The Grass Is Blue

Dolly Parton

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 26, 1999)
• Original Release Date: October 26, 1999
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sugarhill
• ASIN: B00002067T
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (124 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #14,822 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Hungry Again, 1998's return to form, was the sound of a country legend with nothing to lose and playing for keeps. Still, that startling album barely presaged the seamless grace of Dolly Parton's subsequent celebration of her mountain roots. This may be a full-out bluegrass venture, but tradition only tells half the story. The daring set includes barnstorming remakes of songs by Billy Joel and Blackfoot, two new Parton originals, and the old-as-time folk narrative "Silver Dagger," transformed--via Sam Bush's vertiginous mandolin picking and Jerry Douglas's frenzied Dobro work--into a mysterious, ambient epic. It's a testament to the force of Parton's voice and personality that while surrounded by top-tier players like Stuart Duncan (fiddle) and Bryan Sutton (guitar) she's still the undeniable leader. Her singing is masterful, absolutely vibrating with energy and soulfulness. Along with Steve Earle's The Mountain, this is the finest bluegrass release of 1999, and one of the most fully realized albums of Dolly Parton's career. --Roy Kasten

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

80 of 82 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best albums out of Nashville this decade!, October 26, 1999

By	Duane Gordon ([e-mail]) (Canton, MS) - See all my reviews

Dolly Parton's 61st full-length album captures the freshness and vibrancy of the mountain music known as bluegrass. "The Grass is Blue" is a superb collection of swift, rambunctious tunes and soft, gentle melodies meshed together by genius instrumentation and Dolly's exquisite vocal style. From the rowdy opening cover of Billy Joel's "Travelin' Prayer" to the elegant a capella closing of "I'm Ready," the disc offers 13 delectable slices of heaven. Gathered together are the premiere artists of the genre - top pickers Jerry Douglas, Sam Bush and Stuart Duncan to name a few plus the harmonies of Alison Krauss, Patty Loveless and others - with one of America's true musical treasures belting out some sorrowful "high lonesome sound." Other pick tracks include the steamrolling "Train, Train," a mournful "Silver Dagger," the humorous "I'm Gonna Sleep With One Eye Open" and Dolly originals "Will He Be Waiting For Me," "Steady as the Rain" and the title cut. "The Grass is Blue," released on Sugar Hill Records and Dolly's own Blue Eye Records, is a true gift for her fans and enough to transport even a hard core rock fanatic into bliss in the hills of Kentucky.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Even if you shudder at the thought of bluegrass..., January 1, 2000

By	Christine Fritzinger (Catonsville, MD USA) - See all my reviews

Let me start by saying that I don't normally like bluegrass, country or Dolly even if I can appreciate the artistry behind them. That said, I must also say that this album is easily one of the best of 1999. I fell in love with the songs, lyrically and muscially. The music was perfectly performed and Ms. Parton's voice was the perfect compliment. She has mastered the art of singing and telling stories. She packs emotion into her voice without effort and brings the songs to life. I actually got teary eyed during what I feel is the best song on the album, "Silver Dagger", which takes the voice of a young woman telling her beloved that she can't marry him and she will sleep alone forever because of her mother's warnings. There's a really good mix of love songs and stories. A sense of humor also flits through the album. Parton even pulls a perfect reversal of the old "he done me wrong" song, singing in the voice of a woman who left a man and later realizes he was the one and is on her way back to him, wondering if he has waited for her. Do yourself a favor and buy this album. Don't think of it as a bluegrass album or a country album or as another Dolly Parton album. Think of it as the opportunity to hear a masterwork, the apex of someone's career. It is truly a wonderful collection of songs that will catch both your mind and your heart up with their rhythm and voice. Congrats Ms. Parton, you've won a new fan.

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Just May Be Her Best Work Ever, October 14, 2004

By	Leonard Fleisig "Len" (Washington, D.C.) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

I do not know what roads Dolly had to travel to get her back to her bluegrass musical home - but I am sure glad that she got there. This is Dolly's best piece of work since her collaboration with Linda Rondstadt and Emmylou Harris on Trio.

This is a wonderful, wonderful piece of work. I have listened to Dolly through the years and have always admired her talent and her personality. It has saddened me to see Dolly's career pushed down the rather tired formulaic Nashville path. It appears a return to blue grass was an excellent way of taking a nice long detour around Nashville.

I am not much of a blue grass listener but the Grass is Blue transcends confinement to any one genre of music. The arrangements are wonderful. They are free of the typicallly overdone wall of sound Nashville glitz that has transformed country music from its distinct roots into a slightly down home version of standard American pop music.

The back-up musicians and singers are perfect and complement Doly in fine fashion. In a strange way - The Grass is Blue is to Dolly Parton what Supernaural is to Santanna. Its a return to their artisitic roots - but with a stunning freshness that leaves the listener yearning for more of the same.

All the tracks on this CD are worth listening to. Cash on the Barrelhead stands out as does Train, Train. The closing track, I Am Ready find Dolly at her most soulful. It is sung as a prayer and has a mournful, yet joyous quality, that Dolly's voice renders perfectly.

This is one of the great CDs. You do not have to like or have any knowledge of bluegrass musc to love this CD.