Review: Dolly Parton finds the spirit on 'Let It Be' with Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr

POP/ROCK

Dolly Parton featuring Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, "Let It Be"

Leave it to Parton to reunite the surviving Beatles for a rousing rendition of "Let It Be," which will appear on her star-studded November album, "Rockstar." Accompanied by Peter Frampton on guitar and Mick Fleetwood on drums, Parton dives head-first into the song's reverent spiritualism, as she did on her great 2001 cover of Collective Soul's "Shine." Her "Let It Be" hews closer to the original arrangement, as McCartney leads the way with his memorable piano progression and Frampton lets a mid-song solo rip. Were it done with anything less than absolute conviction, the whole thing would feel like a superfluous rock star indulgence. But the earnest, serene warmth of Parton's voice makes it work, as she enlivens one of the most familiar songs in rock history with her own particular glow.

LINDSAY ZOLADZ, New York Times

Guns N' Roses, "Perhaps"

Now that Slash and Duff McKagan have rejoined GNR (currently on a North American stadium tour), fans are hoping that a new album will arrive faster than "Chinese Democracy" did. At the very least, they have a new single: the mid-tempo, piano-driven rocker "Perhaps." "Perhaps I was wrong," Axl Rose growls with uncharacteristic contrition, later adding, "My sense of rejection is no excuse for my behavior." Is it about the band members themselves mending fences? Perhaps. But the song transcends such earthbound concerns as lyrical content once it finds its footing and crescendos into the stratosphere with a vintage Slash solo.

LINDSAY ZOLADZ, New York Times

Tony Bennett and k.d. lang, "Because of You"

After recording and performing with the late crooner at various times over three decades, lang released a new version of the ballad that gave Bennett his first No. 1 hit in 1951, which they reprised on his Grammy-winning 2006 album, "Duets: An American Classic." Lang sings here with the casual, unrefined grace that she and Bennett have in common, over pillowy piano chords and an upright bass. Proceeds will go toward Exploring the Arts, the nonprofit that Bennett founded with his wife, Susan Benedetto.

GIOVANNI RUSSONELLO, New York Times

R&B/HIP-HOP

Quavo, "Hold Me"

"Hold Me" is a plea for comfort that's rapped and sung by Quavo from Migos, whose nephew and Migos member Takeoff was fatally shot in 2022. With phantom voices harmonizing over minor chords, it calls for divine and earthly solace, never sure if they will materialize.

JON PARELES, New York Times

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