Taylor Swift, Dolly Parton + Patsy Cline Are Rolling Stone’s Women Who Rock
They might all sing with a country twang, but according to Rolling Stone (via The Boot), Taylor Swift, Dolly Parton and Patsy Cline all qualify for the Women Who Rock list. The countdown celebrates “50 of the fiercest albums that female rock & rollers have given the world,” and it includes Lady Gaga, Carole King, Lucinda Williams and–of course–Aretha Franklin among others.
Swift came in at No. 45 on the list, thanks to the success of her 2010 album ‘Speak Now,’ which includes a country girl cover of Bon Jovi’s ‘Long Live.’ The magazine called Swift’s cover “the best Bon Jovi song that Bon Jovi ever wrote.” Rolling Stone also gave her props for being “one of the few genuine rock stars” of her time, who has a “flawless ear for what makes a song click.” Not a bad compliment from a legendary music magazine!
The next country star to make the list is country queen Dolly Parton. Assigning her 1975 greatest hits album to slot No. 32, the publication praised Parton’s songwriting talents by calling her “one of Nashville’s toughest songwriters ever.” Naturally, music writers called out Parton’s ‘Jolene’ for being “one of the most obsessively complex love stories ever captured in a country song.”
Snagging a spot near the top of the list was Patsy Cline‘s ‘The Patsy Cline Collection’ at No. 15. The publication called some of Cline’s songs on the album “some of the torchiest, weepiest country songs ever.” It might not sound like it, but that’s definitely a compliment for the late country legend.
The rest of the list is made up of legendary female artists of all genres. Props to our country girls for making the list!