Marriott to occupy hotel building
February 28, 2008
Troy Anthony Lirette
March 3, 2008Dolly Parton parades her best and worst creative impulses on “Backwoods Barbie,” her first album since launching her own record label.
Fortunately, the emphasis is on what she does best. Writing nine of the 12 tunes, she focuses on autobiographical lyrics set to upbeat country music that blends old-school acoustics with new-school rhythms.
She opens the album with a bold song, “Better Get to Livin’,” about her answer to the constant question of her how she stays so positive. On “Made of Stone,” she adds depth to this theme by recognizing that even the most enthusiastic person can feel betrayal and loss. It’s not a contradiction; it’s an acknowledgment that even she hurts from time to time.
Not everything works so well. Parton’s often chooses ill-fitting cover songs, either in a stab to reach a pop audience or because she likes classic tunes. She repeats that crime with ineffective versions of Smokey Robinson and The Miracles’ “The Track of My Tears” and Fine Young Cannibals’ “Drive Me Crazy.” She does little to refashion either track in her image.
Fortunately, such gaffes are few. She makes up for them with plenty of down-the-center country songs, including the Celtic-tinged “Only Dreamin”’ and a ’60s-style heartbreaker, “I Will Forever Hate Roses.”
CHECK THIS OUT: On the title song, Parton once again restates her theme that just because she looks outrageous and tawdry doesn’t mean she’s shallow or dumb.
