Queen of Country Dolly Parton coming to Echo Arena Liverpool

Aug 4 2011 Chester Chronicle

LEGENDARY singer, actress, songwriter and the Queen of Country Dolly Parton is bringing her UK tour to the Echo Arena Liverpool on August 31.

This coincides with the release of Better Day, an album full of new material.

With hits like 9 To 5, Here You Come Again, Jolene and I Will Always Love You, audiences are guaranteed to see the show of a lifetime.

The show features all new sets, costumes and even new music from her forthcoming album Better Day.

Dolly said: “I had a great time when we were in Europe on the last Backwoods Barbie tour and I expect to have even more fun on the up and coming Better Day Tour.

“I’m really looking forward to this and I can't wait to see all the fans again."

Dolly Parton has written more than 4,000 songs, had numerous number 1 hits and won countless Grammy, CMA and ACM awards.

Dolly saw a cherished dream become a reality in 1986 with the opening of her own theme park called Dollywood, in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, at the base of the Great Smoky Mountains.

The state’s number one tourist attraction, Dollywood was selected by the theme park industry as one of the top three theme parks in the world in 2006.

In 1988, she began the Dollywood Foundation to inspire children in her home community to dream more, learn more, do more and care more.

Currently the foundation partners with local sponsors to provide the Dolly Parton Imagination Library across America, Canada and now across Europe, by giving every pre-school child a book each month from the time he or she is born until the child reaches kindergarten.

With the help of local sponsors, this programme has expanded to more than 800 communities in 41 states.

Dolly said: “My dad was prouder of me for this programme than for my music career. He thought it was grand that all the kids called me the Book Lady.”

Dolly's book scheme has continued to flourish across the UK with 10 areas mailing a book each month to over 15,000 children.

“My fans in the UK have always been so kind to me so I am thrilled that we have been able to provide a way to give something back to them.”

Dolly Parton is the most honoured female country performer of all time. Achieving 25 RIAA certified gold, platinum and multi-platinum awards, she has had 25 songs reach number one on the Billboard Country charts, a record for a female artist.

She has 41 career top 10 country albums, a record for any artist, and she has 110 career charted singles over the past 40 years.

All-inclusive sales of singles, albums, hits collections, paid digital downloads and compilation usage during her Hall of Fame career have reportedly topped a staggering 100 million records world-wide.

She has garnered seven Grammy Awards, 10 Country Music Association Awards, five Academy of Country Music Awards, three American Music Awards and is one of only five female artists to win the Country Music Association’s Entertainer of the Year Award.

Yet with all of the national and international recognition given her, Dolly Parton calls the bronze statue of her, which stands on the courthouse lawn in her hometown of Sevierville, Tennessee, her “greatest honour, because it came from the people who know me”.

Always dreaming and always looking forward, Dolly is busier than ever, working on various children’s projects, working on a new movie and writing and recording.

To book tickets log on to www.echoarena.com or call the Echo Arena box office on 0844 8000 400.