Tag Archives: Freddy Fender

I tell Dolly we are “bosom buddies”. She coos, “and my breast friend”. Dolly’s life busts out on 19 DVDs!!

My next book is entitled Dolly Parton’s Boob in My Hands . . . and Other True, Titillating Stories From My 35 years of Hollywood Hobknobbing.

Let me explain.

I knew Dolly Rebecca Parton and I would become fast friends when she let me hold her left breast. Before you start calling the tabloids or TMZ, let me explain. It was 1987, and we were in a photographer’s studio on the Upper East Side where Dolly was being photographed for the cover of Redbook.

She was dressed in a handmade denim blouse (size 0), the wig was perfectly placed, the makeup flawless. She eyed the catered buffet and picked up a piece of chicken with her two fire-engine red (fake) fingernails, brought it to her mouth and, plop!, the sliver landed on her blouse, smack-dab on her left . . . well, you get the picture.

The adrenaline kicked in. “Quick, Dolly!” I said. “You hold and I’ll wipe.” I poured water on a paper towel and begin to very gently dab the spot. Dolly grabbed a portable hair-dryer and with that infectious giggle cooed, “Now quick! You hold and I’ll dry.”

With those seven simple words, my entry into the dizzy, delightful world of Dolly Parton—40DD-17-36—had begun. “One day,” I thought to myself, “I will live to write about this.”

The shoot was a success, and as Dolly climbed into her limo, I whispered, “I feel like your bosom buddy.” Without missing a beat, she said, “And my breast friend.”

Oh! The stories I can tell.

It’s the sassy and self-effacing side of Dolly that has always made her look better than a body has a right to. “I’m not a natural beauty, so when I started out, I needed to be as flamboyant and outrageous as possible,” she recalls. “My trashy look started from a sincere place — a country girl’s idea of glamour. I always wanted to be sexy even before I knew what the word meant. I thought that town tramps were beautiful. They had more hair, more color, more of everything. And they had men always hanging ’round them. So I copied those girls. And I owe them a lot.”

She giggles. “When I realized my trashy look was working, I kept it. It’s cost me a lot to look so cheap,” she adds. “I wear the fake hair because it’s so tacky. I wear high heels because I have short legs. And I wear fake fingernails because I have short, fat arms. I have no taste and no style and I love it! When I am 90, I’m going to look like Mae West. I may be in a wheelchair, but I’ll still have the big hair, big boobs and big fingernails. I’ll probably end up this way in my coffin. But I won’t be a fat hog!”

You can call her the Queen of Country, an award-winning songwriter, actress, TV star, philanthropist, business mogul, gay icon and American treasure, but to her millions of fans, she’s known simply as Dolly. From her start out of Nashville in the ’60s to her Hollywood debut and beyond Dolly has done it all . . . and in 6 inch heels!

Now, for the first time ever, the incredible highlights of Dolly’s remarkable career are together in a one-of-a-kind 19-DVD set DOLLY: THE ULTIMATE COLLECTION. From her early appearances in the ’60s through her own star-studded variety shows in the ’70s and ’80s, to concerts, interviews, TV appearances and blockbuster collaborations with her closest friends, she’s still going strong and lookin’ spectacular!
“It’s been an amazing journey and you’ll find some of my most precious highlights included here in this collection,” says Dolly. “Thank you to the wonderful folks at Time Life for putting this together. What a delightful trip down memory lane….just the hair styles and outfits alone are worth a look and I’m surprised there are still any rhinestones left in this world! I hope you enjoy these moments as much as I did.”
Time Life cordially invites Dolly Parton fans everywhere to come along on the journey of a lifetime. Available now exclusively at TimeLife.com/DollyParton, this dazzling, carefully curated 19-DVD deluxe collection includes:
  • 22 star-studded episodes of Dolly’s variety shows from the ’70s & ’80s with guest appearances by Oprah Winfrey, Kenny Rogers, Emmylou Harris, Linda Ronstadt, Willie Nelson, Freddy Fender, Burt Reynolds, Miss Piggy, Merle Haggard, Smokey Robinson & The Temptations, Tammy Wynette, Loretta Lynn and more!
  • 7 episodes of The Porter Wagoner Show, from 1967 – 1974 featuring historic Dolly Parton performances including Jolene, I Will Always Love You, Coat of Many Colors, Mule Skinner Blues, and her very first appearance where she sang Dumb Blonde.
  • A special Christmas disc featuring A Down Home Country Christmas with Mac Davis and Burl Ives, and Bob Hope’s Jolly Christmas Show
  • Dolly’s spectacular Live and Well concert from 2002
  • Dolly’s unforgettable Live from London concert from 2009 plus bonus features
  • Rare TV appearances of Dolly throughout her career from The Tonight Show Starring Johnny CarsonThe Oprah Winfrey Show, and Crook & Chase
  • The entire Song by Song: Dolly Parton series, highlighting Dolly’s most iconic songs and how they came to be
  • Bonus features include Dolly’s University of Tennessee Commencement Address and Imagination Library Dedication Ceremony at The Library of Congress
  • Classic duets with Dolly & Porter Wagoner taped live at the Grand Ole Opry
  • Unforgettable Dolly Parton performances from the CMA Awards in the ’70s
  • New bonus features created just for this collection featuring Dolly Parton reminiscing about memorable moments from throughout her career
  • Exclusive, complete, and never before seen interviews with Brandi Carlile, Miley Cyrus, Vince Gill, Miranda Lambert, Brad Paisley, Kellie Pickler, Kenny Rogers, Marty Stuart, Lily Tomlin, and Carrie Underwood!
  • Plus your FREE Bonus DVD with the complete authorized BBC documentary Dolly Parton: Here I Am
  • An Exclusive Collector’s Book filled with photos, Dolly in her own words, and loving tributes from her famous friends.
  • And it all comes in a beautiful Collector’s Box!
Dolly Parton remains as vibrant and relevant as ever. Her songs have captured the hearts of generations. Her electric smile has brightened the lives of millions. And her trademark style is recognized across the globe. Join Time Life for a celebration of her iconic, unforgettable career with DOLLY: THE ULTIMATE COLLECTION, only available via direct response or online at TimeLife.com/DollyParton.
 

For the record: Rock Beat Records issues some classic, collectible vinyl

For the record, Rock Beat Records in about to unleash a handful of lost, must-have classic vinyl. May we offer a sampling?

Arthur Lee & Love: Complete Forever Changes LiveArthur Lee & Love - Complete Forever Changes Live

One of the most famous, cherished LPs of all time, performed live, in it’s entirety!
As mercurial as Arthur Lee could be, he showed no concern in playing before 65,000+ Glastonbury concert-goers who all came to see if Arthur Lee & Love could pull off Forever Changes in a festival setting. Love’s musical director was the link between the ensemble of Swedish string and horn players and this loud, kick ass, take-no-prisoners rock-and-roll outfit. Think Mozart meets Thin Lizzy. Love came to Glastonbury with the hopes of just playing well and having a good time, but they left with so much more than that.

Phil Ochs: Live In Montreal 10/22/66Phil Ochs - Live In Montreal 10/22/66

The Montreal gig was smack dab between his final Elektra album and his first release for A&M Records in November ’67. On the former he’s still the lone troubadour, armed only with a guitar that kills fascists (to paraphrase Woody Guthrie), while on the latter he utilizes ornate orchestration and piano accompaniment ranging from classical to ragtime. In many of the renditions heard on this live set, one can hear Ochs toying with the arrangements, adjusting the tempo mid-song and applying dissonance for effect. In some instances, his ideas outrun his technical capabilities.

Doc Watson: Live From Chicago, March, 1964: Vol. 1Doc Watson - Live From Chicago, March, 1964: Vol. 1

Arthel Lane “Doc” Watson was an American guitarist, songwriter, and singer of bluegrass, folk, country, blues, and gospel music. His flat-picking skills and knowledge of traditional American music were highly regarded and often performed with his son, guitarist Merle Watson, until Merle’s death in 1985, the result of a tractor accident on the family farm. His guitar playing skills, combined with his authenticity as a mountain musician, made him a highly influential figure during the folk music revival of the mid 60’s. Watson pioneered a fast and flashy bluegrass lead guitar style including fiddle tunes and cross picking techniques which were adopted by many others.

Freddy Fender: Lovin’ Tex-Mex StyleFreddy Fender - Lovin

In 1974, record producer Huey P. Meaux approached Fender about overdubbing vocals for an instrumental track. Fender agreed, performing the song bilingual style, singing the first verse in English, then repeating the verse in Spanish, something he repeated over the course of his career. That track was the No. 1 crossover hit “Before the Next Teardrop Falls”. While notable for his genre-crossing appeal, several of Fender’s hits featured verses or choruses in Spanish. Bilingual songs rarely hit the pop charts, often perceived as novelty hits, but Fender developed a track record of bi-lingual hits, expanding the rich culture of Tex-Mex music.

Big Joe Williams: Southside BluesBig Joe Williams - Southside Blues
Big Joe Williams has been a major influence throughout his long career on most of today’s blues artists and is especially known for his unique development and playing of the nine-string guitar style, something no other artist has successfully attempted. This LP was recorded by famed blues producer Norman Dayron in Chicago and presents Big Joe in an intimate setting, performing many of the traditional and original blues for which he is most widely known.

Del Shannon: The Dublin SessionsDel Shannon - The Dublin Sessions

This is the holy grail for Del fans. Shannon was a consistent hit maker in the early 1960s, beginning with a No. 1 smash in “Runaway.” Del recorded this previously unreleased album in 1977 with his UK touring band, “Smackee”, at Ireland’s Dublin Sound Studios. Del originally mixed and re-mixed the tracks at Cherokee Studios in California but was never satisfied with the results. For decades cassette tapes of these recordings have changed hands with Shannon fans worldwide.

Mississippi John Hurt: Live At Oberlin CollegeMississippi John Hurt - Live At Oberlin College

This excellent performance at Oberlin College in 1965 came at a time when Mississippi John Hurt was coming back into the blues spotlight and being discovered by a new generation of fans. Hurt’s rich, gentle voice and flowing guitar lines are showcased as he performs a mix of hymns, traditional songs and Hurt’s folk/blues staples. While not showcasing the raw emotion of his earlier work, the blues patriarch’s warmth and intimacy shine through here, especially during his exchanges with his audience. This performance offered Hurt’s fine balance of child-like and mature, his voice mellow and his skill in the technically difficult art of finger-picking never diminished.

Mighty Joe Young: Live From The North Side Of ChicagoMighty Joe Young - Live From The North Side Of Chicago

Willie Dixon said it best: “Frankly, I feel Mighty Joe Young is one of the most talented guitar players in the country. I used Joe on many sessions because of his ability to interpret the particular feeling of a song. He has a traditional sound which is he able to mix with a very modern style and he uses this combination to emphasize a mood.”