Dolly Parton Has An Offer For REO Speedwagon, Kevin Cronin Explains

While REO Speedwagon frontman Kevin Cronin was going about his day, he got a call from Dolly Parton, who made him an offer he couldn’t possibly refuse. During a recent conversation with Yahoo Entertainment’s Lyndsey Parker, Cronin shared some details about this offer and discussed what might be on the horizon for the awaiting fans.

Dolly sure is determined to prove to anyone, who doubted her induction into the Rock Hall, that she’s worthy of the honor. So, as soon as the country icon got inducted, she started working on her upcoming album, ‘Rock Star,’ which reportedly will feature numerous names from rock royalty, such as Paul McCartney and Elton John.

However, the only rockers Parton wished to collab weren’t them. She’d also rang Kevin Cronin and asked him to come over to the studio to cover a rendition of REO Speedwagon power ballad, ‘Keep On Loving You.’ Cronin explained that he readily took on the offer, and evidently, the pair’s duet added darker elements to the track.

Kevin was pleased with this new ‘darker’ version of the song, as he argued that the track was always meant to be performed this way. It was known that the singer had penned ‘Keep On Loving You’ after discovering his then-wife, Denise, was cheating on him. However, he had felt that the song presented him as more of the ‘good guy’ than he was. So, he believed that maybe this new take would be more suitable.

The frontman recalled getting a call from Parton and hearing about her offer as follows:

“I get a call from Dolly, literally the other day, Because she was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and at first she didn’t want to go in because she didn’t feel like it was proper, then she got the idea of ‘OK, I’ll be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, but I gotta make a rock ‘n’ roll record.’

And she decides she wants to cover ‘Keep on Loving You.’ The day after I did my vocal, Elton John was recording his. But here’s the kicker, when I wrote that song, I kind of portrayed myself as more of the good guy than perhaps I was. Perhaps it takes more than one snake in the grass, ‘all coiled up and hissing,’ to tango — if you catch my drift. That’s the reality of the song, you know.”

He continued:

“So, it gave me the idea that Dolly could sing the first verse, and in the first verse, I’m cheating on her. But then I take the second verse, and in the second verse, I go, ‘Oh yeah? Well, I know all about those men, And so now, the song becomes this kind of dark duet — until it gets to the chorus, where they go, ‘I meant every word I said.’

It just slays me because that’s how the song was meant to be performed; I just didn’t realize it until Dolly called me the other day. So that’s how we’re doing it, and I’m just so stoked.”

It’s evident that Dolly wishes to gather an all-star lineup for her first rock record. However, ‘Keep On Loving You’ isn’t the only cover of a classic rock anthem, as the country icon will also cover various other tracks from names such as the Rolling Stones to Lynyrd Skynyrd.