Patrick Watson: ‘Dolly Parton is hardcore’

What does Montreal musician Patrick Watson think about famed country singer Dolly Parton? You won’t find out in my article about Watson in the current issue of The Uniter.

But you will find out here.

What follows are some excerpts from the interview I conducted with Watson at the Winnipeg Folk Festival last month.

Patrick Watson on Dolly Parton:

I would’ve loved to have her sing on (Wooden Arms), yeah. There was one song I really wrote for her to sing (Big Bird in a Small Cage). I think she would’ve sung it real nice, you know? She’s got one of the most phenomenal voices in American song. She’s also an incredible songwriter.

She’s also a very witty, hardcore motherfucker. . . . You know if you watch interviews (with) Bob Dylan, and he’s got a lot of wit and he’s a good interviewee—she has that same amount of wit as Bob Dylan. You watch interviews with her and you’ll be floored. She’s not a dumb, blonde bimbo, even though she has this kind of persona because of the way she dresses and the big breasts and stuff.

And when she sings, she blows your mind. I saw a concert and it was one of the most touching things I’ve ever seen. . . . The thing is, she sings honestly and so to the heart that there’s nothing you can say about that. When someone sings like that, there’s nothing you can do. It’s no nonsense, you know?

...If you get a chance to see her, don’t miss it. It’ll be one of your favourite concerts ever. I guarantee it.

Patrick Watson on why he thinks Chad VanGaalen will win this year’s Polaris Music Prize:

He’s got that momentum behind him right now. Momentum is the key in all these types of things. (Soft Airplane is) a really good record, he’s a really good performer. I remember the last time he was nominated with us and he did a great performance, so I don’t know. It’s just my gut feeling on it.

Patrick Watson on what his band will do with the $20,000 if they happen to win the Polaris Music Prize again:

I don’t know what we’d do if we won it again. I think if we won it again, it might be good to (make) a donation or something. Or, we never got the money (in 2007) [Watson and his bandmates used the $20,000 to pay for a van they totaled while touring in the U.S.], so I think maybe we should keep this fucking money and buy ourselves something nice. Who knows? We’ll think of something.