Oct. 31:

Ghouls, Ghosts And Dollys, Oh My!
Thanks to the several folks who e-mailed in to alert me of dual Dollys on television Friday morning. TV hostess Wendy Williams donned her best Dolly outfit in tribute to her favorite singer on her talk show. Check out a quick clip here. And Dolly idolizer Kellie Picker did a "Backwoods Barbie" look as her top icon when appearing on Ellen DeGeneres' show. See a hilarious clip of her here.

More Praise For 'Dolly'
The Dolly boxed set continues to get notice. The Knoxville News Sentinel raved about the collection here Friday, saying one listen "should erase any idea that Parton's big persona is hiding anything less than one of music's greatest artists." And a columnist for Access Hollywood gushed about it here.

Gone Again Across The Pond
After coming back for a week, The Very Best Of Dolly Parton, Vol. 1, the hit foreign greatest hits CD from two years ago, this week falls back out of the top 100 Irish pop albums chart, down from No. 99 in its 93rd chart week there.

Miley Plans Dolly Party
Dolly's goddaughter Miley Cyrus told Ryan Seacrest Friday on his radio show that she's planning a Dolly-themed birthday blow-out next month for her 17th. According to People here, she plans to rent out a location, play just Dolly music and require all guests (including her crew members) to dress as Dolly in their favorite moment of her career.

Mich. Library Celebrated
The Bay City Times reported Friday on the local school district's celebration of its efforts on Dolly's Imagination Library, having raised $1.3 million and sent out 280,000 books in less than five years. Read more here.

Oct. 30:
Latest Chart Numbers
Steve Martin's The Crow - New Songs for the 5-String Banjo, featuring a Dolly guest spot, holds on at No. 2 in its 36th week on the bluegrass albums tally, Billboard's Nov. 7 charts revealed Thursday. Brad Paisley's Time Well Wasted, with Dolly on "When I Get Where I'm Going," dips three to No. 22 country catalog and falls out of the top 50 Canadian country albums chart, down from No. 50 the previous week. The Whip It film soundtrack, which includes Dolly's "Jolene," falls off the top 200 pop albums, down from No. 186 in its third week, and slips seven to No. 23 soundtracks for a fourth chart week. Tim McGraw's Southern Voice debuts at No. 1 country, No. 2 pop with 137,000 units sold in its first week, while Taylor Swift's Fearless slides one to No. 2 country and holds steady at No. 7 pop in its 50th chart week.

More Boxed Set Reviews
Critics continue to love on the new four-disc Dolly boxed set. A review from The Iowa City Press Citizen Thursday here called the collection "simply stunning," noting that Dolly's personality has overshadowed her talent so that "it's easy to overlook that the possessor of the genre's most angelic, distinctive vocal pipes also is flat-out one of the greatest singer/songwriters in American pop history." And music blog The 9513 gave the package four out of five stars here, noting that she's "always been ineffably Dolly: a one-woman genre," making a career retrospective quite an eclectic collection. The reviewer summed up that the set "feels like so much more than the sum of its parts, just as Parton's appeal and popularity transcend any one song, album, or trend. It's much more satisfying than it should be, due not to any curatorial control the producers exerted over the tracklist, sequencing, or packaging, but to Parton's sassily endearing and enduring persona, which can redeem even the weakest material. She shines through unmistakably on every note here." While supplies last, you may still order a copy of the set directly from the label in an exclusive promotion here to obtain a limited edition, not-available-in-stores re-issue of her first concert album, A Real Live Dolly, with two additional previously unreleased tracks.

Oct. 29:
Dolly On CW Beauty List
The annual Country's Most Beautiful Woman poll from Country Weekly magazine ranks Dolly this year at No. 7 of the genre's gorgeous gals. Dolly devotee Kellie Pickler was No. 1 for the second year in a row, followed by another star who based her career on Dolly's, Reba McEntire. Finishing in third through sixth places, respectively, were Carrie Underwood, Whitney Duncan, Shania Twain and Danielle Peck. Below Dolly in the No. 8-No 10 spots were Martina McBride, Faith Hill and Julianne Hough.

'Mama Dolly'?
Gossip writer Perez Hilton reported here Wednesday that the makers of the film version of musical Mama Mia want a sequel, but ABBA isn't authorizing any more of its songs to be used. His suggestion, make it a musical of the hits of Dolly or Donna Summer!

Oct. 28:
Dolly Heading To Montreal
Dolly will give a keynote address to the 2010 Rotary International Convention in Montreal, Canada, the service club announced here Tuesday. Dolly's speech will come as part of the event's June 23 morning plenary session, which will also feature an address from the CEO of Boy Scouts of America. She will discuss the importance of early childhood reading and how the Dollywood Foundation's collaboration with Rotary International has impacted her literacy program, the Imagination Library. The Library, which sends one age-appropriate, expert-selected book each month to any child birth to age 5 in more than 1,100 participating communities in the U.S., Canada and Great Britain, was selected as a Rotary International project earlier this year, with the organization officially encouraging all of its more than 10,000 Clubs in those three countries to support the program in their local communities. With more than 160 individual Rotary Clubs already supporting the program locally prior to that partnership, Dolly delivered a video-taped address to the international convention held in 2008.

'HYCA' Video Hits GAC
The first official music video from Nov. 10's Dolly: Live From London was released Tuesday: the clip for the album's first single, "Here You Come Again," premiered on Great American Country (GAC), which has added it to the network's televised video rotation. It is also viewable on the channel's website here. In related news, British newspaper The National Post is working on an interview with Dolly to promote the release of the CD and DVD combo, but her comments on Kanye West taking the microphone from Taylor Swift at the MTV Video Music Awards were good enough to warrant immediate release before the story itself. The quote, available here, is: "I wanted to kick his ass in between his shoulder blades. How dare you! She works so hard, but I admired the grace and style with which she handled that. I bet he just about felt awful about what he'd done. When he sobered up."

Boxed Sets Make Shelves
As was previously reported, Tuesday saw the retail release of the big four-CD Dolly boxed set as well as the three-CD Kenny Rogers: The First 50 Years boxed set and Kenny Rogers: The Greatest Duets individual CD, both of which feature the new Dolly duet "Tell Me That You Love Me." Dolly's set snagged a shinning review from Nebraska's Lincoln Journal Star here, which compared her songwriting skills to that of Kris Kristofferson. It praised the excellent song selection and noted it "is one of those rare box sets that enriches and deepens the understanding and appreciation of the artist rather than simply surveying a career. 'Dolly' is indisputable documentation that Parton is one of the finest American singersKenny Rogers: The Greatest Duets and songwriters of the past 50 years regardless of genre, a true indomitable icon who deserves that status." (The direct order system from the label still has some of the bonus discs of A Real Live Dolly available for those who purchase it from this exclusive link here!)

Mamie Loves Dolly
The new issue of Country Weekly magazine features an "I Love My Country" Q&A with film star Mamie Van Doren, who says she would love to record with Dolly on the new country album she is working on right now.

Oct. 27:
CMT Launches New Dolly Contest
CMT.com on Monday revealed a new "Holly Dolly Christmas" contest featuring a grand prize of five phone minutes with the lady herself. Entries will be accepted here through Dec. 13, with one winner to be selected for a five-minute call with Dolly, $2,500 shop.com shopping spree, Loveless Café deluxe breakfast gift basket and autographed copy of the Dolly: Live From London CD/DVD. A second prize winner gets a $1,000 shopping spree, Loveless Café sampler gift pack and autographed CD/DVD, while one third prize winner receives a $500 shopping spree, ham and jam gift pack from Loveless and autographed CD/DVD. There is a limit of one entry per person.

Amazon Provides 'London' Samples
Speaking of Dolly: Live From London, thanks to Nick for alerting me that Amazon.com has posted sound clips from all 15 tracks. Take a listen here!

Huff Loves Boxed Set
The four-disc Dolly boxed set hitting stores Tuesday found a fan in The Huffington Post, which opined here "producer Rob Santos--along with liner note writers Holly George-Warren and Laura Cantrell--trace the musical history almost seamlessly, treating this singer-songwriter-entertainer with a dignity that has long-eluded the country music legend . . . Dolly Parton's music deserves all our attention, from its pure country roots to its more sophisticated musings for the masses."

Oct. 26:
News From Carrie's Taping
Dolly sang three songs and performed in one skit in Friday's second day of taping for the upcoming Carrie Underwood FOX Christmas special, according to audience reports provided to fan blogs here and here. According to the reports, Dolly joined Underwood for a duet of "I Will Always Love You" in addition to solo performances of "Here You Come Again" and "I'll Be Home For Christmas." In addition, the pair filmed what was described as an "interview skit" in which both were "cracking jokes." Apparently for Dolly's holiday number, they had a snow machine directly above her and she was getting "drenched" with the white stuff, joking about it going down the front of her shirt. This reportedly prompted about three takes of her song before they moved the machine so that the snow fell behind her instead of on her. Another poster noted that Dolly "was a true superstar. Seasoned, warm, engaging. Great chemistry with Carrie . . . Flawless."Thanks, Chuck!

'Very Best' Back On Aussie List, Too
After dipping out of the top 20 for one week, the compilation collection The Very Best Of Dolly Parton, Vol. 1 re-enters the tally Down Under, coming in at No. 18 country in Australia for a 44th week on the chart, it was revealed this week.

'EW' Likes Boxed Set
The big day for the Dolly boxed set is almost here, with it hitting stores on Tuesday (although fans reported starting receiving it over the weekend for those who advance ordered it from the label directly here for the not-available-in-stores bonus disc of A Real Live Dolly on CD for the first time and with two previously unreleased additional tracks). Thanks to Solomon for alerting me that the collection made the Entertainment Weekly "Must Have" list this week, coming in at No. 7 with "For more than four decades, Dolly Parton has made toe-tapping music that's now smartly catalogued in this collection. From her early singles ('Dumb Blonde') to her dozens of hits ('9 To 5'), she never hits a false note."

Oct. 24:
Download N.Y. '77 Show
A classic Dolly concert is now available for downloading for the first time. Music site Wolfgang's Vault on Friday began allowing purchases of Dolly's May 14, 1977, engagement at New York's Bottom Line Club, which the site has had available for streaming online listening for about two years. The downloads of the 56-minute show here are $9.99 for MP3 and $12.98 for FLAC files.

'Very Best' Back In Ireland
After slipping away for a week, The Very Best Of Dolly Parton, Vol. 1, her smash overseas compilation CD from 2007, this week re-enters the top 100 Irish pop albums chart at No. 99 to register a 93rd week on the tally there.

Hear More Boxed Set Tracks
The big Dolly boxed set hits stores Tuesday, and CMT.com is previewing it by streaming 16 songs from it here. And remember that to get the exclusive not-available-in-stores re-issue of A Real Live Dolly as a free bonus disc, you must order the boxed set here!

Perez Wants Dolly In Vegas
Perez Hilton "would love" for Dolly to have a Vegas engagement like Cher or Bette Midler (or, soon to come, Garth Brooks). Learn what he says artists need to have to make it in Sin City from The Los Angeles Times here.

Put Some Rock In Your Country
FOX News ponders whether country music has become the "new rock 'n' roll" and the role some artists have played in that, including Dolly. Check it out here.

Oct. 23:
Leather-Clad Dolly Out On The Town

Dolly: Might Tour Late Next Year
Canada's Sun Media on Thursday released a nice little interview with Dolly on Thursday via its various newspapers. The story mostly did not contain any new information but reminded readers that Dolly never intends to retire, is still planning to try and put together a children's television show and series of children's CDs, continues to work on a musical of her life that might be on Broadway or might be a movie, and has recorded a dance CD she plans to eventually release. The only news that was not previously known was that she now says she will "probably" tour again toward the end of 2010. Read the full story from The Winnipeg Sun here.

Chenoweth Joins Underwood Show
Dolly fan and Broadway and TV star Kristen Chenoweth has been added to the line-up for the Carrie Underwood Christmas special in Hollywood that is filming this week, E! Online's Mark Malkin reported Thursday in his blog here. He also noted that Hairspray director Adam Shankman is helming the special and told him about Dolly: "I can't wait to get her on set. I'm so excited."

Praise For Boxed Set
The Nashville Scene this week brags on the four-disc boxed set Dolly, coming out next Tuesday. The reviewer says here that "The whole Parton picture—in all its brilliance and its occasional moments of corniness and misguided directions—comes into sharp focus on" the collection. Lamenting the absence of her most recent bluegrass recordings, he noted that it "does a good job" following her career through the mid-1990s, especially her "darker" material of the early 1970s that he says holds its own against the "street-level poetry of Tom T. Hall, Kris Kristofferson and Mickey Newberry." Remember that if you advance order the set directly from the label here you'll receive an exclusive fifth CD not available in stores, the first-ever CD re-issue of A Real Live Dolly (featuring two additional previously unreleased tracks).

Chart Updates
Steve Martin's The Crow - New Songs for the 5-String Banjo, with its Dolly collaboration, remains steady at No. 2 in its 35th week on the bluegrass albums chart, Billboard's Oct. 31 numbers released Thursday showed. Brad Paisley's Time Well Wasted, featuring Dolly on "When I Get Where I'm Going," loses four to No. 19 country catalog and one to No. 50 Canadian country albums. The Whip It film soundtrack, with Dolly's "Jolene," drops 42 to No. 186 pop and two to No. 16 soundtracks in its third chart week. Taylor Swift's Fearless recaptures the top spot on the country side, rising two in its 49th chart week, and shoots up 10 to No. 7 pop, while Toby Keith's American Ride loses one to No. 2 country and nine to No. 12 pop in its second week.

Oct. 22:
Boxed Set Hits Post Office
For those fans who advance ordered their Dolly boxed sets directly Sony Music via Skyroo, they began being shipped on Wednesday to ensure delivery by the collection's release date next Tuesday. You still have time to pre-order it directly from the label in an exclusive package here to receive a not-available-in-stores bonus CD of A Real Live Dolly featuring two previously unreleased tracks in addition to the boxed set's seven previously unreleased recordings.

Oct. 21:
NPR Plugs Dolly Boxed Set
National Public Radio is celebrating Dolly over the next seven days with her upcoming boxed set being selected for its "Exclusive First Listen" series, it was revealed Tuesday. The network's website posted complete streaming audio here of the seven previously unreleased recordings that are included in the Oct. 27 boxed set Dolly as well as offering several NPR staffers' favorite classic Dolly cuts along with written commentary on each. In a press release that the network sent to Dollymania.net, it was noted: "Each song is accompanied by anecdotes and reflections from NPR's resident Parton fans: Weekend Edition host Scott Simon tells why he thinks 'My Tennessee Mountain Home' is one of the great songs of all time, 'Monkey See' blogger Linda Holmes reveals how 'Islands in the Stream' helped the art of karaoke, arts reporter Neda Ulaby gives a portrait of 'Jolene' and NPR Music 's Frannie Kelley says 'Baby I'm Burnin'' is pure kick-up-your-heels joy." The streaming audio will remain available through the day of the boxed set's release, and American Songwriter magazine promoted the offering on its website here. (Don't forget that you may advance order the collection directly from the label here to receive an exclusive CD re-issue of A Real Live Dolly not available in stores and featuring two additional previously unreleased tracks.)

'9 To 5' Sees More Award Noms
Dolly's 9 to 5: The Musical snagged the second-most nominations this year for the L.A. Stage Alliance's Ovation Awards, it was announced Tuesday. The show, which played a preview run in Los Angeles late last year prior to its spring 2009 Broadway opening, received seven nods from the peer-voted awards (as opposed to other awards that are mostly critic-voted). Music and lyrics composer Dolly herself shares a nomination with book writer Patricia Resnick for Book/Lyrics/Music for an Original Musical, while two of the show's three leading ladies, Allison Janney and Megan Hilty, will vie for Lead Actress in a Musical. Other noms were for William Ivey Long for Costume Design, Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer for Lighting Design, Scott Pask for Scenic Design and John H. Shivers for Sound Design. Winners will be announced Jan. 11. A revival of Smokey Joe's Café had the most nominations, 10, while A Skull In Connemara tied Dolly's show at seven. Coverage is available from Playbill here, TheatreMania here and The Los Angeles Times here.

New Calendar Released
Thanks to the success of the unofficial Dolly calendar released in the U.K. last year, another one has landed for 2010. It's presently not available in the U.S. from Amazon.com, but you may check it out here and monitor to see if it becomes available anytime soon. A few copies remain at the store's British outlet here. Thanks, Gerard!

Oct. 20:
'Jolene' Footage Released

'Very Best' Also Gone In Ireland
After a whopping 92 weeks on the Irish top 100 pop albums chart, just a few weeks short of two years, the 2007 collection The Very Best Of Dolly Parton, Vol. 1 last week dropped off the tally, down from No. 80 the previous week, the updated charts released Monday revealed.

More Information On Teddy
Here's a little more information regarding services for Teddy Wayne Smith: The location of Hellier Missionary Baptist Church, where 7 p.m. visitation Tuesday and the 1 p.m. Wednesday funeral service will be held, is 8405 Marrowbone Creek Road in Hellier, Ky., which will accept flowers for the service. Anyone wishing to send cards or notes may address them to Teresa Smith, 1713 Bowling Fork Rd, Elkhorn City, KY 41522 or Katrina Little, P.O. Box 216, Hellier, KY 41534. And a friend of his passed along a video he made and posted about Teddy on YouTube here.

Oct. 19:
Underwood Tickets May Be Available
Information has been released regarding tickets for the Carrie Underwood FOX Christmas special on which Dolly will appear. The show will be taped in the CBS Studios in Studio City, Calif., Thursday and Friday. Tickets are being handled by On Camera Audiences, but which of the two days will feature Dolly has not been announced. Also, both filming days were full as of this weekend, but the site notes that it is possible that additional tickets could be released this week. Enter your information to get on the waiting list here.

Dolly Gone Down Under
The new Australian country top 20 albums chart this week reveals that The Very Best Of Dolly Parton, Vol. 1, the overseas greatest hits collection, has fallen off that tally, down from No. 19 the previous week, its 43rd on the chart since release two years ago.

Boxed Set Contest Winner Revealed
Congratulations to Darren Woods of Honea Path, S.C., for winning the free boxed set Dolly from Dollymania.net! For the several hundred who entered but did not win, you may still reserve your copy exclusively from the label itself here to receive the not-available-in-stores CD of A Real Live Dolly as a bonus fifth disc! Thanks to Sony Music for making the boxed set available for the contest!

In Memoriam: Teddy Wayne Smith
Many Dolly fans were mourning this weekend, as word spread that a friend they had made on the "Dolly trail" was gone. Teddy Wayne Smith, whom Dolly affectionately called "Big Wheels" thanks to his motorized wheelchair, passed away Saturday. Fans often saw him at various Dolly appearances, and he'd even follow her Pigeon Forge parade zipping through the parking lots and down sidewalks in his chair just as other fans run the length of the route. Visitation is scheduled Monday and Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Hellier Missionary Baptist Church in Hellier, Ky., with services at 1 p.m. Wednesday at the same church. Teddy was an accomplished artist and even an author, but his biggest inspiration came from Dolly. One of his final projects involved our mutual friends Diane and Mark Blount. They had met Dolly backstage at her fund-raising concert last year in Richmond, Ky., and Teddy recently created a sketch of the trio based on photos from the event (a very impressive time-lapse video blog of him creating the drawing is available here). When Diane and Mark attended a charity barbeque at Dolly's Tennessee Mountain Home last month, they presented her with the drawing to autograph. Diane tells me when they asked Dolly to take a photo of them with the drawing, they had written a sign for Mark to hold reading: "This is for you, Teddy! You know we love you!" But Dolly protested and said she would not only hold the drawing but the sign as well. "No, I'm holding both," she told them, "'cause this is for Teddy!" See them with the drawing here and her signing it here. Our thoughts and prayers go out for Teddy and to his loved ones at this difficult time. Image at left is of Teddy at Dolly's Nashville CD and book signing in June. Click on it for a larger view.

Oct. 17:
Last Chance To Enter For Boxed Set
It's is your final opportunity to enter your name for a chance to win a free copy of the upcoming Dolly boxed set from Sony Music and Dollymania.net. Entries, limited to one per e-mail address, will be accepted through 11:59 p.m. Eastern time Saturday night here. (And don't forget that if you want the exclusive bonus fifth disc – a re-issue of her 1970 concert album A Real Live Dolly not available in stores – you must order the boxed set from the label directly here!)

Oct. 16:
Martin Holds On To Position
Steve Martin's The Crow - New Songs for the 5-String Banjo, featuring Dolly, holds steady at No. 2 in its 34th week on the bluegrass albums chart, Billboard's Oct. 24 tallies revealed Thursday. Brad Paisley's Time Well Wasted, with Dolly on "When I Get Where I'm Going," inches up one to No. 15 country catalog and No. 49 Canadian country albums. The Whip It film soundtrack, which includes Dolly's "Jolene," slides 31 to No. 144 pop and holds steady at No. 14 soundtracks in its second chart week. Toby Keith's American Ride debuts at No. 1 country and No. 3 pop, while Luke Bryan's Doin' My Own Thing debuts at No. 2 country and No. 6 pop.

Lovin' Him Some Dolly
One New York Post writer is really, really fond of Dolly, naming her upcoming boxed set Dolly his first Christmas present request for this year. Check out his column from the paper here (and don't forget to reserve your copy of the collection direct from the label for a free exclusive CD re-issue of A Real Live Dolly here and try your hand at winning a free copy of the boxed set from Dollymania here!).

Oct. 15:
Urban Honors Dolly At HOF Concert
Dolly was not at Keith Urban's All for the Hall fund-raiser Tuesday night for the Country Music Hall of Fame in person, but the night's host made sure her influence was there in spirit. After performing a handful of his own hits, Urban said he wanted to give the audience an example of the music that made him want to move to Nashville, and the song he chose was Dolly's "Coat Of Many Colors," which CMT said here he performed as a "lovely, simple rendition."

Oct. 14:
Boxed Set Promotional Video Hits Web
Check out a new promotional video to advertise the Oct. 27 release of the four-CD Dolly boxed set here (it will take a minute to download once you access the page). The clip takes a video performance of Dolly's "9 To 5" and overlays it with some still photos and "pop-ups" of facts about her career and the collection, complete with a kissing noise each time a new tid-bit appears. Don't forget to reserve your copy of the set directly from the label here with its not-available-in-stores exclusive CD version of her 1970 concert album A Real Live Dolly and enter for your chance to win a free copy of the boxed set courtesy Sony Music and Dollymania.net here!

Oct. 13:
New Kenny & Dolly Cut Headed To Radio
A new Kenny & Dolly duet will soon head to radio and be available on two upcoming Kenny Rogers CDs. Time Life Records has announced that the collaboration, "Tell Me That You Love Me," will be sent to radio as a single and be promoted with "national TV appearances." The song will appear on the label's CD Kenny Rogers: The Greatest Duets, which also includes "Islands In The Stream" and "Real Love" and hits stores on Oct. 27. In addition, the album will be included in a boxed set coming out the same day titled Kenny Rogers: The First 50 Years. That collection adds four more songs to the "Duets" disc plus features two additional discs of Rogers' greatest hits ("Story Songs" and "Love Songs") with two additional new recordings: the solo tracks "Goodbye" on the "Story Songs" disc and "Natural Thing To Do" on the "Love Songs" disc. Only the "duets" disc, featuring all three Dolly collaborations, is being released both in the boxed set and as an abbreviated separate CD. Get it as part of the boxed set here or the single disc version here. If the release date sounds familiar, it's because that's the same day that the four-disc Dolly boxed set comes out, which you must order direct from the label exclusively here to get the limited edition A Real Live Dolly CD re-issue not available in stores. (And remember to enter here for a free copy of the boxed set from Sony Music and Dollymania.net! Several hundred entries were received in the first 24 hours, and you have until Saturday night to get yours in!)

Dolly To Join Underwood Holiday Special
Dolly will be celebrating the holidays with American Idol alum Carrie Underwood, it was announced Monday. She is among the first guests revealed for Carrie Underwood: An All-Star Holiday Special, premiering on FOX at 8 p.m. Eastern Dec. 7 with a Dec. 22 repeat, according to The Futon Critic here. Other guests will include Brad Paisley and David Cook, with additional performers for the two-hour special to be announced later. The Hollywood Reporter confirmed the story as well later Monday night here.

Dolly Fetes Fred Foster
She wasn't there in person, but Dolly sent a video message to honor the man who signed her to her first long-term songwriting contract, approved her first multi-single recording contract and produced her first full-length album, former Monument owner Fred Foster. "I'm sorry I can't be there in person," The Tennessean reported here that she said, "but it's your own (darn) fault: you made me famous." Foster, who helmed Dolly's career from her signing to his label in 1965 until she left for RCA in late 1967 after joining Porter Wagoner's television program earlier that year, was being inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame in Nashville Monday night alongside Chet Atkins, Charlie Daniels and others.

More On Louisiana Library
New Orleans newspaper The Times-Picayune on Monday profiled Dolly's Imagination Library expansion into Tammany Parish with a piece here.

Oct. 12:
Win Upcoming Boxed Set From 'Dollymania'
Thanks to Sony Music's RCA Nashville and Legacy imprints, Dollymania is pleased to offer its readers an opportunity to win one free copy of the Dolly boxed set that hits stores Oct. 27. As a reminder, this 99-song collection covers the first three-and-a-half decades of her more than five-decade-long career from her first single on the Goldband label to her Mercury single as a teen-ager to her success on Monument, RCA and Columbia Records including seven previously-unreleased tracks (one from Mercury, one demo from her Monument period, one Monument recording and four from RCA). Unfortunately, the contest copy is just the four-CD boxed set itself and not the limited edition release of A Real Live Dolly, her 1970 concert album that is being offered to those who advance order the collection from the label itself exclusively here. You'll still have to reserve the set from Sony/Legacy to get the classic album as a bonus not available in stores. But for the boxed set itself, one lucky reader will win a copy absolutely free! You'll have until the end of the week to send in your entries here. Limit one entry per e-mail address. The winner will be revealed in next Sunday night's update!

Dolly Steady Down Under
The 2007 compilation album The Very Best Of Dolly Parton, Vol. 1 holds steady at No. 19 in its 43rd week on the Australian country top 20 albums, this week's charts confirmed.

Oct. 10:
Moving Up Across The Pond
The Very Best Of Dolly Parton, Vol. 1, the hit overseas compilation disc from two years ago, regains 11 places to No. 80 in its 92nd week on the top 100 Irish pop albums chart, according to the list released Friday.

Oct. 9:
Martin Moves Up On Chart
The Crow - New Songs for the 5-String Banjo by Steve Martin, with its Dolly guest appearance, regains one spot to No. 2 in its 33rd week on the bluegrass albums chart, Billboard's Oct. 17 numbers released Thursday revealed. Brad Paisley's Time Well Wasted, featuring Dolly on "When I Get Where I'm Going," dips seven to No. 16 country catalog. Miranda Lambert's Revolution debuts at No. 1 country and No. 8 pop with 66,000 copies sold in its first week, while Taylor Swift's Fearless slips one to No. 2 country and six to No. 19 pop in its 47th chart week.

Boxed Set Gets Coverage
The songwriting focus of the upcoming Dolly boxed set got a mention this week from American Songwriter (thanks to a press release the label issued about that function of the collection). Check it out here, and remember that if you order the label-direct version of the four-CD set online you'll also receive a limited-edition exclusive free CD of A Real Live Dolly not available in stores. Reserve your copy here for the Oct. 27 release!

Louisiana Library Lauded
The Baton Rouge Advocate praised Dolly's Imagination Library literacy program with an editorial Thursday. Check it out here.

Oct. 7:
'London' Has Another Pic
Dolly: Live From London has new cover art that was released Tuesday. Check out a larger version of the image here. The two-disc DVD and CD combo captures 15 of the 22 songs she performed each evening in last year's sold-out, two-night engagement at London's O2 Arena as part of the European leg of her Backwoods Barbie Tour. A brief about the collection, courtesy the Associated Press, is available here. The set hits stores Nov. 10 – get yours here!

Great Shot Found
Speaking of London, thanks to Ron Harmon with Jeannie Seely's website for sending along a photo recently posted here on her site showing Dolly, Jack Greene and LaWayne Satterfield wondering "Just how LONG is this gonna take her???" while Jeannie was on the telephone for a radio interview at the city's Wembley Arena. Click on the shot for a larger view.

Couple Of Library Notes
Anderson County, S.C., is getting Dolly's Imagination Library literacy program by the end of this month, The Anderson Independent Mail reported here Tuesday. Also, The St. Louis Post-Dispatch noted here the program's expansion to Troy, Mo.

Oct. 6:
Reserve 'Live From London'
Amazon.com on Monday added the order page to reserve your very own copy of the concert DVD and CD set Dolly: Live From London for its Nov. 10 release. Reserve yours here!

Oct. 5:
Sliding Down Under
Sony's 2007 compilation CD, The Very Best Of Dolly Parton, Vol. 1, loses six points this week to No. 19 in its 42nd week on the Australian country top 20 albums, this week's charts revealed.

Oct. 3:
Dolly Drops On Irish Tally
Dolly's 2007 overseas compilation, The Very Best Of Dolly Parton, Vol. 1, loses another dozen spots this week to come in at No. 91 in its 91st week on the top 100 Irish pop albums chart, according to the list released Friday.

Library News
The announcement that Dolly's Imagination Library literacy program is being adopted in Louisiana by the United Way of Acadiana made The Advertiser in Lafayette here Friday and Baton Rouge's The Advocate here. In related news, KFYR-TV this week saluted the Missouri Slope Areawide United Way for its chapter of the project. Read more about that here.

Oct. 2:
Little Movement On The Charts
Steve Martin's The Crow - New Songs for the 5-String Banjo, featuring Dolly on one song, holds steady at No. 3 in its 32nd week on the bluegrass albums chart, Billboard's Oct. 10 tallies showed on Thursday. Brad Paisley's Time Well Wasted, with Dolly duetting on "When I Get Where I'm Going," inches down one to No. 9 country catalog and up one to No. 49 Canadian country. Taylor Swift's Fearless remains steady at No. 1 country and slips five to No. 13 pop in its 46th chart week, while The Zac Brown Band's The Foundation holds on at No. 2 country and falls five to No. 18 pop in its 45th week.

Missouri Library Expands
Dolly's Imagination Library literacy program is expanding into Lincoln County, Mo., thanks to the United Way of Greater St. Louis and the Troy School District, The St. Louis Post Dispatch reported here Thursday. The program, active in more than 1,100 communities across the U.S., Canada and U.K., provides one free, age-appropriate, expert-selected book every month from birth to age 5 for any child whose parents register in a participating community.

Oct. 1:
It's Harvest Time At Dollywood
For some good old fashioned gospel music, be sure to head down to Dollywood for the National Gospel and Harvest Celebration, which kicks off Friday. Performers include Mike and Kelly Bowling this weekend, Legacy Five Oct. 11-12, The Kingsmen Oct. 16-17, and The Isaacs Oct. 25-26, among many others. The event also features special crafters such as woodturning, spinning, dyeing, basket weaving, wool rug hooking, papermaking and more. The annual woodcarving competition takes place this weekend, and special seasonal food also returns. The festival continues through Oct. 31.

The Song Remains
Songwriter Jerry Chestnut was recently telling some stories of his songs, according to CMT.com here, including how the strong sales figures of Porter & Dolly's duet of his "Holdin' On To Nothin'" convinced then-label head Chet Atkins that she had developed a fan base of her own.