DOLLY PARTON - The Fairest Of Them All/My Favorite Songwriter, Porter Wagoner / PORTER WAGONER - What Ain't To Be, Just Might Happen

Three key reissues of 2010 are to be found in this pair of discs from the Omni Recording Corporation, featuring 1972 releases from Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton. At this point in their inextricably linked careers, they had already recorded a half-dozen duet albums together. His highly prolific career was still strong in its third prolific decade when he recorded What Ain’t To Be, Just Might Happen; hers was still in its ascendency when she paid full-length tribute to him with My Favourite Songwriter, Porter Wagoner.

Five years earlier, Porter gave Dolly her big break, inviting her on his TV and road show following the departure of erstwhile partner Norma Jean after a failed romance. (Adding insult to injury, Norma Jean is sometimes thought of as a Dolly copycat, though the former’s career and style was established first.) Wagoner even put his royalties on the line as a guarantee in order to convince RCA to sign his ingénue. His risk was a safe one, though, and by the time these recordings were released, her sales had surpassed his and were about to go through the roof.

Both artists complement each other perfectly, and comparing their versions of “What Ain’t to Be, Just Might Happen”, “Comes and Goes”, and the classic “Lonely Comin’ Down” reveals a pair of singers that are quite distinct, yet cut from the same proverbial cloth. The push and pull between light and dark shows up with both artists’ treatment of unusual subject matter, as does the development of complex and vivid characters for their song narratives. Dolly’s 1970 album The Fairest of Them All is paired up with My Favorite Songwriter for this reissue, and puts her own songwriting style on display, dealing with controversial themes of incest (“Chas” and “Robert”) and teenage pregnancy on “Down from Dover”.  For his part, Porter is no stranger to strange themes, and the inimitably surreal “The Rubber Room” is one of the most bizarre records of the '70s country canon.

Following these albums, Dolly struck gold with 1974's Jolene, which spawned the title track plus “I Will Always Love You”, a love letter to Porter which also bade their relationship farewell. She quit his road show to form her own Travellin’ Family Band that same year. Wagoner sued her for breach of contract and settled before recording one more duets album, albeit tracked separately.

Together, these releases contain 53 songs (there is a wealth of bonus material on the Porter disc), nearly two and a half hours of music, and loads of detailed liner notes from the Omni gang. Essential material from both Dolly and Porter.