Not for nothing does Dolly Parton have the nickname, “The Iron Butterfly”. A sort of term of endearment in the largely male music industry, it refers to the fact that while Parton may look like a walking frosted cupcake, her financial nous is a force to be reckoned with.

Let’s not forget, this is the woman who turned down Elvis Presley’s request to cover her song I Will Always Love You on account of Colonel Tom Parker’s demand for half the publishing rights (she has since earned around $6million from Whitney Houston’s cover). Which would seem to explain the appearance of this candy pink, glossy box set, released to coincide with her new world tour.

But while it is true that Parton is sure to make a cent or two here, part of the cash is likely to be ploughed into her (cough) charitable endeavours. And look past the packaging (which is vile, even by a seven-year-old, fairy wing-wearer’s standard). This is a comprehensive overview of Parton’s rich output during the past 40 years.

Split over four CDs, Love should of course be the gloopiest collection – and it would be, were it not for the singular sound of Parton’s voice, which really does flutter, like the “rare and gentle thing” she sings about in Love is Like a Butterfly. Her ability to transform such songs is partly down to the sincerity of her say-it, sing-it style of writing; and the rootsy recollections of her Mountain Memories songs go back to her “dirt poor” childhood at Locust Ridge. Few could get away with singing lines such as: “I’ve seen daddy’s hands break open and bleed” over a jaunty country background.

Covers features agreeably 1980s versions of songs by Joe South, Jackie Wilson and Donna Summer, while Duets abounds in enjoyable naffness (the lovely Islands In the Stream), with Parton teaming up with Emmylou Harris, Rod Stewart and Willie Nelson among others.

Parton has said herself that her objective is to hold people’s attention long enough to see “that there is a brain underneath all of this hair, and a heart underneath these boobs”. Listen to Parton’s output, and it is clear that the heart and the talent are appropriately massive.

(Sony BMG, TMS £11.99, call 0845 6026328)

Editor's choice

• U2 at Nou Camp Stadium, Barcelona
• The 50 Best Movie Villains
• The 15 golden rules of theatre etiquette