Dolly Parton's final recorded vocal is officially out. "Torn," her duet with U2's Bono, arrived Friday, Nov. 13, as the closing track on the band's new album, Carnaval De Luz, U2's 16th studio album.
Parton recorded her part in Nashville in June, less than three months before she died on Aug. 25 at age 80. She co-wrote the song with U2 and Snow Patrol's Johnny McDaid. Bono has said the band knew she was ill but never expected it to be her last vocal.
Fans can hear three versions released today: the U2 album version, a rendition produced by Kent Wells, Parton's longtime producer and band leader, and a third treatment by T Bone Burnett. A country version also premiered on country radio Thursday.
The collaboration began when Bono gave Parton bagpipes as a birthday gift and she agreed to hear his demos. She told him she had started a song called "Torn" and he could take it where he wanted. Her original idea was about a woman choosing between two men. U2 reworked it into the story of a family fractured by deep disagreements.
In a June 2 note to Bono, Parton wrote, "I've always loved you and always will."
For many listeners, the song is a tender last word from an artist who often spoke openly about her Christian faith, and who spent her career bringing people together.
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