Back from vacation! And needing a vacation from my vacation, sigh. I are exhausted.

sainfoin_fields asked me to upload a "Jolene" cover. It has taken me an inexcusably long time to do so, and I apologize. I also decided to go ahead and upload a couple of other Dolly Parton covers that I was saving for my next coverpost. Which I will probably never get around to, sigh.

"Jolene" - Dolly Parton
The original version FTW!

"Jolene" (Live) - The White Stripes

"Jolene" - Susanna and the Magical Orchestra
They do a lot of super-mellow covers, and while I'm a big fan of their version of "Love Will Tear Us Apart," this version is a little too mellow for me. To me, "Jolene" is an inherently desperate song, and this cover is just too sparse.

"Shine" - Dolly Parton (with Nickel Creek)
I was the biggest Collective Soul fan in middle and high school. So this cover was full of awesome for me. Dolly plus Nickel Creek plus Collective Soul? THERE IS NO BAD!

"Stairway To Heaven" - Dolly Parton

Thinking about how much I love "Jolene" (and how much so many other people seem to love it too) made me think about WHY I love it so much. I speculated with Candice that one reason we both like it is how it approaches a well-trod story from an interesting perspective. There's probably nothing I value more in song writing than an interesting narrative.

And on that note, I have decided that my contribution to sainfoin_fields's awesome idea for an Opposites Playlist is "Summer Love'" by Justin Timberlake vs. "Boys of Summer" by Don Henley. Or the Ataris if you're in that kind of mood.

Also, it is kind of crazy how Lil Wayne managed to combine three overplayed songs I hate into one song that I kind of love in spite of everything in me knowing that I should hate it completely because it is embarrassingly dirty and all kinds of degrading. 50 Cent's "Candy Shop" + the Black Eyed Peas's "My Humps" + Ludacris's "What's Your Fantasy" = "Lollipop"! I am telling you guys, it is practically SCIENTIFIC.