Trio (Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris album)

Trio
Studio album by Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris
Released March 2, 1987
Recorded Los Angeles, California, USA, January - November 1986
Genre Country
Length 38:24
Label Warner Bros. Nashville
Producer George Massenburg
Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris chronology

Trio
(1987)		 Trio II
(1999)
Dolly Parton chronology
The Best There Is
(1987)		 Trio
(1987)		 Best of Dolly Parton, Vol. 3
(1987)
Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic [1]
Robert Christgau B+[2]

Trio is a collaboration album by three American performers, Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris. The album, released in 1987, sold over 4 million copies worldwide and also received several awards, including two Grammy Awards. Parton, Ronstadt, and Harris released a second album, Trio II, in 1999.

History

Longtime friends and admirers of one another, Parton, Ronstadt and Harris first attempted to record an album together in the mid-1970s, but scheduling conflicts and other difficulties (including the fact that the three women all recorded for different record labels) prevented its release. Some of the fruits of those aborted 1970s recording sessions did make it onto the women's respective solo recordings. "Mister Sandman" and "Evangeline" appeared on Harris' album Evangeline and Parton's "My Blue Tears" was included on Ronstadt's 1982 album Get Closer. Rodney Crowell's "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues" was on Harris' Blue Kentucky Girl album. Parton and Ronstadt also recorded a version of the traditional ballad "I Never Will Marry", which appeared on Ronstadt's 1977 Simple Dreams album, though that was recorded separately from these sessions. (During this time, Ronstadt and Harris also covered a number of Parton's compositions—Harris covered "Coat of Many Colors" and "To Daddy", and Ronstadt recorded "I Will Always Love You"—for inclusion on their various solo albums during the mid- to late-1970s; Parton covered Harris' "Boulder to Birmingham" in 1976, including it on her All I Can Do album.)

Finally a collaboration effort went to full fruition, being produced by George Massenburg. When Trio was released in early 1987, it spawned four huge Country hit singles - including the Country #1 remake of Phil Spector's 1958 hit by The Teddy Bears, "To Know Him Is To Love Him". The album hit #1 on the US Country album chart - where it held for five consecutive weeks - and #6 on the main Billboard album chart. It won Grammy Awards for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and Best Country Collaboration with Vocals. It was also nominated for the Album of the Year Grammy alongside Michael Jackson, U2, Prince and Whitney Houston. It was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America.[3] "Palms of Victory," another track from the aborted 1970s sessions, was included on the 2007 Emmylou Harris boxset Songbird: Rare Tracks and Forgotten Gems.

Track listing

  1. "The Pain of Loving You" (Dolly Parton, Porter Wagoner) – 2:32
  2. "Making Plans" (Johnny Russell, Voni Morrison) – 3:36
  3. "To Know Him Is to Love Him" (Phil Spector) – 3:48
  4. "Hobo's Meditation" (Jimmie Rodgers) – 3:17
  5. "Wildflowers" (Dolly Parton) – 3:33
  6. "Telling Me Lies" (Linda Thompson, Betsy Cook) – 4:26
  7. "My Dear Companion" (trad., arranged by Jean Ritchie) – 2:55
  8. "Those Memories of You" (Alan O'Bryant) – 3:58
  9. "I've Had Enough" (Kate McGarrigle) – 3:30
  10. "Rosewood Casket" (trad., arranged by Avie Lee Parton) – 2:59
  11. "Farther Along" (trad., arranged by John Starling, Emmylou Harris) – 4:10

Personnel

Production

Chart performance

Chart (1987) Peak
position
Canadian RPM Top Albums 4
U.S. Billboard Top Country Albums[4] 1
U.S. Billboard 200[4] 6

References

  1. ↑ Deming, Mark. Trio at AllMusic
  2. ↑ "Robert Christgau: CG: Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris". robertchristgau.com. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  3. ↑ "American album certifications – Parton,D.,Ronstadt,L.,Harris,E – Trio". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Trio (Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris album) at AllMusic

External links

Wikiquote has quotations related to: Trio (Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris album)
Preceded by
Ocean Front Property
by George Strait		 Top Country Albums number-one album
May 2 - June 6, 1987 		Succeeded by
Hillbilly Deluxe
by Dwight Yoakam