Dolly Parton Sings Duet on Kesha’s New Album (Listen to the Song Here!)
At age 71, Dolly Parton is more in-demand than ever before! The legendary country star recently sang with Kesha on the pop singer’s new album, Rainbow. While Dolly and Kesha may not seem like an obvious match, their collaboration is simply phenomenal. The two artists share a duet on Dolly’s classic tune “Old Flames (Can’t Hold a Candle to You)”, which is the highlight of the record. Watch the video below to hear the song for yourself:
The Surprising Connection Between Dolly and Kesha
When Kesha got in touch with Dolly about re-recording “Old Flames”, Parton immediately said “yes”. However, she was a bit confused why an artist who is most famous for dance-pop music wanted to cover an old country song. According to Rolling Stone, Dolly asked Kesha, “Why did you choose to do that song? That’s an unusual choice for you”. Kesha had an unexpected response: “Well, because my mother wrote it”.
Kesha’s mother is Patricia Rose “Pebe” Sebert, a musician who has written songs for everyone from Riders in the Sky to Miley Cyrus. In the 1970s, Sebert and her husband at the time, Hugh Moffatt, wrote “Old Flames (Can’t Hold a Candle to You)” as the debut single for country singer Joe Sun. Sun’s version of the song reached No. 14 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in 1978.
For her 1980 album Dolly, Dolly, Dolly, Parton decided to record her own take on “Old Flames”. Dolly’s cover of the tune was an immediate success, scoring Parton her tenth No. 1 song on the U.S. Country Singles Charts. Dolly told Rolling Stone that “Old Flames” is “one of my favorite songs that I ever did”. “Old Flames” has become a country music classic and has been recorded by Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, and June Carter. You can listen to Dolly’s original recording of “Old Flames” in the video below:
A Dream Come True for Kesha
In an interview with NPR, Kesha said that “it has always been a dream to record [Old Flames] with Dolly Parton. It’s always been one of those ridiculous things to say out loud so you don’t say it. I felt silly ever saying that out loud, because, I mean – it’s Dolly Parton…I dream really big but I wasn’t sure if this one would ever happen.”
Kesha has long considered Dolly to be a role model. She told NPR that he has even considered getting a tattoo that says, “What would Dolly do?” because she always thinks about how Parton would handle various situations or interviews.
Reflecting on her collaboration with Dolly, Kesha said that every time she listens to the song “it gives me full-body chills and it makes me tear up because she’s a…legend; she’s an icon. I’m just so grateful and humbled. This album is special for so many reasons but this just like tops the whole thing off”.
Dolly-Themed Fun in the Smoky Mountains
Visitors to Pigeon Forge, TN will have numerous opportunities to enjoy some Dolly Parton-themed fun during their vacation! Here are four amazing attractions in the Smoky Mountains that Dolly fans won’t want to miss:
- Dollywood
- Dolly Parton’s Dixie Stampede
- Dolly Parton’s Smoky Mountain Adventures
- Dolly Parton Statue
