Dolly Parton’s “Pure & Simple” Is Her First #1 Album in 25 Years
Once again when a country legend releases an album, fans rise to the occasion and support the artist to a greater degree than their contemporary counterparts. And for Dolly Parton, those additional sales earn her a distinction she hasn’t seen in a quarter of a century.
Parton’s latest record Pure & Simple—released in a partnership with Dolly Records and RCA Nashville—has debuted at the top of Billboard’s Country Albums chart this week, making it the first time Dolly has hit #1 since her record Eagle When She Flies in May of 1991, and the first time in the SoundScan era. Pure & Simple sold approximately 20,000 copies to earn the distinction.
Dolly, who wrote all the songs and co-produced the record said upon the news, “Boy, it’s a good day for me. I am a happy girl! It feels great to be #1 as it’s been a long time and it feels so good to still be in the game after all this time.”
Pure & Simple also shows up on Billboard’s all genre chart at #11. And showing Dolly’s international appeal, she comes in at a surprising #2 position all genre in the U.K., only behind Frank Ocean’s surprise release. She also hits #1 in country in Canada, the U.K., and Australia.
The Pure & Simple album coincides with Dolly Parton’s current Pure & Simple tour. Parton’s tour is one of the most extensive tours she has been on in many years, including dates in Canada where she hadn’t toured in 25 years. She explained the premise of the album and tour in a press conference back in March.
“I don’t know how pure I am but I’m pretty simple,” Dolly said laughing. “The reason I’m calling it that is because actually I’ve stripped down my show quite a bit to where we don’t have a lot of electric instruments, we don’t have a lot of videos … But I’m doing a lot of songs that’s really scaled down, and not a lot of music. Of course, I do a lot of talking. What else would I do, right?
Kevin Smith
August 30, 2016 @ 8:59 am
Take that country radio!!!! Up yours!!!! You go Dolly…showing these whipper snappers how real country music is made. The people have spoken!
HayesCarll2323
August 30, 2016 @ 10:30 am
Very Cool! Love it!
dave
August 30, 2016 @ 10:35 am
What a sad day for artists and record labels when 20,000 copies will secure a number one album in the billboard charts, No wonder why artists don’t put out a new album every year or 2 anymore Dolly will be lucky to recoup the cost of the album at this rate
seak05
August 30, 2016 @ 11:05 am
it was a weak week for country releases, but still happy for Dolly. The money is in the tour, that’s become the industry norm.
dave
August 30, 2016 @ 11:26 am
Your correct seak05 especially nowadays the money is from the tour…… Makes me wonder why a established veteran artists like Dolly or Hank Williams Jr. and several others would even waste there time recording and releasing a new album when there is basically no money to be made off of it and radio is not going to touch it, they could do a tour and sell out weather or not they have a new album or not.
luckyoldsun
August 30, 2016 @ 11:50 am
That’s ridiculous.
It’s the new album that gets her media attention, gets her invited on the Today Show, Stephen Colbert, etc., and creates a buzz for a tour.
What makes you think it’s so easy for Dolly to sell out on a big tour?
dave
August 30, 2016 @ 12:39 pm
Your ridiculous, all the media attention didn’t make the album sales go through the roof….. I’m not gonna get in a big pissing contest with you but I will tell you this I work part time on the Hank Jr. merchandise crew on the road and it don’t matter weather he has a new album out or not the shows are always sold out or a near sellout, I cant imagine dolly parton being any different once you accomplish what people like that have in there careers they have what you call name recognition and the people show up when they come to town
Jen
August 30, 2016 @ 3:08 pm
If you haven’t toured in over 25 years, and you don’t release an album, you might not make as much. Besides, she’s number 1 in at least 3 countries! I don’t know if the rules are the same in the other countries, as here, but that makes at least 60,000 records sold. Hank Jr probably has been touring a while, but if he releases a critically acclaimed record, chances are he would sell far better. Much as I would love to see all my favs in concert, I have chosen not to go to any, because I can’t afford to waste that kind of money again. After nearly $1,000 to see Brothers of the Sun, I left before Kenny even came onstage, because the sound was terriblebecause whomever set it up had the bass way too loud, and the refreshments cost too damned much! Don’t get me started on the drunken fans. It’s not a good thing when you see people being carted off on stretchers!
seak05
August 30, 2016 @ 12:46 pm
Making music is what they’ve done all their lives, and it’s what they enjoy doing. They probably also enjoy playing some new songs. And frankly albums aren’t that expensive to make nowadays.
Also it’s easier for someone like Hank Jr,. who has been regularly touring. If an act hasn’t toured in a while it’s nice to drum up publicity so that people who are fans, but not super fans, know you’re going out on tour.
dave
August 30, 2016 @ 1:14 pm
Good point……. I sometimes get off topic I hope dollys new album and tour goes good she is one of the all time greats! All was saying in my original post is that album sales today are terrible compared to before the internet… people used to actually go to a music store and buy the album, nobody sells like albums like the old days not even the top mainstream artists of today, multi-platinum is pretty much extinct
albert
August 30, 2016 @ 1:28 pm
“What a sad day for artists and record labels when 20,000 copies will secure a number one album in the billboard charts,”
“And frankly albums aren’t that expensive to make nowadays.”
Anybody and his dog and his brother and his brother’s dog can make an album ( and seemingly has )
There has never been such a glut of recorded music available …from new label releases , new Indie releases , re-issues, ‘ lost’ sessions , live sessions , concerts , offshoot projects , solo projects from ‘ band guys ‘ and on and on and on . 5 major late night TV shows each have a band on 5 nights a week 52 weeks a year . That’s roughly 1200-1300 bands a year JUST ON LATE NIGHT TV.
And they all have records . It is mind-boggling , the number of musical acts out there . And that doesn’t include the ‘ artists’ who just record ‘ at home ‘ and release stuff to You Tube /You Tube Channels or CD Baby or post to REVERBNATION . And mostly I’m just talking North America .
Albums are dirt cheap to make …bordering on NO costs if you are a home-recording enthusiast ( and there are umpteen -thousands of us ) Even the HUGELY successful pop stuff is mostly cranked out with a keyboard and some software …..no ‘ players’ perse , so no payroll , no serious studio costs and Cd’s , whoever may still be interested in issuing them , are peanuts to produce. Recorded music is today’s business card …..it lets folks know you are out there and available and adds an ever -diminishing measure of cred to your resume .
Angelo Rinaldi
August 30, 2016 @ 12:04 pm
Loretta’s Full Circle sold 20,000 units in the first week too. I wish she could’ve had a #1 album too, but that week Stapleton was still too hot and another couple of singers released new records as well.
I love Dolly, but this new album isn’t so great. Well, still better than almost every mainstream singer though.
Erik North
August 30, 2016 @ 4:14 pm
And it isn’t exactly over for Dolly. There’s the complete TRIO collection with her pals Linda and Emmylou coming out in September.
Biscuit
September 1, 2016 @ 6:45 pm
I am pleased for Dolly as I was Loretta’s recent album success. Dolly has a great sense of humor and is a real entertainer, always worth seeing live.
Anna
September 2, 2016 @ 8:37 am
Listening to this album right now and really like it so far. Nice to hear Dolly’s voice again and it’s got that pure country sound.