My Blue Ridge Mountain Boy

My Blue Ridge Mountain Boy is Dolly Parton's fourth solo studio album originally released in September 1969 and re-released digitally in 2013.

Album information[edit]

The album contains some of Parton's most morose compositions. The title song tells the story of a small town girl whose aspirations take her to New Orleans, where she winds up a prostitute, dreaming of the boy she'd left behind. "Gypsy, Joe and Me" details the story of a woman, her love and their small dog, who all eventually perish. And "Evening Shade" tells the story of an orphanage run by an evil headmistress, "Mrs. Bailey". The orphans eventually burn the home down, with "Mrs. Bailey" sleeping inside. Another Parton song, "Daddy," tells the story of a daughter pleading with her father to reconsider leaving her mother for a woman much younger.

Also included are Parton's covers of the Mac Davis-penned Elvis Presley hit "In the Ghetto", and Joe South's "Games People Play". She also covered current country hits by Porter Wagoner ("Big Wind"), and Jan Howard ("We Had All the Good Things Going").

Parton would later rerecord the title song for inclusion in her Heartbreak Express album in 1982.

In a CMT interview with Patty Loveless, Parton confirmed that the man in the corner of the album cover is her reclusive longtime husband, Carl Dean.

Track listing[edit]

All tracks composed by Dolly Parton; except where indicated 1."In the Ghetto" (Mac Davis) 2."Games People Play" (Joe South) 3."'Til Death Do Us Part" 4."Big Wind" (Wayne P. Walker, Alex Zanetis, George McCormick) 5."Evening Shade" 6."I'm Fed Up With You" (Bill Owens) 7."My Blue Ridge Mountain Boy" 8."Daddy" 9."We Had All the Good Things Going" (Marvin Shiner, Jerry Monday) 10."The Monkey's Tale" (Leona Reese) 11."Gypsy, Joe and Me" 12."Home For Pete's Sake" (Rudy Preston)

Chart positions[edit]

Chart (1969)

Peak Position

The Billboard 200 (U.S.) 194 U.S. Top Country Albums 6