Dolly Parton is one of the greatest gifts the world has ever received. Beyond her beauty and her talent, she has offered so much to others with her incredible generosity and positivity she spreads to everyone who comes into her orbit. For over fifty years, she has blazed a trail entirely of her own from writing iconic songs to making moves on the silver screen and more. With such an incredible career to reflect upon, it comes as no surprise that Time Life has deemed it fit to release the ultimate tribute to this one-of-a-kind talent. Dolly: The Ultimate Collection is a 19-DVD set that for the first time brings together highlights from Dolly’s variety shows, talk show appearances, public appearances, live concerts, documentaries and more. The set is one that offers hours of really fun content that is sure to please any Dolly Parton fan. You can get a complete rundown of what is included in the set here, but see below for thoughts on the four volumes included in this collection. 

Volume One

The first volume of this collection is teeming with incredible moments with Dolly, including fourteen episodes from her variety shows from the seventies and eighties. The show she put on in the seventies features a lot of fun performances from acts such as Kenny Rogers and KC and the Sunshine Band, but it is her Dolly series from the eighties that gave me the most amount of joy. From the first few episodes where she is greeting the audience from a bubble bath (in a chaste manner), you can tell how much fun Dolly is having. She has the opportunity to perform some of her most famous songs, but she also gets to be more playful by performing in sketches with famous friends like Pee Wee Herman, Hulk Hogan, Bruce Willis and even Kermit the Frog. Dolly is a born performer with great comedic timing, and these sketches are hilarious and good for the soul. She also does an excellent job of interviewing figures such as Dudley Moore, Oprah Winfrey and more. Honestly, though, she might be having the most fun when she is taking questions from her audience and firing back with a witty retort. 

Elsewhere in this volume you will find some of Dolly’s many appearances on The Porter Wagoner Show from the late sixties and early seventies. Dolly and Porter have a long, rich history that is detailed in other parts of the collection, and it is great to see what a natural presence she was from the very beginning. If you happen to get this set, you can be sure to fire up Bob Hope’s Jolly Christmas Show next holiday season as you see the famous comedian bring on Dolly and other famous names to remind you the reason for the season. If you want a full-dose of Dolly music, you can check out the full-length Live from London concert that she performed in 2009 that really brings the house down. If anyone happens to have caught the charming Netflix film Dumplin’ from a few years back, you will be happy to find a making-of special for the music from that film in which Dolly collaborates with the likes of Elle King, Miranda Lambert, Mavis Staples and more. The highlight of this particular video is the short interaction you get between Dolly Parton and the equally amazing Alison Krauss. Wrapping up the first volume is a selection of music videos from the 2000s, which includes an orchestral rendition of “Jolene” that is transcendent. 

Volume Two

The second volume of this set transitions from Dolly being the host of her own series to one of the most exciting guests on other popular shows. Whenever Johnny Carson liked you, you could count on being invited back to The Tonight Show pretty often, and it is clear that Carson loved Dolly. Not only do you get three episodes featuring Dolly Parton, but you get to see what else Carson was up to on those particular episodes. This is beneficial for both Dolly Parton and Johnny Carson fans. Once you have watched these, switch over to the episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show that showcases Winfrey’s skills as an interviewer as she gets so many great anecdotes out of Dolly. If you are concerned that this is getting too far away from music, do not fear. There is a disc dedicated to a series in which Dolly Parton and other notable figures dive into the history of some of her most famous songs including “I Will Always Love You,” “9 to 5,” “Coat of Many Colors” and more. You get snippets of some of these stories elsewhere, but these are the types of in-depth pieces you crave as a fan. Speaking of, the excellent recent documentary Dolly Parton: Here I Am is included on the final disc of this volume, and it should be considered essential viewing for any fan. This offers a broad overview of her entire life in a way that feels fresh and incredibly informative. 

Volume Three

On this third volume of the collection, we transition back to her eighties variety series with episodes featuring some really interesting guests. On the musical side of the spectrum, we get some really great performances from Alabama, Tammy Wynette, Smokey Robinson, The Temptations and more. Dolly knew her audience was mostly interested in country artists, but she was not afraid to try to bring in other forms of music when it was something she liked. The sketch and interview portions of these episodes saw some notable names like Patrick Duffy, Tom Selleck and Burt Reynolds pop up to “woo” the lady of the hour in a bit of good fun. These men all have their charms, but the most exciting guest of the disc might just be Miss Piggy. When you have two icons meeting for the first time, you never know what might happen. Miss Piggy has some fun with Dolly’s accent and the two become fast friends in the end. This volume wraps up with another full-length concert in the form of Dolly Parton: Live and Well from her 2002 Halos and Horns tour. 

Volume Four

This fourth volume admittedly gets a bit away from Dolly by the end of it, but there is still a lot of great content to appreciate for fans of country music. To begin, we once again have a selection of episodes from The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson featuring Dolly and appearances from Emma Thompson, Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt. The next disc features a slew of interviews conducted in 2012 featuring figures such as Brandi Carlile, Miley Cyrus, Miranda Lambert, Marty Stuart, Carrie Underwood and more sharing their love and appreciation for the woman of the hour. The final two discs are where we get more away from the Dolly-specific content and into the world of country at large. There is a disc devoted to classic Opry duets that features moving renditions “Holding On To Nothin’” and “If Teardrops Were Pennies” from Porter Wagoner and Dolly. The discs also has some truly incredible moments with George Jones & Tammy Wynette, Conway Twitty & Loretta Lynn and Johnny & June Carter Cash. The final disc features some of the best moments from the CMA Awards from throughout the years including “Love Is Like A Butterfly” and “Here You Come Again” from Dolly. As a nice bonus, you get some stellar performances from Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Crystal Gale and many more. This volume is a celebration of some of the best that country music has to offer. 

Video Quality

Dolly: The Ultimate Collection comes to DVD with a pleasing 480p transfer that is quite strong for material that goes back nearly fifty years. You can tell that some of these performances and specials have been restored as meticulously as possible, as there is very little in the way of age related wear throughout. Skin tones look fairly natural, but the presentation offers up little in the way of fine detail. The image can look quite soft and the studio lighting can cause some blooming, but the fact that the source material is as stable as it is constitutes a minor miracle. Colors are a bit flat and black levels are subject to some crush and compression artifacting. Thankfully, Time Life has spread this content over nineteen discs, so they at least have a little room to breathe. This material is not beautiful, but fans of Dolly will probably consider it a win that much of this was even released physically. 

Audio Quality

These DVDs come with a Dolby Digital 2.0 track that mostly does everything it needs to do well. Vocals are pretty clear throughout, with only occasional moments where things sound a bit fuzzy due to the quality of the source material. This is not a persistent issue, but it should be noted that these issues exist. The discs open up with a warning addressing that there are minor issues with the audio and video that they have done their best to fix through consulting the best surviving elements. The instruments mostly maintain a good fidelity with no extreme issues of clipping or blown out audio. These performances most likely sound the best that they have ever sounded outside of being a member of the audience. The material that comes from more recent years stand up even better than the already decent older sources. This presentation is about as good as the source material will allow. 

Special Features

Volume One

• Dolly – In Her Own Words: A nineteen-minute featurette in which a present-day Dolly discusses bringing moments from her career back in this new set including her early work on her Dolly show. Dolly discusses having friends on the show such as Willie Nelson, what it was like working with Kermit and Miss Piggy, the importance of Porter Wagoner in her life, making Oprah sing on television, her Christmas show and many more great moments. It is really fulfilling to have Dolly be able to reflect on these experiences. 
• Dolly – Custom Made: A three-minute featurette which takes a look at what goes into making some of Dolly’s garments interspersed with clips from the show.

• Dolly – Highlights from the ‘80s Variety Show: An eighteen-minute featurette which offers up some of the best moments from Dolly’s variety show interspersed with recent interviews from figures such as Kenny Rogers, Carrie Underwood, Miranda Lambert, Miley Cyrus, Lily Tomlin and many more. The participants discuss Dolly as a person, her lack of a filter, how inspirational she was to so many and more. 

• Song By Song – Interview With Mac Davis (2012): A twenty-minute interview with songwriter and longtime Dolly Parton friend Mac Davis in which he talks in depth about talking up Dolly from the early days, her position as the center of attention, writing songs together, what makes Dolly stand apart from others and more. You can tell that these two are extremely close as he has a lot of interesting information to offer up. 

• Dolly – In Her Own Words: The second installment of this series on disc four is a nearly eleven-minute interview in which Dolly discusses having her family on the show, the importance of music in the family, her friendship with Kenny Rogers, singing with Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris and more. 

• The Porter Wagoner Show – Promos: Nearly three-minutes of promotional material for the show featuring Dolly, Wagoner and others. 

• Dolly Parton – Live From London

• • Interviews: Nineteen minutes of interviews with members of the band, background singers, booking agents and more discuss Dolly as a live entertainer, some of their favorite moments from the show, how she plays to the audience and more. 

• • London Loves Dolly: A nine-minute featurette in which Londoners send messages of love to Dolly to show how much they adore her. It is great to see how far her music travels around the world. 

• • Sound Check: An eight-minute look at Dolly talking with her bandmates and crew as they prepare for the night’s show. It is great to get more candid moments from Dolly between songs. 

• • Meet and Greet: A four-minute look at Dolly interacting with fans and people around the venue. You can tell she is very genuine in her appreciation of people. 

Volume Two

• Dolly Parton Sings for Johnny: A four-minute original song written specifically for Johnny Carson about her experiences on the show.  

• We Love Dolly: A nine-minute featurette in which participants such as Vince Gill, Brandi Carlile and more discuss what makes Dolly a one-of-a-kind entertainer and person. 

Volume Three

• Song By Song – Interview With Lily Tomlin (2012): A twenty-minute interview with actress Lily Tomlin in which she discusses her friendship with Parton, working with her on 9 to 5, Dolly’s confidence and more. 

Volume Four

• Bonus Interviews

• • Porter Wagoner: A five-minute interview in which Wagoner discusses his memory of joining the Grand Ole Opry. 
  • Jan Howard: A four-minute interview in which Jan Howard discusses recording demos for early hits and performing live. 
• Jo Walker-Meador Interview: A fifteen-minute interview with the former director of the Country Music Association in which she talks about the goal of the Country Music Association, the Hall of Fame, the international reach of the organization, the awards show and more. 

• Lyrical Moments (Part 2): A two-minute collection of interviews with Bill Anderson and Lee Greenwood which focuses on their experiences winning for Song of the Year at the CMA Awards. 

Final Thoughts

Time Life has put together a truly stupendous collection for Dolly Parton fans. Over the course of 19 discs, you get to see all the different facets that make her so special to so many people. Wether or not you are laughing at her no-filter comedic retorts, admiring her spirit of generosity or being transported somewhere special through her songs, you cannot help but fall in love with her a little more with each passing moment. Dolly: The Ultimate Collection – Deluxe Edition is a set of the highest quality featuring material that probably would have remained distant memories under different circumstances. If you have more than just a passing interest in Dolly Parton, you will find a lot to love about this set. Highly Recommended 

Dolly: The Ultimate Collection – Deluxe Edition is currently available to purchase on DVD. 

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the DVD.

Disclaimer: Time Life has supplied a copy of this set free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.

Dillon Gonzales

Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.