''9 to 5 and Odd Jobs'' is the twenty-third solo studio album by American entertainer

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, philanthropist, and businesswoman, known primarily for her work in country music. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton made her album d ...

. It was released on November 17, 1980, by

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...

. A

concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...

about working, the album was centered on Parton's hit "

9 to 5 Working(laboring) time is the period of time that a person spends at paid Wage labour, labor. Unpaid work, Unpaid labor such as personal housework or caring for children or pets is not considered part of the working week. Many countries regula ...

", which served as the theme song to the film of the same name (co-starring Parton,

Jane Fonda Jane Seymour Fonda (born December 21, 1937) is an American actress, activist, and former fashion model. Recognized as a film icon, Fonda is the recipient of various accolades including two Academy Awards, two British Academy Film Awards, sev ...

and

Lily Tomlin Mary Jean "Lily" Tomlin (born September 1, 1939) is an American actress, comedian, writer, singer, and producer. She started her career as a stand-up comedian as well as performing off-Broadway during the 1960s. Her breakout role was on the vari ...

), and topped both the U.S. country and pop charts. The album's two additional singles—a cover of

Mike Settle Michael Ward Settle (born March 20, 1941) is an American songwriter, journalist, broadcaster and singer. Settle began his musical career as a solo singer and a member of The New Christy Minstrels. His debut solo album ''Folk Sing Hallelujah'' ...

's "

But You Know I Love You "But You Know I Love You" is a song written by Mike Settle, which was a 1969 pop hit for Kenny Rogers and The First Edition, a group that included Settle and Kenny Rogers. The song also became a major country hit by Bill Anderson in 1969. In 198 ...

" and a reading of "

The House of the Rising Sun "The House of the Rising Sun" is a traditional folk song, sometimes called "Rising Sun Blues". It tells of a person's life gone wrong in the city of New Orleans. Many versions also urge a sibling or parents and children to avoid the same fate. ...

" – provided further country hits, with "But You Know I Love You" also reaching #1. The understated pop-country arrangement of most of the songs was seen as a welcome return to form for Parton by critics, after the overly polished pop sound of Parton's previous albums. In addition to five Parton compositions, the album contained a number of folk and country classics, including work by

Woody Guthrie Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer-songwriter, one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American socialism and anti-fascism. He has inspired ...

Mel Tillis Lonnie Melvin Tillis (August 8, 1932 – November 19, 2017) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Although he recorded songs since the late 1950s, his biggest success occurred in the 1970s as part of the outlaw country movement, ...

and

Merle Travis Merle Robert Travis (November 29, 1917 – October 20, 1983) was an American country and western singer, songwriter, and guitarist born in Rosewood, Kentucky, United States. His songs' lyrics often discussed both the lives and the economic expl ...

. The album was produced by

Mike Post Mike Post (born Leland Michael Postil, September 29, 1944) is an American composer, best known for his TV theme music for various shows, including ''Law & Order''; '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit''; ''The A-Team''; ''NYPD Blue''; ''Renegade ...

(with the exception of "9 to 5", which was produced by Parton's bandleader Gregg Perry). A 1983 reissue on cassette omitted the tracks " Detroit City" and "

Dark as a Dungeon "Dark as a Dungeon" is a song written by singer-songwriter Merle Travis. It is a lament about the danger and drudgery of being a coal miner in a shaft mine. It has become a rallying song among miners seeking improved working conditions. The so ...

," and moved the song "Sing For The Common Man" to the end of Side 2. However, a 2009 reissue of the album included all ten of the album's original tracks, as well as a remixed version of "9 to 5", and a previously unreleased cover of

Sly & the Family Stone Sly and the Family Stone was an American band from San Francisco. Active from 1966 to 1983, it was pivotal in the development of funk, soul, rock, and psychedelic music. Its core line-up was led by singer-songwriter, record producer, and multi-i ...

's 1969 hit "

Everyday People "Everyday People" is a 1968 song composed by Sly Stone and first recorded by his band, Sly and the Family Stone. It was the first single by the band to go to number one on the Soul singles chart and the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. It held ...

" as bonus cuts. The album stayed at No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Top Country Albums chart for 10 consecutive weeks and ended up being certified Gold by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

Reception

AllMusic retrospectively rated ''9 to 5 and Odd Jobs'' four-and-a-half out of five stars. William Ruhlmann, who reviewed the album, stated that due to RCA's practice of "shoving poorly organized products onto the market, most of Parton's albums are hard to recommend", but that " he songs areenough to put it a notch above most of Parton's RCA catalog." Critic

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and ...

rated the album a B+, stating that how one would respond to the album "depends on is/hertolerance for fame-game schlock", although he also said that "I'd never claim

Johnny Carson John William Carson (October 23, 1925 – January 23, 2005) was an American television host, comedian, writer and producer. He is best known as the host of ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' (1962–1992). Carson received six Pr ...

's damaged arton'spipes or her brains".

Track listing

Personnel

*Dolly Parton – vocals/nails *

Reggie Young Reggie Grimes Young Jr. (December 12, 1936 – January 17, 2019) was an American musician who was lead guitarist in the American Sound Studio house band, The Memphis Boys, and was a leading session musician. He played on various recordings with ...

– guitar *

Jeff Baxter Jeffrey Allen "Skunk" Baxter (born December 13, 1948) is an American guitarist, known for his stints in the rock bands Steely Dan and The Doobie Brothers during the 1970s and Spirit in the 1980s. More recently, he has worked as a defense consu ...

, Marty Walsh – guitar on "9 to 5" *

Larry Carlton Larry Eugene Carlton (born March 2, 1948) is an American guitarist who built his career as a studio musician in the 1970s and 1980s for acts such as Steely Dan and Joni Mitchell. He has participated in thousands of recording sessions, recorde ...

– guitar on "House of the Rising Sun" and "Working Girl" *

Leland Sklar Leland Bruce Sklar (born May 28, 1947) is an American bassist and session musician. Sklar rose to prominence as a member of James Taylor's backing band, which coaleced into a group in its own right, The Section. This group of musicians so frequ ...

– bass guitar *

Abraham Laboriel Abraham Laboriel López Sr. (born July 17, 1947) is a Mexican-American bassist who has played on over 4,000 recordings and soundtracks. ''Guitar Player'' magazine called him "the most widely used session bassist of our time". Laboriel is the f ...

– bass guitar on "9 to 5" *Joe McGuffee – steel guitar *John Goux – slide guitar on "The House of the Rising Sun" *

Sonny Osborne Sonny Osborne (October 29, 1937October 24, 2021) was an American bluegrass musician and founding member of the Osborne Brothers. Personal life Born on October 29, 1937 in Thousandsticks, Kentucky, Sonny Osborne's father was a farmer, teacher, a ...

– banjo *Ron Oates – keyboards *

Ian Underwood Ian Robertson Underwood (born May 22, 1939) is a woodwind and keyboards player, known for his work with Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention. Biography Underwood graduated from The Choate School in 1957 and Yale University with a bachelor' ...

– synthesizer *Gregg Perry – organ on "Poor Folks Town" *

Larry Knechtel Lawrence William Knechtel (August 4, 1940 – August 20, 2009) was an American keyboard player and bassist who was a member of the Wrecking Crew, a collection of Los Angeles-based session musicians who worked with such renowned artists as Simon ...

– piano on "9 to 5" *

Eddie Bayers Eddie Bayers (born January 28, 1949) is an American session drummer who has played on 300 gold and platinum albums. He received the Academy of Country Music 'Drummer of the Year Award' for fourteen years, has three times won the Nashville Music ...

– drums *

Rick Shlosser Rick Shlosser is a graduate of the Berklee College of Music. He has been a member of Van Morrison's band and The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. He's also been a varied sessions drummer. Discography 1970s * Andy Pratt - ''Records Are Like Life'' (1 ...

– drums on "9 to 5" *

Lenny Castro Lenny or Lennie may refer to: People and fictional characters * Lenny (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Lennie (surname), a list of people * Lenny (singer) (born 1993), Czech songwriter Arts and entertainment Music * ''L ...

– percussion on "9 to 5" *Tom Saviano – saxophone on "9 to 5" *Ken Hutchcroft – baritone saxophone on "9 to 5" *

Jerry Hey Jerry Hey (born 1950) is an American trumpeter, flugelhornist, horn arranger, string arranger, orchestrator and session musician who has played on hundreds of commercial recordings, including Michael Jackson's '' Thriller'', ''Rock with You'', ...

– trumpet on "9 to 5" * Bill Reichenbach – trombone on "9 to 5" *

– synthesized flute on "But You Know I Love You" *Anita Ball, Joey Scarbury, Richard Dennison – backing vocals *Anita Ball, Denise Maynelli, Stephanie Spruill – backing vocals on "9 to 5" *

Bobby Osborne Bobby Osborne (born December 7, 1931) is an American bluegrass musician. He is the co-founder (with his brother Sonny Osborne) of the Osborne Brothers and a member of the Grand Ole Opry and the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame. He also ...

, Sonny Osborne – backing vocals on "Hush-a-Bye Hard Times" *Sid Sharp – concertmaster ;Technical *Chuck Britz, Doug Parry, Larry Carlton, Marshall Morgan, Paul Dobbe – engineer *George Corsillo – art direction, design *Tom Bryant – art direction *

Ron Slenzak Ronald J. Slenzak (born January 29, 1948) is an American photographer, best known for photographing record album covers. Some of the album covers that he has photographed include ''Spitfire'' (Jefferson Starship), ''Huey Lewis and the News'' (the ...

– photography

Charts

Album Album (Year-End)

References

External links

9 To 5 (And Odd Jobs) at Dolly Parton On-Line
{{DEFAULTSORT:9 To 5 And Odd Jobs Dolly Parton albums 1980 albums Concept albums RCA Records albums Albums produced by Mike Post