Hello, Dolly
OK, so Dolly Parton isn't exactly a hot concert for most college students, but I actually enjoyed it. I grew up with her music, so it was like getting back to my roots (this rhymes with "puts"). Anyway, here's my description of the concert, which I'll put behind a cut because no one cares.
Dolly Parton's Hello, I'm Dolly Tour: 07 November 2004, Joel Coliseum, Winston-Salem, NC
I grew up listening to Dolly's music and others like her: southern gospel, country western ("cowboy songs"), and 80s country, because that's what my parents listened to. Living in a fairly small town, the opportunity to go to concerts rarely presents itself. So one of my goals when I went to Charlotte for college was to go to some.
The Dolly Parton concert was in Winston-Salem on a Sunday night, which is really to far to go just for a concert, but my aunt and uncle live in High Point, which is much closer. So I spent the weekend with them and went with my aunt to the concert.
Our seats were in the balcony, but still had a very good view, especially with the large screens showing various camera angles of what was going on on stage. It wasn't a full house, but I believe most of the bottom level was full, while the balcony was only about 1/3 filled. the sound was good--it wasn't deafening, but was loud enough to be clearly audible.
The opening act was a bluegrass group called the Grascals. Which took me a long time to get--it's like Rascals, with a play on bluegrass! Ha, I'm slow. They were pretty good, I guess, although I'm not big on bluegrass. They played a 30 minute set (5 or 6 songs) and then there was a 30 minute intermission. I bought a soda and some popcorn and laughed at people buying $10 programs and $60 sweatshirts.
At 8:30, Dolly came on. The show started with a big-band style version of "Hello, Dolly." She was wearing a very tight catsuit type thing and very high heels. Her hair was in some fancy updo and she had lots of makeup. Normal Dolly. She made some jokes about the technology--she hated having a headset microphone, which she'd never used before (she fiddled with it a lot during the show, and tended to use the main mike anyway), and announced that they'd made her put a microphone in her cleavage.
She was very funny and chatty, actually talking back to the obnoxious audience members who yelled things, and making some rather corny jokes. She announced rather frankly, "I just wanna say how much I appreciate your money," which led to her trademark joke--"It costs a lot to look this cheap!" As she said, she can always rely on that joke and a boob joke if all else fails. I thought it was cool that she talked and chatted between songs, unlike some bands, who just come onstage, sing for a while, and leave.
She said that she thought it took too long to go offstage for costume changes, so "I'll just change right here," incorporating a Super Bowl joke and a dig at Janet Jackson. She explained that while she would remain in the same costume for the whole show, she thought this was boring, so she had "add-ons" to her basic costume.
The first part of the show was some of her rock/pop hits (although she often cut them down to around a minute). My favorites were "Jolene" and "Why'd You Come In Here Lookin' Like That?" She told funny stories related to them and about making the various movies she's been in (before performing "9 to 5").
Next she performed some new songs, planned for release on her next album. These were "Blue Smoke," an addition the country/bluegrass repertoire of train songs--but a very good addition, with good lyrics and an outstanding fiddle solo in the bridge--and "I Dreamed of Elvis," which she performed with an actual Elvis impersonator. She claimed she'd always wanted to sing with Elvis, and this was as close as she was going to get. She also recalled how Elvis had almost done a cover of "I Will Always Love You," although Colonel Parker's demands for half the royalties interfered. The song featured a brief duet between Dolly and Elvis singing "I Will Always Love You," so she performed that one next. She then conducted the audience in singing a chorus of it--so I guess I can say now that I've sung with Dolly Parton!
The next section was of some recent releases. First she praised Norah Jones' cover of her song "The Grass Is Blue," which appeared on a recent tribute album. She said she liked the idea of using a piano in the song, so she had a white grand piano brought onstage and played it, as well as "Here You Come Again." Next she performed "Baby It's Cold Outside," which she sang with Rod Stewart for his Stardust album, with a member of her band standing in for Rod Stewart. The song had a cabaret feel to it, so she performed it sitting atop the grand piano with a cigarette holder and giant martini, with a feather boa around her shoulders. For the piano numbers she added a sheer drapey skirt.
Next she launched into some "hippie" songs, adding a fringed skirt with beads and feathers. She performed "Me & Bobby McGee" with a member of her band playing harmonica, saying that she'd loved that song during her "Janet Joplin phase." Next, and somewhat surprisingly, she performed a cover of John Lennon's "Imagine." It didn't seem like her sort of song, but she did it surprisingly well. She added that these would also be on her next album.
Next a crate with a patchwork quilt was brought out, and she sat down here to perform some songs from her childhood. She performed "Coat of Many Colors" on the autoharp, and added a zither for "Tennesee Mountain Home." Demonstrating her many talents, she brought out a recorder for "Smoky Mountain Memories," then sang "Little Sparrow" nearly a capella, accompanied only by a fiddle. She also included a religious number, a song "telling the devil where to go," called "Go To Hell," which included a takeoff on the Pentecostal churches she attended as a child.
Then she sang backup for the Grascals on "Viva Las Vegas" (not the same as the Elvis one) and finished off with "Thank God I'm a Country Girl." During the bridge of the last one, she played a few bars on the guitar, fiddle, and banjo (adding "Take that, Dixie Chicks!...wonder how they liked the election?" as she finished her banjo riff). She said good night and left to a standing ovation. She reappeared for an encore, performing "Hello God," her response to 9/11. She started to leave again, but returned for a last encore, performing "Welcome Home," a new song in response to the war in Iraq.
It is impossible to believe that Dolly Parton is 58 years old--she looks like she's 20 and has all the energy as well. Even though she's admitted to having some plastic surgery, she must be in remarkable condition to carry off such energetic performances every night. Somehow too, despite the artificiality of her beauty, she seems more real than some of the pop divas of today--maybe because she makes not the slightest pretense of being anything she's not. She laughs at her own gaudy taste and uses her looks for many of her jokes.
Dolly definitely belongs on the list of great American peformers. While she is obviously an accomplished musician, she is also an excellent actress (she can sound close to tears on "I Will Always Love You," then bounce back to sassy and flirtacious on "Why'd You Come In Here Lookin' Like That?") and comedienne. As she said in her introduction, her show would have something for everyone--and it did.
Complete Set List (in approximate order)
Hello Dolly
Two Doors Down
Jolene
9 to 5
Here You Come Again
Why'd You Come In Here Lookin' Like That?
PMS Blues
Blue Smoke
I Dreamed of Elvis
I Will Always Love You
The Grass Is Blue
Baby It's Cold Outside
Me and Bobby McGee
Imagine
Coat of Many Colors
Tennessee Mountain Home
Smoky Mountain Memories
Little Sparrow
Go to Hell
Viva Las Vegas
Thank God I'm A Country Girl
Hello God
Welcome Home
Um. OK...that was supposed to be a description, not a review. I just like went into essay mode spontaneously. Scary.
Dolly Parton's Hello, I'm Dolly Tour: 07 November 2004, Joel Coliseum, Winston-Salem, NC
I grew up listening to Dolly's music and others like her: southern gospel, country western ("cowboy songs"), and 80s country, because that's what my parents listened to. Living in a fairly small town, the opportunity to go to concerts rarely presents itself. So one of my goals when I went to Charlotte for college was to go to some.
The Dolly Parton concert was in Winston-Salem on a Sunday night, which is really to far to go just for a concert, but my aunt and uncle live in High Point, which is much closer. So I spent the weekend with them and went with my aunt to the concert.
Our seats were in the balcony, but still had a very good view, especially with the large screens showing various camera angles of what was going on on stage. It wasn't a full house, but I believe most of the bottom level was full, while the balcony was only about 1/3 filled. the sound was good--it wasn't deafening, but was loud enough to be clearly audible.
The opening act was a bluegrass group called the Grascals. Which took me a long time to get--it's like Rascals, with a play on bluegrass! Ha, I'm slow. They were pretty good, I guess, although I'm not big on bluegrass. They played a 30 minute set (5 or 6 songs) and then there was a 30 minute intermission. I bought a soda and some popcorn and laughed at people buying $10 programs and $60 sweatshirts.
At 8:30, Dolly came on. The show started with a big-band style version of "Hello, Dolly." She was wearing a very tight catsuit type thing and very high heels. Her hair was in some fancy updo and she had lots of makeup. Normal Dolly. She made some jokes about the technology--she hated having a headset microphone, which she'd never used before (she fiddled with it a lot during the show, and tended to use the main mike anyway), and announced that they'd made her put a microphone in her cleavage.
She was very funny and chatty, actually talking back to the obnoxious audience members who yelled things, and making some rather corny jokes. She announced rather frankly, "I just wanna say how much I appreciate your money," which led to her trademark joke--"It costs a lot to look this cheap!" As she said, she can always rely on that joke and a boob joke if all else fails. I thought it was cool that she talked and chatted between songs, unlike some bands, who just come onstage, sing for a while, and leave.
She said that she thought it took too long to go offstage for costume changes, so "I'll just change right here," incorporating a Super Bowl joke and a dig at Janet Jackson. She explained that while she would remain in the same costume for the whole show, she thought this was boring, so she had "add-ons" to her basic costume.
The first part of the show was some of her rock/pop hits (although she often cut them down to around a minute). My favorites were "Jolene" and "Why'd You Come In Here Lookin' Like That?" She told funny stories related to them and about making the various movies she's been in (before performing "9 to 5").
Next she performed some new songs, planned for release on her next album. These were "Blue Smoke," an addition the country/bluegrass repertoire of train songs--but a very good addition, with good lyrics and an outstanding fiddle solo in the bridge--and "I Dreamed of Elvis," which she performed with an actual Elvis impersonator. She claimed she'd always wanted to sing with Elvis, and this was as close as she was going to get. She also recalled how Elvis had almost done a cover of "I Will Always Love You," although Colonel Parker's demands for half the royalties interfered. The song featured a brief duet between Dolly and Elvis singing "I Will Always Love You," so she performed that one next. She then conducted the audience in singing a chorus of it--so I guess I can say now that I've sung with Dolly Parton!
The next section was of some recent releases. First she praised Norah Jones' cover of her song "The Grass Is Blue," which appeared on a recent tribute album. She said she liked the idea of using a piano in the song, so she had a white grand piano brought onstage and played it, as well as "Here You Come Again." Next she performed "Baby It's Cold Outside," which she sang with Rod Stewart for his Stardust album, with a member of her band standing in for Rod Stewart. The song had a cabaret feel to it, so she performed it sitting atop the grand piano with a cigarette holder and giant martini, with a feather boa around her shoulders. For the piano numbers she added a sheer drapey skirt.
Next she launched into some "hippie" songs, adding a fringed skirt with beads and feathers. She performed "Me & Bobby McGee" with a member of her band playing harmonica, saying that she'd loved that song during her "Janet Joplin phase." Next, and somewhat surprisingly, she performed a cover of John Lennon's "Imagine." It didn't seem like her sort of song, but she did it surprisingly well. She added that these would also be on her next album.
Next a crate with a patchwork quilt was brought out, and she sat down here to perform some songs from her childhood. She performed "Coat of Many Colors" on the autoharp, and added a zither for "Tennesee Mountain Home." Demonstrating her many talents, she brought out a recorder for "Smoky Mountain Memories," then sang "Little Sparrow" nearly a capella, accompanied only by a fiddle. She also included a religious number, a song "telling the devil where to go," called "Go To Hell," which included a takeoff on the Pentecostal churches she attended as a child.
Then she sang backup for the Grascals on "Viva Las Vegas" (not the same as the Elvis one) and finished off with "Thank God I'm a Country Girl." During the bridge of the last one, she played a few bars on the guitar, fiddle, and banjo (adding "Take that, Dixie Chicks!...wonder how they liked the election?" as she finished her banjo riff). She said good night and left to a standing ovation. She reappeared for an encore, performing "Hello God," her response to 9/11. She started to leave again, but returned for a last encore, performing "Welcome Home," a new song in response to the war in Iraq.
It is impossible to believe that Dolly Parton is 58 years old--she looks like she's 20 and has all the energy as well. Even though she's admitted to having some plastic surgery, she must be in remarkable condition to carry off such energetic performances every night. Somehow too, despite the artificiality of her beauty, she seems more real than some of the pop divas of today--maybe because she makes not the slightest pretense of being anything she's not. She laughs at her own gaudy taste and uses her looks for many of her jokes.
Dolly definitely belongs on the list of great American peformers. While she is obviously an accomplished musician, she is also an excellent actress (she can sound close to tears on "I Will Always Love You," then bounce back to sassy and flirtacious on "Why'd You Come In Here Lookin' Like That?") and comedienne. As she said in her introduction, her show would have something for everyone--and it did.
Complete Set List (in approximate order)
Hello Dolly
Two Doors Down
Jolene
9 to 5
Here You Come Again
Why'd You Come In Here Lookin' Like That?
PMS Blues
Blue Smoke
I Dreamed of Elvis
I Will Always Love You
The Grass Is Blue
Baby It's Cold Outside
Me and Bobby McGee
Imagine
Coat of Many Colors
Tennessee Mountain Home
Smoky Mountain Memories
Little Sparrow
Go to Hell
Viva Las Vegas
Thank God I'm A Country Girl
Hello God
Welcome Home
Um. OK...that was supposed to be a description, not a review. I just like went into essay mode spontaneously. Scary.