Final Vocal Recording By Dolly Parton — A Duet With U2 — Is Out Now
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On Friday, Nov. 13, the Irish rock band U2 will release its first album of completely original music in nine years, titled Carnaval De Luz.
Quite notably, the final track on the album is a duet between U2’s frontman, Bono, and the late country music icon Dolly Parton.
This song, titled “Torn,” is being released in two versions, with a country variation of the song, dubbed “Torn” (Kent Wells Version), being released exclusively on country radio one day early, on Thursday, Nov. 12.
Speaking about the album, Bono revealed that his duet with Dolly was recorded in June of this year, just two months before her death at the age of 80 on Aug. 25, 2026.
Further, he said it was Dolly’s final vocal recording.
Of the song “Torn,” Bono admitted he “can’t even listen to it now.”
Now, the final song recorded by Dolly Parton is available for the world to hear.
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Listen To The Final Song Recorded By Dolly Parton
Prior to the release of U2’s new album, Carnaval De Luz, Bono and the other band members sat down with Zane Lowe of Apple Music for an interview, shedding some light on how his collaboration with Dolly Parton came about.
“She was ill at the time — we didn’t know how ill, of course — and she got out of bed to sing this song,” Bono said. “It meant a lot to us.”
Expounding on this with Rolling Stone, Bono said that “you can hear” that she’s ill, adding, “I can’t even listen to it now.”
The song, titled “Torn,” is the closing track to U2’s Carnaval De Luz.
While the version that is more in the rock style that U2 is known for has not yet been released, the country variation — helmed by Dolly’s longtime producer Kent Wells — was released at midnight on Thursday, Nov. 12.
Recorded at Blackbird Studios Nashville, Kent Wells played acoustic guitar on his version of the song, in addition to producing the track.
Lyrically, the song has rich imagery, and it finds 80-year-old Dolly singing the following sentiment as the song’s chorus:
“Torn apart these loving hearts / That beat and break the same / We share a house divided / And the blood that fills our veins / Brothers turn to strangers / And sons deny their name / Somebody loses either way / And every heart is torn / Torn, torn, torn / Torn, torn, torn / Every heart is torn.”
Before this song was realized, Bono shared that it was initially his hope to work with Dolly on a project focused upon Irish folk music.
Of course, Dolly is no stranger to Irish music.
Working with the Irish folk band Altan, Dolly recorded several songs, including a live recording from a performance at Dollywood of “Barbara Allen,” featured on the 1994 Dolly album Heartsongs: Live From Home.
She also worked with Altan on the song “In the Sweet Bye & Bye,” from her 2001 album Little Sparrow; as well as contributing vocals to “The Pretty Young Girl” on Altan’s 2002 album The Blue Idol.
For Bono and Dolly, their collaboration was long distance, but it still proved to be a rich experience.
Working over the phone with Dolly, Bono said he played samples of Irish folk material he was working on, recalling that she said at one point, “‘That’s a little too Irish for me.’”
However, Dolly didn’t let that stop their work, as she then presented Bono with a song she had written, with Bono telling Rolling Stone that she said, “‘I got this song. It’s called ‘Torn,’ and do you wanna see where you can take it somewhere else, maybe?’”
Working with Johnny McDaid, of the Irish band Snow Patrol, Bono took the lyrics Dolly had penned for “Torn,” tweaking them to be built around the story of a mother as she watches her family split apart.
After the changes were made, Dolly agreed to collaborate on the song, and Bono told Rolling Stone, “She sang her heart out, and I cannot believe that’s an 80-year-old woman.”
Ultimately, Dolly even had approval of the final mix of “Torn.”
The album’s producer, Garret “Jacknife” Lee, said that “Dolly loved it,” adding, “She was so proud of her vocal and the recording. She was thrilled with it. We were very nervous that she might not approve, or would be uncomfortable with it, but she loved it.”
Reflecting on the loss of Dolly, Bono told Rolling Stone, “It’s very moving to have had these intimacies with such a figure. The fact that they’re not there now, in any way you can call back, other than through her songs, is very sobering.”
Listen to U2’s “Torn,” featuring the final vocal recording by Dolly Parton, by tuning in to iHeartCountry Radio throughout the day on Nov. 12.
It can also be heard on Nov. 12 through Cumulus, Audacy, Beasley, Summit, Townsquare, and SiriusXM The Highway, Prime Country, and Y2Country, as well as the Music Choice platform.
This article will be updated when direct links to either version of “Torn” is released.
See the note Dolly sent Bono, included here on the second slide:
Watch U2 discuss recording “Torn” with Dolly Parton, here:
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