Emmylou Harris, Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt, ‘Waltz Across Texas Tonight’ [Exclusive Premiere]
A bevy of unreleased songs and alternate takes from Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris' Trio recording sessions will be available to country fans in early September, and in advance of its release, The Boot is exclusively premiering one of those unreleased songs, "Waltz Across Texas Tonight."
Fans may recognize "Waltz Across Texas Tonight" from Harris' discography; her solo take on the track, which she penned with Rodney Crowell, appears on her Wrecking Ball album, released in 1995. The version recorded by Harris, Parton and Ronstadt in 1994 has a fuller country sound than Harris' solo version, accented by mandolin and steel guitar rather than driven by a strong drum beat.
"You've been on a road that just don't seem to end / Where that broken old heart of yours won't ever mend ... But the moon is so full, the stars are so bright / And my hand is steady, my touch is light," Harris, Parton and Ronstadt sing in "Waltz Across Texas Tonight," harmonizing throughout. "Look in my eyes, hold on real tight / And I'll waltz you, my darling, across Texas tonight / I'll waltz you, my darling, across Texas tonight."
In March of 1987, Harris, Parton and Ronstadt released their first collaborative album, Trio; in 1999, the threesome released their second album, Trio II, which had actually been recorded in 1994. And on Sept. 9, fans of the three iconic country women will be able to get their hands on The Complete Trio Collection, featuring remastered versions of Trio and Trio II, as well as a third disc of material from recording sessions in 1985, 1986, 1993, 1994 and 1998. In addition to The Complete Trio Collection, a single disc featuring a mix of songs from the three-disc set, My Dear Companion: Selections From the Trio Collection; a double-LP set of The Complete Trio Collection‘s bonus material on vinyl; and Trio II on vinyl for the first time will be released on the same day.
“We had a lot of outtakes,” Harris says. “I didn’t realize how many … And it is some pretty great stuff. I go back and say, ‘Damn, we sounded good. Why didn’t we put that one on there?’”
The project was produced by Harris, whom Parton says "has been working at this for a long time."
“We’ve been trying for years to put out the thing that we had in the can and repackage the things that we did,” Parton explains.
The new project is bittersweet for the threesome, however, as Ronstadt’s ongoing battle with Parkison’s disease has left her unable to sing.
“I can’t get to the note,” Ronstadt says. “I can’t make any quality sound. I can’t arrange pitch. I might aim for a note and hit another one. It sounds like shouting.”
Listen to Emmylou Harris, Dolly Parton and Linda Ronstadt's "Waltz Across Texas Tonight"
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