The Halos & Horns Tour was a 2002 concert tour by American singer-songwriter Dolly Parton in support of her album Halos & Horns. It was Parton's first large-scale concert tour in approximately a decade and marked a return to regular touring after years in which she had largely limited her live appearances to selected concerts, casino engagements and performances at Dollywood.
Unlike the larger-scale productions associated with some of Parton's earlier tours, the Halos & Horns concerts emphasized an acoustic, roots-oriented sound reflecting the bluegrass and Appalachian influences of Halos & Horns and its predecessors The Grass Is Blue (1999) and Little Sparrow (2001). Parton was accompanied by an eight-piece band featuring acoustic guitar, banjo, dobro, fiddle, mandolin, bass, keyboards and drums.
The tour began in the United States in July 2002 and later traveled to the United Kingdom and Ireland. Parton's London performances marked her first concerts there in nearly two decades.
The final concerts at Dollywood's Celebrity Theatre in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, on December 12 and 13, 2002, were recorded and later released as the live album and concert video Live and Well in 2004.
Background
Parton had significantly reduced her touring schedule during the 1990s. By the end of that decade, however, she had begun a critically successful return to acoustic country and bluegrass music with The Grass Is Blue, followed by Little Sparrow and Halos & Horns.
Halos & Horns, released in July 2002, continued that roots-oriented direction while mixing Parton originals with interpretations of songs including Bread's "If" and Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven".
Rather than performing primarily in arenas, Parton booked a number of comparatively intimate theaters and clubs during the American portion of the tour. The Washington Post, reviewing her performance at Washington, D.C.'s 9:30 Club, described the tour as her first large-scale tour in a decade and noted that she was playing venues more commonly associated with younger rock acts.
The concerts largely avoided the elaborate staging associated with some of Parton's previous tours. The musical arrangements instead emphasized acoustic instrumentation and material from her three recent roots-oriented albums, while also incorporating earlier hits such as "Coat of Many Colors", "Jolene", "9 to 5" and "I Will Always Love You". Several of her pop hits, including "Islands in the Stream", "Here You Come Again" and "Two Doors Down", were performed as part of an a cappella medley.
Critical reception
The tour received positive reviews from several major publications. Reviewing the Washington, D.C. concert, David Segal of The Washington Post praised Parton's ability to move between country, bluegrass, gospel and pop, as well as the intimacy of the smaller venue.
The European leg also received favorable notices. Fiona Sturges of The Independent wrote that Parton's return to the United Kingdom followed a period of renewed critical attention prompted by her bluegrass-oriented albums, and described the Hammersmith Apollo audience as spanning country fans, younger pop listeners and gay fans. Carol McDaid of The Observer similarly praised Parton's vocals and storytelling during the London performance, highlighting performances of "Applejack", "Marry Me", "Halos and Horns", "Little Sparrow" and "I Will Always Love You".
Live recording
The December 12 and 13 concerts at the Celebrity Theatre at Dollywood were recorded for a live release. The resulting album, Live and Well, was issued by Sugar Hill Records on September 14, 2004, together with a concert DVD.
The recording documents much of the tour's characteristic set, including material from The Grass Is Blue, Little Sparrow and Halos & Horns, alongside Parton's best-known songs. AllMusic described the recording as capturing Parton during a period of renewed artistic and commercial attention following her return to roots-oriented music.
Set list The following set list is taken from the December 12–13, 2002 performances at Dollywood's Celebrity Theatre, which were recorded for Live and Well. It does not necessarily represent the set list performed at every show on the tour.
"Orange Blossom Special" "Train, Train" "The Grass Is Blue" "Mountain Angel" "Shine" "Little Sparrow" "Rocky Top" "My Tennessee Mountain Home" "Coat of Many Colors" "Smoky Mountain Memories" "Applejack" "Marry Me" "Halos and Horns" "I'm Gone" "Dagger Through the Heart" "If" "After the Gold Rush" "9 to 5" "Jolene" A cappella medley: "Islands in the Stream" "Here You Come Again" "Why'd You Come in Here Lookin' Like That" "Two Doors Down" "We Irish" "Stairway to Heaven" "I Will Always Love You"
Notes "Color Me America", "Calm on the Water", "Try", "Down from Dover", "I Don't Wanna Throw Rice", "He's a Go Getter", and "I'll Oilwells Love You" were performed on select dates.
Tour dates DateCityCountryVenueNorth AmericaJuly 10, 2002New York CityUnited StatesIrving PlazaJuly 15, 2002Washington, D.C.9:30 ClubJuly 20, 2002NashvilleGrand Ole Opry HouseJuly 21, 2002Ryman AuditoriumJuly 25, 2002AtlantaEarthlink LiveJuly 29, 2002New OrleansHouse of BluesAugust 3, 2002DallasGranada TheaterAugust 7, 2002West HollywoodHouse of BluesAugust 10, 2002Las VegasAugust 13, 2002DenverParamount TheatreAugust 17, 2002ChicagoHouse of BluesAugust 21, 2002LowellLowell Memorial AuditoriumAugust 28, 2002St. LouisThe Pageant Concert NightClubAugust 31, 2002Kansas CityUptown TheaterSeptember 4, 2002Sioux FallsHusby Performing Arts CenterEuropeNovember 12, 2002ManchesterEnglandBridgewater HallNovember 18, 2002LondonCarling Apollo HammersmithNovember 19, 2002November 23, 2002BelfastNorthern IrelandWaterfront HallNovember 26, 2002GlasgowScotlandClyde AuditoriumNovember 27, 2002November 29, 2002DublinIrelandPoint TheatreNorth AmericaDecember 12, 2002Pigeon ForgeUnited StatesCelebrity TheaterDecember 13, 2002
External links Parton's Official Website
References
Dollymania page on tour press release Village Voice review