Upon receiving a nomination to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2022,
Dolly Parton
demurred, claiming that she wasn't rock & roll. The Rock Hall wound up inducting her, and she accepted the honor, deciding to deliver her first full-fledged rock album in return. Hence,
Rockstar
-- a star-studded double album where
Dolly
attempts every sound under the rock & roll sun.
Parton
splits her time covering (very) familiar classic rock tunes and writing made-to-order originals, only occasionally shutting the studio door so she can sing on her own. The combination of overblown renditions of songs you know by heart and cuts that feel as if they were tailored for album rock radio in 1990 does have some charms, especially because
embraces the goofiness of the entire project: the album opens with a sketch of
"shredding" on guitar, as if it was a dangerous thing to do in 2023. Occasionally the cornball patter can be a bit much, especially on "What Has Rock and Roll Ever Done for You," an otherwise amiable rocker bookended with
Stevie Nicks
and
exchanging canned barbs, but the silliness is preferable to playing it straight; the po-faced preaching of "What's Up?" falls flat.
proves to be a generous host at her party, yucking it up with both
Ronnie McDowell
Rob Halford
and crooning sweetly with
Peter Frampton
Chris Stapleton
alike; she even deigns to spend some time with
Kid Rock
. By the time
reaches "Free Bird," the party has been rolling on for two hours and is starting to feel a little tired -- it doesn't help that
is duetting with the ghost of
Ronnie Van Zant
, either -- but that doesn't erase the good spirits created by the rest of the record. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine