Dolly Parton‘s rock experiment rolled on Friday (June 16) with the release of two more songs from the country icon’s upcoming full-length rock debut, Rockstar. Digging into a song she’s always loved, Parton teams up with Heart’s Ann Wilson on a straightforward cover of the latter’s signature 1975 jam “Magic Man (Carl’s Version).”
“I’ve always wanted a reason to sing ‘Magic Man’ by Heart and it was one of my first choices for the album,” Parton said in a statement. “I was so happy that Ann Wilson agreed to sing it with me. Nobody can out sing Ann, but I gave it my darndest, and we added a few lines that were not in the original. We wanted to have a few things that made it seem like ours. Thank you, Nancy, for letting me fill in for you on this. Hope I’ve made you both proud. I think it’s magic!”
Indeed, three minutes in, Parton and Wilson trade lines in a new verse that conjures yet more mystery. “A magic man with luring eyes, changed the course of my young life/ He was a magic man/ I was oh so quick to learn, I was caught up in the burn/ Of the magic man,” they sing. “No one else could understand, unless you’ve loved a magic man.”
Parton’s first rock collection is due out on Nov. 17 and will feature 30 songs, including 21 covers and nine originals. One of those fresh tracks also dropped Friday, “Bygones,” featuring Judas Priest singer Rob Halford, as well as Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx and touring guitarist John 5.
Parton said in the statement that “Bygones” is one of her favorite tracks from the album. “The song fits with so many couples and coupling my voice with Rob, one of my all-time favorites, made it even more special,” she said of the quickstep midtempo rocker on which she and the leatherbound metal yowler meld their sugar and spikes vocals in growly harmony.
“I’m sorry, so sorry/ How long must you punish me/ Why can’t we just move on/ Let bygones be bygones/ But you never will,” they sing on the chorus. The two tracks were preceded by the Parton-penned first single, “World on Fire,” which charted at No 1 on the Billboard rock digital songs chart last month.
Listen to “Magic Man” and “Bygones” below.
