“I’m a rockstar!” bawls Dolly Parton over a squall of guitars. The title track of her 49th album is one of a few original songs on a 30-track behemoth, dominated by leather-clad, steel-studded covers of classic rock hits ranging from The Beatles’ “Let it Be” to Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven”. Many songs feature vocal contributions from their starry creators, with golden oldies Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Debbie Harry, Elton John, Sting and Steve Tyler taking turns at the mic with younger stars such as P!nk, Lizzo and Parton’s goddaughter Miley Cyrus.
The Rockstar project has its roots in Parton’s 2022 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It was an honour that she initially declined, feeling she didn’t qualify. She’s the Queen of Country, after all. But when she realised that the Hall welcomed artists from all genres, she accepted her place and decided to record some songs to justify it. Her seldom-seen husband of 57 years, Carl Dean, has always been a headbanger (she says he played loud rock’n’roll on his car radio on their first date), so this record is also sweetly dedicated to him. A reworking of Parton’s 1975 song “Magic Man” (later a hit for soft rockers Heart) is even subtitled “Carl’s Version”.
