"Baby I'm Burnin'" is a song by American singer-songwriter

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, actress, and philanthropist, known primarily as a country music, country musician. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton's debut album ...

. It was written by Parton who also produced the track with Gary Klein and Charles Koppelman who served as executive producer. The song was first released on Parton's twentieth solo studio album '' Heartbreaker'' in July 1978. It was released as a

double A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of vinyl records and cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a single usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or ...

single with " I Really Got the Feeling" on November 6, 1978 by

RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic ...

. "Baby I'm Burnin'" was aimed at pop radio, while "I Really Got the Feeling" was aimed at country radio. In addition to the standard

7-inch single In music, a single is a type of release of a song recording of fewer tracks than an album ( LP), typically one or two tracks. A single can be released for sale to the public in a variety of physical or digital formats. Singles may be standa ...

, an extended

12-inch single The twelve-inch single (often written as 12-inch or 12) is a type of vinyl ( polyvinyl chloride or PVC) gramophone record that has wider groove spacing and shorter playing time with a "single" or a few related sound tracks on each surface, compa ...

titled ''Dance with Dolly'' was released, which included an extended dance remix of "Baby I'm Burnin'" backed with an extended dance remix of "I Wanna Fall in Love". Parton frequently performs "Baby I'm Burnin'" in concert, often using it as her opening number. She also used the song as the theme to her 1987–1988 television series '' Dolly''. “Baby I’m Burnin’” was prominently featured on season 3, episode 4, of the hit TV Show '' Hacks''.

Critical reception

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' reviewed the single and called it "a high-energy change of pace for Parton." The review went on to say Parton's vocals "punch against the cooking groove of a track" which is "highlighted by horns and syn drums." ''Billboard'' reviewed the single again the following week, this time calling the song "a fiery rocker" and said that it had "a disco edge at times." They added that "Parton's crispy, high pitched vocals add to the rockish feel." '' Cashbox'' gave a positive review of the single, saying that the double-sided release "should cover all the bases." They compared "Baby I'm Burnin'" to

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

's "

Way Down "Way Down" is a song recorded by Elvis Presley. Recorded in October 1976, it was his last single released before his death on August 16, 1977. The song was written by Layng Martine Jr. and recorded by Presley at his home studio in Graceland ...

" and conclude by saying that both sides "should receive much airplay."

Commercial performance

"Baby I'm Burnin'" peaked at number 25 on the ''

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), o ...

, number 48 on the ''Billboard''

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data along with digital sales and streaming. ...

chart, and number 11 on the ''Billboard''

Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul ...

chart. The disco remix peaked at number 15 on the ''Billboard''

Dance Club Songs The Dance Club Songs (also known as National Disco Action, Hot Dance/Disco Club Play, and Hot Dance Club Play) was a chart published weekly between 1976 and 2020 by ''Billboard'' magazine. It used club disc jockeys set lists to determine the mos ...

chart.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Other versions

*In 2011, singer/actress Geri Reischl recorded a rendition of the song which was mixed with " Burning Love."

References

{{authority control 1978 singles Dolly Parton songs Songs written by Dolly Parton RCA Records Nashville singles 1978 songs Song recordings produced by Gary Klein (producer)