The Fairest of Them All (album)

1970 studio album by Dolly Parton

The Fairest of Them All

Studio album by

Dolly Parton

Released| February 2, 1970
Recorded| September 10, 1968–October 31, 1969
Studio| RCA Studio B (Nashville)
Genre| Country
Length| 27:50
Label| RCA Victor
Producer| Bob Ferguson
Dolly Parton chronology
| My Blue Ridge Mountain Boy
(1969)  | The Fairest of Them All
(1970)  | Porter Wayne and Dolly Rebecca
(1970)

|
|

Singles from  The Fairest of Them All

1. "Daddy Come and Get Me"
Released: December 8, 1969

The Fairest of Them All is the fifth solo studio album by American singer-songwriter Dolly Parton. It was released on February 2, 1970, by RCA Victor. The album was produced by Bob Ferguson. It was the first of Parton's albums on which she wrote the majority of the songs without a co-writer. The Fairest of Them All peaked at number 13 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart. The album's only single, "Daddy Come and Get Me", peaked at number 40 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.

## Recording

[edit]

Recording sessions for the album began on September 4, 1969, at RCA Studio B in Nashville, Tennessee. Two additional sessions followed on October 30 and 31. "I'm Doing This for Your Sake" was recorded during the September 10, 1968 session for 1969's In the Good Old Days (When Times Were Bad). "Mammie" and "But You Loved Me Then" were recorded during sessions for 1969's My Blue Ridge Mountain Boy, on May 13 and 21, 1969, respectively.

## Content

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Included is "Down from Dover", a song about the misfortune of a pregnant unwed girl, who waits in vain for the baby's father while being shunned by her parents. The song was controversial for the times and Parton has stated in recent interviews that mentor (and uncredited producer) Porter Wagoner told her that she'd never get played on the radio with story songs like that.

Two other story songs, "Robert" and "Daddy Come and Get Me", are distinctive for their themes. The former tells the story of a boy infatuated with a girl, not knowing that they are brother and sister. The story is a true story based on Parton's life, her father had at least one child with another woman. The latter is a haunting tale, co-written with Dorothy Jo Hope, Parton's aunt, about a woman begging her father to release her from the mental institution that her cheating husband placed her in.

The liner notes for the album were written by Parton’s assistant, friend and confidante, Judy Ogle.

In a CMT interview with Patty Loveless, Parton joked that it was about the funniest album cover she had ever made, with the largest collar she could find. She said she was trying to look like a fairytale character. The cover photo was taken by Bill Goodman, a photographer for the Nashville Banner.

Parton re-recorded "Down from Dover" for her 2001 album Little Sparrow with an additional verse that was cut from the original.

## Release and promotion

[edit]

The album was released February 2, 1970, on LP.

### Singles

[edit]

The album's only single, "Daddy Come and Get Me", was released in December 1969[1] and debuted at number 67 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart dated January 21, 1970. It peaked at number 40 on the chart dated March 7, its sixth week on the chart. It charted for eight weeks. The single also peaked at number 31 in Canada on the RPM Country Singles chart.

## Critical reception

[edit]

Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
AllMusic| [2]

Billboard's review of the album in the February 14, 1970 issue said, "A very strong album in more ways than one. "Daddy Come and Get Me" is in the traditional jilted love vein, then "Down from Dover" follows. The "Dover" tune is very beautiful and well produced, but the theme is perhaps a little too strong for airplay, even in this day of enlightenment. "Just the Way I Am" is beautiful and not so strong. Dolly Parton is sensational, as usual."[3]

Cashbox published a review in the issue dated February 7, 1970, which said, "Many of Dolly Parton’s male fans will agree that she is "The Fairest of Them All", and all her fans will agree that vocally, she's one of country music's brightest young stars. Teeing off this set with her current single, Dolly goes on to sing a host of strong tunes, most of which are her own compositions. Should be a nice chart spot on tap for this package. Watch it closely for action."[4]

Stephen Thomas Erlewine gave the album 4.5 out of 5 stars in a review for AllMusic. He noted that while the album "lacks any of Dolly Parton’s early masterpieces...it’s one of her strongest early LPs."[2]

## Commercial performance

[edit]

The album debuted at number 38 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart dated March 14, 1970. It peaked at number 13 on the chart dated May 9, its ninth week on the chart. The album charted for 17 weeks.

## Reissues

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The album was reissued on CD in 2010 with Parton's 1972 album My Favorite Songwriter, Porter Wagoner. It was released as a digital download on January 11, 2011.

## Track listing

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All tracks written by Dolly Parton, except where noted.

Side oneNo.| Title| Writer(s)| Recording date| Length

|
|
|
|

1.| "Daddy Come and Get Me"|

* Parton
* Dorothy Jo Hope

| October 31, 1969| 3:01
2.| "Chas"|  | October 30, 1969| 2:24
3.| "When Possession Gets Too Strong"|

* Parton
* Louis Owens

| October 31, 1969| 2:04
4.| "Before You Make Up Your Mind"| Bill Owens| October 31, 1969| 2:10
5.| "I'm Doing This for Your Sake"|  | September 10, 1968| 2:11
6.| "But You Loved Me Then"|  | May 21, 1969| 1:52

Side twoNo.| Title| Recording date| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Just the Way I Am"| October 31, 1969| 2:28
2.| "More Than Their Share"| October 31, 1969| 2:20
3.| "Mammie"| May 13, 1969| 3:11
4.| "Down from Dover"| September 4, 1969| 3:46
5.| "Robert"| September 4, 1969| 2:39

## Personnel

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Adapted from the album liner notes and RCA recording session records.

* Joseph Babcock – background vocals
* Jerry Carrigan – drums
* Dolores Edgin – background vocals
* Bob Ferguson – producer
* Bill Goodman – cover photo
* Lloyd Green – pedal steel
* Milton Henderson – recording technician
* Junior Huskey – bass
* Mack Magaha – fiddle
* George McCormick – rhythm guitar
* Wayne Moss – guitar
* Judy H. Ogle – liner notes
* Al Pachucki – recording engineer
* June Page – background vocals
* Dolly Parton – lead vocals
* Hargus Robbins – piano
* Roy Shockley – recording technician
* Jerry Stembridge – guitar
* Buck Trent – electric banjo

## Charts

[edit]

Chart performance for The Fairest of Them All Chart (1970)  | Peak
position

|

US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[5] | 13
US Cashbox Country Albums[6] | 13

## Release history

[edit]

Release dates and formats for The Fairest of Them All Region  | Date  | Format  | Title  | Label  | Ref.

|
|
|
|
|

Various  | February 2, 1970  | LP | The Fairest of Them All | RCA Victor | [7]
United States  | August 17, 2010  | CD | The Fairest of Them All / My Favorite Songwriter, Porter Wagoner | Omni  | [8]
Various  | January 11, 2011  | Digital download | The Fairest of Them All |

* Sony
* Legacy

| [9]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Sporlight Singles" (PDF). World Radio History. Billboard. December 20, 1969. p. 76. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
2. ^ a b The Fairest of Them All at AllMusic
3. ^ "Album Reviews" (PDF). World Radio History. Billboard. February 14, 1970. p. 62. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
4. ^ "Country LP Reviews" (PDF). World Radio History. Cashbox. February 7, 1970. p. 52. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
5. ^ "Dolly Parton Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard.
6. ^ "Cash Box Country Albums" (PDF). Cashbox. Retrieved December 23, 2024.
7. ^ "Dolly Parton - The Fairest Of Them All". Discogs. 1970. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
8. ^ "Dolly Parton - The Fairest Of Them All/My Favorite Songwriter, Porter Wagoner". Discogs. Retrieved May 25, 2019.
9. ^ "The Fairest Of Them All by Dolly Parton on Amazon Music - Amazon.com". www.amazon.com. Retrieved May 25, 2019.

* v
* t
* e

Dolly Parton

* Albums
* Singles
* Songs
* Compilation albums
* Album appearances
* Filmography
* Awards and nominations

Studio albums|

| 1960s|

* Hello, I'm Dolly
* Just Because I'm a Woman
* In the Good Old Days (When Times Were Bad)
* My Blue Ridge Mountain Boy

|

1970s|

* The Fairest of Them All
* The Golden Streets of Glory
* Joshua
* Coat of Many Colors
* Touch Your Woman
* My Favorite Songwriter, Porter Wagoner
* My Tennessee Mountain Home
* Bubbling Over
* Jolene
* Love Is Like a Butterfly
* The Bargain Store
* Dolly
* All I Can Do
* New Harvest...First Gathering
* Here You Come Again
* Heartbreaker
* Great Balls of Fire

|

1980s|

* Dolly, Dolly, Dolly
* 9 to 5 and Odd Jobs
* Heartbreak Express
* Burlap & Satin
* The Great Pretender
* Once Upon a Christmas
* Real Love
* Trio
* Rainbow
* White Limozeen

|

1990s|

* Home for Christmas
* Eagle When She Flies
* Slow Dancing with the Moon
* Honky Tonk Angels
* Something Special
* Treasures
* Hungry Again
* Trio II
* Precious Memories
* The Grass Is Blue

|

2000s|

* Little Sparrow
* Halos & Horns
* For God and Country
* Those Were the Days
* Backwoods Barbie

|

2010s|

* Better Day
* Blue Smoke
* Pure & Simple
* I Believe in You

|

2020s|

* A Holly Dolly Christmas
* Run, Rose, Run
* Rockstar

|

Live albums|

* A Real Live Dolly
* Heartsongs: Live from Home
* Live and Well

Soundtrack albums|

* 9 to 5
* The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas
* Rhinestone
* Straight Talk
* Joyful Noise
* Dumplin'

Compilation albums|

* Hits Made Famous by Country Queens
* As Long as I Love
* The Best of Dolly Parton
* Just the Way I Am
* Mine
* Best of Dolly Parton
* Greatest Hits
* The Winning Hand
* Collector's Series
* Think About Love
* The Best There Is
* Best of Dolly Parton, Vol. 3
* I Will Always Love You and Other Greatest Hits
* Ultimate Dolly Parton
* The Essential Dolly Parton
* The Very Best of Dolly Parton
* Playlist: The Very Best of Dolly Parton
* Diamonds & Rhinestones: The Greatest Hits Collection

Film and TV|

* Dolly (1976)
* Dolly (1987)
* Dolly & Carol in Nashville
* Hollywood to Dollywood
* The Book Lady
* For the Love of Dolly
* Coat of Many Colors
* Christmas of Many Colors: Circle of Love
* Dolly Parton's Heartstrings
* Christmas on the Square

Tours|

* Halos & Horns Tour
* Hello, I'm Dolly Tour
* The Vintage Tour
* An Evening with Dolly Parton
* Backwoods Barbie Tour
* Better Day World Tour
* Blue Smoke World Tour
* Pure & Simple Tour

Theme parks|

* Dollywood
* Dollywood's Splash Country

Related articles|

* Stella Parton
* Rachel Parton George
* Dollywood Foundation
* Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton discography
* Dolly Parton's America
* Mural of Dolly Parton and RuPaul

* Category

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

|

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