The Best of Porter Wagoner & Dolly Parton is a compilation album by Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton. It was released on July 19, 1971, by RCA Victor.[1] The album contains tracks from each of their collaboration albums released up to that point, with the exception of 1969's Always, Always. The album included one previously unreleased track, the Grammy-nominated single, "Better Move It on Home".
| The Best of Porter Wagoner & Dolly Parton | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Compilation album by | ||||
| Released | July 19, 1971 | |||
| Recorded | October 11, 1967–December 14, 1970 | |||
| Studio | RCA Studio B (Nashville) | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 24:19 | |||
| Label | RCA Victor | |||
| Producer | Bob Ferguson | |||
| Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton chronology | ||||
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| Dolly Parton chronology | ||||
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| Singles from The Best of Porter Wagoner & Dolly Parton | ||||
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Critical reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [2] |
| Christgau's Record Guide | B[3] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [4] |
The review in the July 31, 1971 issue of Billboard said, "This collection of the best performances by Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton is sure to prove a blockbuster programming and sales item. Their top treatments of "Daddy Was an Old Time Preacher Man", "The Pain of Loving You", "The Last Thing on My Mind", and "Just Someone I Used to Know" are standouts."[5]
Cashbox published a review in the July 24, 1971 issue which said, "One whole lot of sales power in this album from a duo that consistently hits the charts together and apart. The most recent hit here included is "Better Move It on Home" while other titles will be equally familiar to their large following: "Just Someone I Used to Know", "The Pain of Loving You", and "Holding on to Nothin'" just to mention a few. A musical marriage made in country heaven."[6]
Reviewing in Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies, Robert Christgau wrote: "There are real pleasures here, but they're chiefly vocal. The surprises are few, the jokes weak and infrequent, the sentimentality overripe ("Jeanie's Afraid of the Dark", yeucch), and the best song's by Paxton, nor Parton. In short, a lousy ad for couple-bonding, though whether Porter is repressing Dolly or Dolly holding out on Porter I wouldn't know."[3]
Commercial performance
editThe album peaked at No. 7 on the US Billboard Hot Country LP's chart.
The album's single, "Better Move It on Home", was released in January 1971[7] and peaked at No. 7 on the US Billboard Hot Country Singles chart and No. 8 in Canada on the RPM Country Singles chart.
Accolades
editThe album's single, "Better Move It on Home", was nominated for Best Country Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group at the 14th Annual Grammy Awards.[8]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recording date | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Just Someone I Used to Know" | Jack Clement | April 21, 1969 | 2:21 |
| 2. | "Daddy Was an Old Time Preacher Man" |
| April 21, 1970 | 2:57 |
| 3. | "Tomorrow Is Forever" | Parton | December 2, 1969 | 2:45 |
| 4. | "Jeannie's Afraid of the Dark" | Parton | May 21, 1969 | 2:44 |
| 5. | "The Last Thing on My Mind" | Tom Paxton | October 11, 1967 | 2:34 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recording date | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Pain of Loving You" |
| December 14, 1970 | 2:05 |
| 2. | "Better Move It on Home" | Ray Griff | December 14, 1970 | 2:14 |
| 3. | "Holding On to Nothin'" | Jerry Chesnut | January 31, 1968 | 2:26 |
| 4. | "Run That by Me One More Time" | Parton | December 3, 1969 | 2:18 |
| 5. | "We'll Get Ahead Someday" | Mack Magaha | May 22, 1968 | 1:55 |
Personnel
editAdapted from the album liner notes.[1]
- Bob Ferguson – producer
- Les Leverett – cover photo
- Jim Malloy – recording engineer
- Al Pachucki – recording engineer
- Chuck Seitz – recording engineer
- Roy Shockley – recording technician
- Paul W. Soelberg – liner notes
Charts
editAlbum
| Chart (1971) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Hot Country LP's (Billboard)[9] | 7 |
Singles
| Title | Year | Peak position | |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Country [10] |
CAN Country [11] | ||
| "Better Move It on Home" | 1971 | 7 | 8 |
Release history
edit| Region | Date | Format | Label | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Various | July 19, 1971 | RCA Victor | [1] |
References
edit- ^ a b c "Porter Wagoner And Dolly Parton - The Best Of Porter Wagoner & Dolly Parton". Discogs. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
- ^ The Best of Porter Wagoner & Dolly Parton at AllMusic
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: W". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 21, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
- ^ Colin Larkin (2006). "Parton, Dolly". The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 6 (4th ed.). Muze, Oxford University Press. p. 435–6. ISBN 978-0-19-531373-4.
- ^ "Billboard - July 31, 1971" (PDF). American Radio History. Billboard. p. 49. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
- ^ "Cashbox - July 24, 1971" (PDF). American Radio History. Cashbox. p. 37. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
- ^ "Billboard - February 6, 1971" (PDF). American Radio History. Billboard. p. 74. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
- ^ "Dolly Parton". GRAMMY.com. 15 February 2019. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
- ^ "Dolly Parton Chart History - Top Country Albums". Billboard. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
- ^ "Dolly Parton Chart History - Hot Country Songs". Billboard. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
- ^ Canada, Library and Archives (17 July 2013). "Results: RPM Weekly". www.bac-lac.gc.ca. Retrieved 20 April 2019.