At 76, Dolly Parton is seemingly indefatigable, releasing a steady stream of albums, books, movies and television projects, as well as hosting the ACM Awards earlier this year. On Nov. 5, she will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, alongside Duran Duran, Eminem, Carly Simon and more.
But according to a new interview Parton did with Pollstar, there is one thing she won’t be doing again: full-fledged touring.
“I do not think I will ever tour again, but I do know I’ll do special shows here and there, now and then. Maybe do a long weekend of shows, or just a few shows at a festival. But I have no intention of going on a full-blown tour anymore,” Parton told the outlet. (Billboard has independently confirmed the news.)
Parton’s most recent tour was her 2016 Pure & Simple Tour, which included 60 shows in the United States and Canada.
“I’ve done that my whole life, and it takes so much time and energy,” she added. “I like to stay a little closer to home with my husband [Carl Dean]. We’re getting older now, and I don’t want to be gone for four or five weeks at a time. Something could happen. I would not feel right about that, if I were gone and somebody needed me. Or I would feel bad if I had to leave a tour if somebody got sick at home and needed me and then I had to walk out on the fans.”
Last year, Parton told Billboard she was planning to work on a rock album, after news came that she was nominated for induction into the Rock Hall.
In her new Pollstar interview, she says she is working on the rock album, and that she plans to re-record “Stairway to Heaven,” the Led Zeppelin classic that Parton recorded in a bluegrass-inspired arrangement as part of her 2002 album Halos & Horns, part of her bluegrass trilogy of albums.
”But I’m going to redo that really on the money,” she told Pollstar. “I did it kind of bluegrass-style when I did it; but when I do the rock album, I’m going to actually re-record it – and do it more true to the regular record. I’m trying to see if Robert Plant might sing on it. Maybe Jimmy Page might do the pick-up part on it. I’m looking forward to dragging in some of the great classic people, girls and boys, to sing on some of the songs. I’m not far enough along to discuss who and what, but I am going to do an album.”
She also noted that she intends to ask several additional artists, including Ed Sheeran, Miley Cyrus and Heart, as well as country star Chris Stapleton, to be involved with the upcoming rock album.
“Chris Stapleton is one of my favorite people ever,” Parton said. “I have always wanted to do something with him. Even though he’s not considered rock ‘n’ roll, he’s kind of like me: He’s accepted all the way around. I’m thinking that certainly out of the country field, when I do my rock album, I’m going to maybe ask him.”
