Personnel: Meshell Ndegeocello (vocals, guitar, synthesizer, programming); Jerry Douglas (guitar, resonator guitar); Ron Block (guitar, National guitar); Dan Tyminski (guitar, mandolin); John Leventhal (guitar, organ, percussion); Shelby Lynne (guitar, percussion, background vocals); James Harrah, Steve Buckingham, Bryan Sutton (guitar); Emmylou Harris, Kevin Breit, Rodney Crowell (acoustic guitar); Adam Levy , Kenny Vaughn, Mark Punch, Joe McMahan (electric guitar); Brian Ahern (12-string guitar, gut-string guitar); Sonny Landreth (slide guitar); R. McCormack (resonator guitar, banjo, mandolin); Mike Compton, Lex Price (mandolin); Stuart Duncan (fiddle); Alison Krauss (viola); Mickey Raphael (harmonica); Chris Mosher (piano, programming); Norah Jones, Roy Bittan, David Morgan , Gary "Bud" Smith (piano); Glen D. Hardin (electric piano); Barry Beckett (Wurlitzer organ); David Cole (keyboards, drum programming); Larry Antonino, Viktor Krauss, Barry Bales (upright bass); Kerry Buchanan, Matt Laug, Owen Hale, Andrew Borger, Chris Dave, Shannon Forrest (drums); Rick DePofi, John Ware (percussion); Cheryl White, Carmella Ramsey, Melinda Smith, Julia Waters, Allison Moorer, Maxi Anderson, Maxine Willard Waters (background vocals).
Audio Mixers: David Cole; Gary Paczosa; Jay Newland; Jeff McCormack; John Leventhal; Nash Chambers; Neal Cappellino; Rick DePofi; Russ Long; Steve Buckingham; Brian Ahern; Bruce Robb.
Liner Note Authors: Emmylou Harris; Steve Buckingham.
Recording information: 17 Grand, Nashville, TN; Bow Lane Studios, Dublin, Ireland; Cherokee Studios, Hollywood, CA; Enactron Truck, Beverly Hills, CA; Minutia Sound, Nashville, TN; New York Noise, New York, NY; OMNI Sound, Nashville, TN; Royaltone Studios, Los Angeles, CA; Shelter Island Sound, New York, NY; Sorcerer SOund, New York, NY; Sound Emporium, Nashville, TN; Sully Sound, La-Tour-De-Peilz, Switzerland; Sunset Sound, Hollywood, CA; The Beach House, Copacabana, NSW, Australia; The Doghouse, Nashville, TN.
Despite her numerous accomplishments as a performer, actor, and all-around media mogul, Dolly Parton has often said that she views herself primarily as a songwriter. JUST BECAUSE I'M A WOMAN goes a long way towards highlighting the craft of Parton's extraordinary songs. Unlike some cash-in tribute albums, this disc showcases artists who clearly love and respect the music in question, making for a record that bears no trace of crass commercialism.
Most tracks on the album strip the songs down to their bare essence, framing the tunes in a newgrass-like acoustic setting typical of many Sugar Hill Records releases. Notable exceptions are the two final, and most interesting, tracks. While Allison Moorer's take on "Light of a Clear Blue Morning" boasts a spooky, ethereal production that perfectly suits her husky voice, Me'Shell NdegeOcello completely deconstructs "Two Doors Down," turning a fairly straightforward 1980s pop song into a mysterious, funky, and brooding lament. Perhaps the album's best moment, though, is Joan Osborne's stunningly pure, straightforward version of "Do I Ever Cross Your Mind," which at once showcases the unaffected beauty of the singer's voice, and makes crystal clear why Dolly Parton truly deserves a tribute album.
Professional Reviews
Entertainment Weekly (11/7/03, p.70) - "...Sterling results....[the tribute] runs the Shania-to-Sinead gamut..." - Rating: A-
Uncut (1/04, p.116) - 4 stars out of 5 - "[T]he post-Porter Parton finally gets a golden handshake from her peers. And some line-up it is."
Mojo (Publisher) (1/04, p.94) - 4 stars out of 5 - "In storytelling and melody, the elegance, economy and heartfelt clarity of Parton's writing deserves comparison with not only Hank Williams or Johnny Cash but George Gershwin or Irving Berlin."
