New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Fifty years ago, Dolly Rebecca Parton boarded a bus in her hometown of Sevierville headed for Nashville - and one of the most successful entertainment careers in history. Parton's impact has been felt in recording, writing, movies, television, as well as pop culture. Her enduring talent and personality has continued to make her a creative force across the globe.
November and December will see Parton all over the UK promoting her latest album. She started off this month with an appearance in The
Foo Fighters documentary Sonic Highways - which is available on the BBC iPlayer being interviewed by Dave Grohl, who said "No-one is as cool as Dolly".
Then, on November 7, as part of the BBC's Country Nights series, BBC Four will re-air the critically-acclaimed documentary Platinum Blonde. In the telecast, Parton will offer a candid and frank discussion of her career, in addition to comments from friends and colleagues such as fellow Country
Music Hall of Fame member Kenny Rogers, 9 to 5 co-stars Dabney Coleman and Lily Tomlin, and frequent collaborator Alison Krauss.
And, in true Parton style, that is just the beginning. On November 9 - two days after the re-airing of Platinum Blonde - BBC
Radio 2 will release their
Sounds of the 80s album, which will feature a live performance of "Lay Your Hands On Me," featuring the legend that is Bon Jovi's Richie Sambora (as seen live at the London's O2 and Glastonbury Festival, when Sambora guested onstage). Parton recorded the song for her Blue Smoke - The Best Of double-disc set earlier this year.
The album will continue to be in the spotlight throughout the coming months on BBC
Radio 2. Blue Smoke became her highest-ranking US album on the Billboard 200 ever. It's UK, performance was just as impressive, being certified Double-Gold by the British Phonographic
Industry this summer, entering the charts at No. 6 and rising all the way to No. 2, her highest UK chart position ever and still in the charts! Featuring such heralded performances as "Home," the CMA-nominated Rogers duet "You Can't Make Old Friends," and "Miss You-Miss Me," and the BBC
Radio 2 'A List' records "Try" and "Home".
Parton will also take to the airwaves of QVC in the United Kingdom on November 29, in which she will sit down for an interview and special performance.
One aspect of her successful year that she will be discussing at length will be her June performance at the legendary Glastonbury Festival, where over 170,000 came to watch her perform - the festival's largest audience ever. Dolly's performance delivered the highest viewership in the history of BBC's Glastonbury coverage. In addition, Dolly was dubbed "The
Queen of Glastonbury" and her set prompted The Guardian to say "Parton rewarded Glastonbury with a performance that surely calls for a redefinition of the word "crowd-pleaser." The historic concert performance will re-air on BBC Four on November 21.
Parton will also make an appearance on ITV's Good Morning Britain on December 9.
In addition to being all over the radio and television airwaves during November and December, the entertainment icon will be featured in such publications as Glamour, The Guardian, and The Mirror.
Dolly Parton's latest Sony Masterworks/Dolly Records release Blue Smoke - The Best Of is available now.
