Halos Horns

Track Listings: 1. Halos and Horns 2. Sugar Hill 3. Not For Me 4. Hello God 5. If 6. Shattered Image 7. These Old Bones 8. What A Heartache 9. I'm Gone 10. Raven Dove 11. Dagger Through The Heart 12. If Only 13. John Daniel 14. Stairway to Heaven

Like many musicians profoundly moved by the events of September 11, Dolly Parton reacted to the tragedy by going inward and forging a spiritual journey through songwriting. As usual, the subjects from which she draws the greatest strength are the ones that have buoyed her throughout her career--the Deity, to whom she talks directly in the searching "Hello, God," and the mythology of the mountains, best exemplified in "These Old Bones," a fascinating piece of backwoods lore, even as Parton's impersonation of an ancient fortune teller turns grating. Yet the songs on IHalos Horns/I carry a subtext, too, that of the perpetual struggle between right and wrong, temptation and redemption, and heaven and hell. Longtime Parton fans will recognize that thematic tug from her earliest work, just as they will hear a return to her more primitive, pre-'80s sound. While the singer, who produced the record herself using both Nashville and East Tennessee musicians, reprises several tunes ("Shattered Image," "What a Heartache") from her catalog to give them an acoustic, bluegrassy treatment, she is not without her surprises. Chief among them: "Raven Dove," a powerful, almost biblical prophesy of a Second Coming, and a cover of Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven," which Parton slightly rewrote to give it more personal and apocalyptic verve. If the thought of that brings a smile to your face, just wait: one spin through it, and you'll be down on your knees. I--Alanna Nash/I