OMG Dolly.

Isn’t she great?

I first went to Dollywood back in 2001. I was touring through Knoxville with Phantom and a fellow cast member was her lead dancer for five years. On our day off he took me over and comped me into the park. Built in-and-among the Smokey Mountains, a big super-sized roller coaster park it is not, although it does have a couple of respectable coasters. (Formerly called “Silver Dollar City,” Dolly bought the property back in 1986.) It has more of a village-vibe to it, employing many local craftsmen who sell their native wares. Stroll through the Dolly museum while snacking on some fresh fried green tomatoes.

I returned to the park in 2004, bringing along my boyfriend at the time, for the second annual GayDay Celebration. The park didn’t endorse the privately-organized event, nor would it allow it’s brand to be affiliated with it. We heard rumors that the KKK would be there with us, and driving to the park that day we passed protesters holding signs in front of the Burger King. There wasn’t a lot of fuss though, as we didn’t see a terribly large presence in the park.

Nor did we see Dolly herself. She only makes the rare appearance there a couple times/year, to open the park or perhaps a July 4 concert. No, it wasn’t until a couple years later when she began touring with her Live and Well album that I was able to catch her at the 9:30 Club. OMG. She only sang for an hour or so, but I was beside myself. Let me tell ya, that bitch can still wail out a tune. And play! I don’t think there’s a stringed instrument made that she can’t handle. Rumor has it that her promoters weren’t able to book her into the larger venues, but she made up for that the following year with a much larger, splashier, Cher-like production, for which I travelled up to the more spacious NJ Meadowlands . OMG. For a solid two hours she flounced around the stage in a white spandex be-dazzled catsuit, casting her old standards into medley form so she could make room for her new stuff: Covers, acoustics, and duets. She told of her own Mother’s passing a few short months prior, just before rendering “Coat of Many Colors” accompanied by only her auto harp. Tears, y’all. And then in 2005 I caught her next tour in DC at DAR Hall, promoting her latest album of 60’s covers. Absolutely genius.

I don’t know. I could go on and on. In the clip below, A 32-year old Dolly tells us about marriage, wigs and grocery shopping.