For God and Country

Taking this album's title quite literally, Dolly Parton takes a sharp right from her previous few albums of progressive bluegrass. In the wake of the Iraq war, Parton wanted to record a tribute to the soldiers fighting for America. Ironically, after recently recording countrified versions of songs like "Stairway to Heaven," Parton delivers these patriotic songs in a completely straightforward fashion. Other than the inherent twang of her pristine voice, there's little country flavor added to the arrangements here. The like of "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" and "The Star Spangled Banner" are delivered in a traditional, militaristic manner. The flag-wavers that fell from Parton's own pen, however, can't help but display the country legend's musical roots, and it's these that are the ultimate standouts.