Dolly Parton goes rock’n’roll on her new album, in a long-documented quest to legitimize her induction into the Rock’n’Roll Hall of Fame. Now she’s calling on an old friend to help her get there: Bon Jovi guitarist Richie Sambora.
“Look, Dolly is the queen of the country man, let’s face it — she’s a national treasure,” Sambora, 64, tells PEOPLE exclusively of being tapped to record the guitar part on “Rock Star,” which debuted Friday. “I say, ‘What would you like me to do? I’ll go as far as you want.’ And they said: ‘Be you’.”
Sambora and Parton first met in 2014 when they took the stage together at the British music festival Glastonbury.
She covered a song I wrote called ‘Lay Your Hands on Me’ and she was singing Glastonbury, and she said, ‘Richie, it’s Dolly. I’m playing Glastonbury and I need some of that Richie Sambora rock and roll juice,” Sambora recalls. “It’s pretty crowded, isn’t it? So I said, ‘Well I’ll, ‘Yeah, but you’re going to have to chop me up there honey.’ So we went there and we blew the roof off together.”
The duo reunited in the studio this March. “It’s such a pleasure to be a part of other people’s records. I’ve played on a lot of records, I’ve written a lot of songs for other people on records, I’ve produced records for other people. It’s always a compliment and it’s always a blow,” he says. “I mean, I’m still a big fan of everybody, I’m still like a kid. I’m honored that Dolly is asking me.”
Sambora is the author of Bon Jovi’s rock/country cross over hit “Who Says You Can’t Go Home” featuring Jennifer Nettles and says he has long admired crossover music as an art form.
“People don’t go over that much! Everyone’s usually in their own domain, so to speak,” says Sambora, “so when that happens and it goes No. 1, that’s really cool.”
Richie Sambora in Los Angeles on November 4, 2023.
Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty
Richie Sambora Says Bon Jovi Reunion Tour ‘Could Definitely Happen’: ‘It’s Just a Question of When’ (Exclusive)
As for working with the Nashville legend, “I’m really grateful for it and I don’t take it for granted,” he says, adding that he and his daughter Ava, 26, with ex-wife, legendary TV actress Heather Locklear, bonded over invites to record her album.
“Ava lived through many records with me. In this house she saw and went through it all, she saw me work and I explained everything to her. And she loves music,” he says. “And my daughter’s generation loves Dolly, and you know why? Because she’s eternal and timeless. She happens to be a magnificent songwriter, and a great singer, and the whole thing. I mean, she hasn’t lost a step, that’s for Sure.”
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x0:751x2)/richie-sambora-ava-sambora-4-3802cb1a3928416c94eeff6ef9e766d3.jpg)
Ava and Richie Sambora in California in August 2011.
John Shearer/Getty
Sambora says his daughter is also responsible for his varied taste in music these days, including Post Malone, Ariana Grande and Lizzo. “I have my steady diet of blues, and jazz, and anything as long as it’s good songwriting.”
Heather Locklear & Richie Sambora Reunite to Watch Daughter Ava Receive Diploma in Family Therapy (Exclusive)
And don’t be surprised if he shows up at a Taylor Swift concert soon, wearing friendship bracelets.
“Having a daughter and being a musician, I’ve been a Swiftie for a long time,” Sambora says of her love for the singer/songwriter. “I always respect the work ethic… I mean, she’s a hard-working woman. And she blew up Ticketmaster. That’s something to be proud of!”
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education