 |
| Dolly Parton (Photo: Kevin Keating) |
Dolly Parton. I’ll admit, up until last night, I’ve never seen this icon of country perform live. And I’ve clearly missed out. What a show! Unbelievably, Dolly Parton turned 70 earlier this year, but seeing her on stage would make you believe she’s still a spring chicken!
 |
| Dolly Parton (Photo: Kevin Keating) |
Without a show opener, Dolly took the stage about 15 minutes later than expected to allow the crowd at Shoreline to meander into their seats. Her backing band launched into “Hello Dolly” and a giant white curtain was unfurled to unveil Ms. Parton in all her glory.
 |
| Dolly Parton (Photo: Kevin Keating) |
For the rest of the evening, Dolly spent time telling stories and cracking uninhibited jokes to the laughter and applause of the nearly capacity crowd. In fact, the Shoreline show, with a capacity of roughly 20,000, was the largest venue Dolly’s playing on her current “Pure & Simple” tour. The following night has her playing a venue in Santa Barbara with a capacity of 3K as a point of reference.
But back to Dolly’s performance! As I write this, I’m still awestruck by how enjoyable the show was – and how strong, not only her voice, but also her guitar and piano playing was too. Check out the full set-list below, and if you’re even just a little bit country, I definitely recommend checking out her show while you still can!
