Celebrating her 80th birthday Jan. 19, Dolly Parton boldly declared, “I’m just getting started,” in an interview with People magazine. Indeed, the “Queen of Country” remains a force to be reckoned with nearly six decades after her debut album, 1967’s Hello, I’m Dolly. And on this day (Jan. 31) in 2014, the former Entertainer of the Year reminded audiences of her star power when she released her 44th studio album, Blue Smoke.
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Dolly Parton Returned to Her Roots on ‘Blue Smoke’
Named for the mist that envelops the Great Smoky Mountains of her East Tennessee homeland, Dolly Parton embraced her bluegrass influences on Blue Smoke. She released the album through a partnership between her label, Dolly Records, and Sony Masterworks.
In many ways, Parton saw Blue Smoke as an amalgamation of her career up to that point, she told Billboard.
“I’m a girl of many colors, and this was an album of many colors,” said the 11-time Grammy winner. “I think it touched on the bluegrass, the gospel, the more pop things, and the rock things. I think it just has a good variety, and that was on purpose.”
[RELATED: 3 of the Most Important Dolly Parton Songs in Country Music History]
The Album Featured Covers of Bob Dylan and Bon Jovi
Penning seven of the album’s 12 tracks, Dolly Parton also included duets with Kenny Rogers and Willie Nelson. Later that year, “You Can’t Make Old Friends” earned her and Rogers a Grammy nod for Best Country Duo/Group Performance.
Meanwhile, Nelson joined her for a duet of “From Here to the Moon and Back,” which Parton had previously recorded with Kris Kristofferson and Broadway star Jeremy Jordan for the 2012 film Joyful Noise. Their version also appeared on Nelson’s 2013 album To All the Girls…
Additionally, the Country Music Hall of Famer put a bluegrass spin on Bob Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right” and Bon Jovi’s “Lay Your Hands on Me.” Blue Smoke debuted at No. 2 on the Top Country Albums chart, marking her best showing in 23 years.
Twelve years later, Parton is planning a Las Vegas residency for this September. As she told Los Angeles news station KABC ahead of Blue Smoke’s release, “I just keep on keeping on. So as long as I’m able to do it physically and mentally, if God’s good to me, I’ll be doing this until I keel over dead one day right in the middle of something I love to do.”
Featured image by Engelke/ullstein bild via Getty Images
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