The Best of Dolly Parton

The Best of Dolly Parton is a compilation album by American singer-songwriter Dolly Parton. It was released on November 9, 1970, by RCA Victor. The album was produced by Bob Ferguson. It includes some of Parton's early hits, a few non-single album tracks, and two previously unreleased tracks ("Mule Skinner Blues (Blue Yodel No. 8)" and "How Great Thou Art"). The album peaked at number 12 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart. The single, "Mule Skinner Blues (Blue Yodel No. 8)" peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and earned Parton a nomination for Best Female Country Vocal Performance at the 13th Annual Grammy Awards. The album was certified Gold by the RIAA on June 12, 1978, for sales of 500,000 copies.

The Best of Dolly Parton
Compilation album by
Dolly Parton
ReleasedNovember 9, 1970
RecordedDecember 18, 1967–May 12, 1970
StudioRCA Studio B (Nashville)
GenreCountry
Length30:52
LabelRCA Victor
ProducerBob Ferguson
Dolly Parton chronology
Once More
(1970)		 The Best of Dolly Parton
(1970)		 Two of a Kind
(1971)
Singles from The Best of Dolly Parton
  1. "Mule Skinner Blues (Blue Yodel No. 8)"
    Released: June 22, 1970

Recording

Two previously unreleased songs were included on the album. "Mule Skinner Blues (Blue Yodel No. 8)" was the only song recorded at the May 4, 1970 session at RCA Studio B in Nashville. "How Great Thou Art" was recorded on May 12, 1970, during the second of three sessions for what would be Parton's 1971 album The Golden Streets of Glory.

Release and promotion

The album was released November 9, 1970, on LP.

Singles

The album's single, "Mule Skinner Blues (Blue Yodel No. 8)", was released in June 1970[1] and peaked at number three on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and number 4 in Canada on the RPM Country Singles chart.

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Christgau's Record GuideA[3]

The review published in the November 21, 1970 issue of Billboard said, "This LP teams with big hits, including "Mule Skinner Blues", "In the Good Old Days (When Times Were Bad)", and "Just Because I'm a Woman". Every tune is packed with that special emotion only Dolly Parton can render in a song. "Down from Dover" is a real tearjerker."[4]

Cashbox published a review in the November 14, 1970 issue which said, "It becomes difficult to choose the selections for a best hits album for Dolly, because almost everything she's recorded has been a hit! Nevertheless, this new album is just a small sampling of the enormous talent she has. "Mule Skinner Blues", "Down from Dover", "Gypsy, Joe and Me", "In the Ghetto", "Just Because I'm a Woman", "How Great Thou Art," and "Just the Way I Am" are included."[5]

AllMusic gave the album 4.5 out of 5 stars.[2]

Commercial performance

The album peaked at number 12 on the US Billboard Top Country Albums chart.

Accolades

Parton earned her first solo Grammy nomination for "Mule Skinner Blues (Blue Yodel No. 8)". It was nominated for Best Female Country Vocal Performance at the 13th Annual Grammy Awards.[6]

Awards and nominations received for The Best of Dolly Parton
Award Year Category Nominee/work Result
Grammy Awards 1971 Best Female Country Vocal Performance "Mule Skinner Blues (Blue Yodel No. 8)" Nominated

Track listing
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Recording dateLength
1."Mule Skinner Blues (Blue Yodel No. 8)"
May 4, 19703:10
2."Down from Dover" (from The Fairest of Them All)Dolly PartonSeptember 4, 19693:42
3."My Blue Ridge Mountain Boy" (from My Blue Ridge Mountain Boy)PartonMay 20, 19693:27
4."In the Good Old Days (When Times Were Bad)" (from In the Good Old Days (When Times Were Bad))PartonSeptember 9, 19682:46
5."Gypsy, Joe and Me" (from My Blue Ridge Mountain Boy)PartonMay 21, 19693:07
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Recording dateLength
1."In the Ghetto" (from My Blue Ridge Mountain Boy)Mac DavisJune 2, 19692:46
2."Just Because I'm a Woman" (from Just Because I'm a Woman)PartonDecember 18, 19673:01
3."Daddy Come and Get Me" (from The Fairest of Them All)
  • Parton
  • Dorothy Jo Hope
October 31, 19692:59
4."How Great Thou Art"Stuart K. HineMay 12, 19703:27
5."Just the Way I Am" (from The Fairest of Them All)PartonOctober 31, 19692:27

Personnel

Adapted from the album liner notes and RCA recording session records.

Charts
Chart performance for The Best of Dolly Parton
Chart (1970) Peak
position
US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[7] 12

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[8] Gold 35,000‡
United States (RIAA)[9] Gold 500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. "Spotlight Singles" (PDF). World Radio History. Billboard. p. 80. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
  2. "The Best of Dolly Parton". AllMusic. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
  3. Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: P". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 10, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  4. "Billboard - November 21, 1970" (PDF). American Radio History. Billboard. p. 75. Retrieved 23 May 2019.
  5. "Cashbox - November 14, 1970" (PDF). American Radio History. Cashbox. p. 50. Retrieved 23 May 2019.
  6. "Dolly Parton". GRAMMY.com. 15 February 2019. Retrieved 23 May 2019.
  7. "Dolly Parton Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard.
  8. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2021 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
  9. "American album certifications – Dolly Parton – The Best of Dolly Parton". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved May 23, 2019.
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