Dolly Parton

I haven't seen the Linda Ronstad film yet but have seen that one.

I think there is a very good chance EL would have given up music after Gram Parson's death had it not been for the kindness of LR.

This is the Dolly/Linda/EmmyLou doc I mentioned earlier in the thread:

www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b081sx50/sisters-in-country-dolly-linda-and-emmylou

It goes beyond a typical country biopic, as it looks at the similarities and differences of three completely different women born in different parts of the USA at the same time (D&L 1946/ EL 7)

The mutual respect is palpable, as is the decades long friendship, particularly between Linda Ronstadt and EmmyLou Harris, who were friends long before they met Dolly.

It’s also tinged with sadness, as Linda doesn’t film the studio parts with the others, due to the degenerative brain disease that ended her singing career.

Funnily enough, both L and EL had negative opinions on Dolly’s appearance in the early days (being cool, ‘hippy’ types themselves). I haven’t watched this in a while but If I recall correctly, they point out that Dolly is far more talented than either of them and that they were eager students of Dolly’s, and soon learned how to separate the superficial from the meaningful.

Here they are in 1977 singing on Dolly’s prime time TV show:

(I haven’t yet seen the new Linda R film yet, I really should though! www.rottentomatoes.com/m/linda_ronstadt_the_sound_of_my_voice )

Whoever mentioned Dumplin it annoyed me so much. The actual women were bitches. The girl had to learn about how to be a woman from drag queens???? I found it massively annoying.

Dolly is awesome & she is a feminist icon in my mind. DS & I caught the end of the documentary & watched the Glastonbury set. He was stunned by her talent playing so many instruments.

Her book gifting charity is fantastic (seen some of the impact) and huge. Poignant that it's for children. I read somewhere that she & her husband wanted children but endometriosis lead to hysterectomy at a young age.

She is mostly known for her big boobs and singing style.

Yes a man who pulled him up from his non existent boot straps to become one of the most prolific songwriters ever and started a foundation to encourage children to read and to OWN books because they were a luxury in their child hood would never be best known for a physical feature.

That's how the patriarchy works.

And you do know. "I will always love you", the theme for the bodyguard is just one of her songs don't you?

Well someone else mentioned that the gloves might be to cover signs of ageing. Which seems plausible, for the reasons mentioned. It is one of the downsides of the effort to remain young looking through cosmetic surgery, or excessive thinness, it never really recreates youth.

I have to say, although its true Dolly has been very well respected within country music, there was a long time that the whole genre didn't get much respect in some circles. I think more recently there has been a growing awareness of traditional and alt country and its relation to other types of roots music, and maybe more differentiation from pop country.

It's common for people in the entertainment business (both male and female) to have cosmetic surgery, there's no need to criticise Dolly Parton for it.

I am the first to admit I type in haste and dont alwasy make sense, but for those who have quote some of the things I wrote, it is me talking about how the mass media, both "qualilty" (ha ha) and tabloid, as well as tv and radio have talked about Dolly Parton

It's like all those tv music critics Lmale) who think its only authentic to be grungy or heavy metal or whatever, when the charts are full of love songs and ones about sausage rolls!

I can't be bothered picking this apart beyond commenting you know very little about the history of country music or music journalism and criticism.

Total lack of content again

But have appreciate all the comments of others you have actually engaged in the thread about Dolly Parton, one aspect of which is the pressure of women in the public eye having to maintain an image.

Wont stay up for another pre-pared cue card comeback, but hope that the thread will continue with women's insights and feelings for Dollly Parton.

There's always one isn't there.

Are you just a troll?

The box you live your life in is not anyone else's reality.

Why come on a thread and not bother to understand what is being discussed?

If your comment was directed at me I think you have failed to understand the point.

The two women in question are both known to have had plastic surgery, and as yet there is no plastic surgery for hands. That is the sadness - giving in to plastic surgery on the face, which cannot disguise the rest of the body.

So my comment was following the comments on this thread.

I dont know any one who makes randon remarks about women known or unkown in public. Maybe the people you mix with do.

And as someone with such hands I feel more than competent to remark on them. And I know I am not guilty of aging. It is a fact of my life.

I just hadn't made the possible link re the mittens, thinking over dramatically of Dolly Parton not being able to play instruments.

Sometimes what happens in life is real, and not just an opportunity to come out with some cliched supposedly feminist remark.

As a bit of an aspiring songwriter & a huge country fan, I fantasise about spending a year with Dolly, learning how she writes/works. Like an apprenticeship!

For me, my favourite Dolly moment was when she did Glasto & sang a Christian version of Bon Jovi's "Lay Your Hands on Me." I'm also a huge Bon Jovi fan & have been saying for many years that LYHOM would make a great Christian song with a few lyrical tweaks so I literally squealed with joy to see her performing it! I'd enjoyed her songs before that but that cemented my love for her.

There's a great podcast series you might enjoy, Dolly Parton's America.

If anyone hasn't seen Dumplin' on netflix you need to it is such a feel good film.

It’s a remarkably shit film. It’s only redeeming feature is the dolly soundtrack.

EBearhug - hadn't thought of that.

A while ago on the tube I sat down to someone I thought looked familiar, but the wrong age and then realised it was Julie Christie (sitting meekly beside a young man who ignored her whilst making a big fuss of reading).

Well I thought, some of us age well. and then I happened to see her hands and thought that's a give away. Only someone of a certain age and older has hands like that, and highly unlikely to have a face ironed of any creases, or lines.

(Sorry Julie, nothing personal, just an observation!)

Would be terrible to have arthritis and not be able to play the many instruments she is so adept at.

On another note I was very concerned to see her wearing what looked like support mittens.

Silvery fingerless mitts - we assumed to cover signs of aging, which are hard to disguise on hands. Don't think you can get a "handlift". On the Dolly at Glastonbury programme after, she was wearing silvery crystals on the back of her hands.

I also thought, as she was playing the fiddle, my violin teacher would never have approved of those nails!