Anderson relates that Parton was brand-new to Nashville and almost entirely unknown when a friend recommended her for Anderson’s demo session, which they recorded at the legendary Bradley’s Barn.
“I was so impressed with just the way she was able to jump in and get the song the way that I asked her to do,” he recalls. “I got kind of a sense at that time that, you know, she might be somebody special before her career was over, and that certainly turned out to be the case.”
Even then, Parton had the flamboyant personality that would become her signature, as Anderson’s wife quickly learned.
“My wife had gone up to the demo session with me that night, and while I was doing some of the other songs by myself, I noticed she and Dolly were over in the corner, kind of talking,” Anderson relates. “And on the way home, I said, ‘Well, what did you think of the girl singer?’ And she said, ‘She was really nice. And boy, she knew more dirty jokes than anybody I’ve ever been around!'”
Anderson’s new album also features an all-new collaboration with Parton titled “Someday It’ll All Make Sense,” which Anderson wrote just before the COVID pandemic shut everything down.
“I’m really proud of this song. I’m excited about the possibilities,” Anderson enthuses. “She just was so incredible on it, and we just filmed a video on it. And it’s gonna be the single.”
