perry, who also contributed piano, tambourine, keyboards, backing vocals, and string arrangements.
“This is an album that I’m real excited about,” Parton explained in an interview ahead of the release. “I truly feel that it’s the best thing I’ve done today. Of course, I may be wrong, because it’s really easy to… get too involved when you’re excited about something. I just hope that it’s not overdone or underdone—or at least, I hope the variety is enough to where it’s enjoyable.”
The album contained plenty of Parton’s own creations, like the Top 20 Hot Country Songs hit “Light of a Clear Blue Morning.” Additionally, Parton included “My Love”—a gender-neutral spin on the Temptations’ classic “My Girl”—and Jackie Wilson’s R&B hit “(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher.”
“I wanted to do an album where I could have… total freedom of expression,” Parton said. “And I’m sure everybody has heard me do all the country things that I could possibly do—but that’s not to say that I won’t, in the next album, go back and do a lot of the simpler things. I just wanted to kind of be outrageous, I suppose, and just really get some heavy things.”
The Album Led to Her First Major Crossover Hit
New Harvest… First Gathering topped the country albums chart and peaked at No. 71 on the all-genre Billboard 200.
In October of the same year—1977—Dolly Parton followed up with her 19th studio album, Here You Come Again. This time, she hit No. 20 on the Billboard 200. Additionally, the album’s title track climbed to No. 3 on the all-genre Hot 100, giving Parton her first major crossover hit.
Featured image by Paul Natkin/WireImage
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