Comments on: Retro Single Review: Dolly Parton, “In the Ghetto”

By: Paul Dennis

Paul Dennis — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 09:13:13 +0000

I think a ‘D’ is a bit harsh – it’s not as bad as her recording of “Imagine” (a song I’ve never liked regardless of who recorded it, be it John Lennon, Andy Williams, Dolly Parton or any of the countless other recordings I’ve heard). I’d give it a ‘C’ but she clearly is out of her element here

I agree that Elvis cemented this one, but the writer Mac Davis, also did a pretty good job with the song

By: Erik North

Erik North — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 23:11:20 +0000

Realistically, I thought Dolly meant well by recording the song; and her rendition of it, while maybe not one of her better ones, is, in my view, better than what we might have gotten from today’s contemporary country artists.

The problem is fairly basic: Elvis cemented it in stone; and as such, it is very hard (if not impossible) to top the King when he stretches his abilities to the limit, like he did on “In The Ghetto.”

By: J.R. Journey

J.R. Journey — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 19:11:42 +0000

Ha. I have the South Park version (Elvis’s too) on my iPod. I’d compare this with her recording of “Imagine” as well. And I think you hit it right that the lack of resonance stems mostly from it being foreign subject matter to Dolly. I don’t think her voice suits the lyrics here either.