A traditional country rendition of Torn, a duet between Dolly Parton and U2, is slated for release.
The Jolene hitmaker’s final recorded vocal before her August passing from cancer came from this collaboration for the Irish band’s Carnaval De Luz project; while she approved of the version the group completed, Bono revealed that another take on the track had also been captured.
Bono told The Sun: “We did something similar with Johnny Cash. If you consider Larry’s drum part, it creates more of a sci‑fi country landscape.”
“I think he did her a favor by avoiding the obvious route, but it was a gamble. If she hadn’t run with it — and she wouldn’t hesitate to tell you if not — then we’d have lost her.”
“But she liked the direction we took, and her camp is preparing a more traditional country version, which they’re going to release.”
“Hearing her voice within the Carnaval De Luz context is a bit jarring, and in a good way.”
Bono admitted he can “hardly listen” to the song now because the sorrow surrounding Dolly’s passing stirs strong emotions.
He said: “What a gift she gave us and what a blessing it felt like… I can hardly listen to that voice now.”
U2 had offered “loads” of material to Dolly before she revisited Torn, a track that originally followed a woman torn between two lovers but which was reshaped to depict a family split by clashing political views, a theme Dolly was well acquainted with from her 9 to 5 era.
Bono explained: “We wrote loads of songs that we tried to sell her. But she said, ‘Well, I have a song I started that you may want to take in a different direction and it’s called Torn.’”
“Dolly stayed away from politics, but she had two brothers who aren’t speaking to each other.”
“They’re squabbling over politics — and that doesn’t just happen in the red and blue states of America. It happens in the UK, it happens in Ireland, it happens all over the world, where families are at each other’s throats about the right way to go.”
The One hitmaker believes it’s important to give people with differing views “a bit of slack” and to listen to what they have to say, and he intends to draw inspiration from Dolly’s outlook on life.
He said: “She always wanted anyone to be welcome at her show, no matter what condition they arrived in. And that’s the way it has to be for us on next year’s tour.”
