These are busy times for country legend Dolly Parton [ tickets ]. Among the projects on her plate: promoting a new collector's edition of last year's "Backwoods Barbie," readying a new Broadway musical and keeping her Dollywood theme park fresh.

On Monday (3/23), the revamped version of "Backwoods Barbie" hit Cracker Barrel stores, as did a photo book and 1,350 of Parton's pink designer rocking chairs.

The album's title track will be a featured song in "9 to 5: The Musical," for which the American singer, songwriter, film star and entrepreneur wrote all the music and lyrics. The show previewed in Los Angeles last fall at the Ahmanson Theatre. At the 40th annual Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards held March 16, Parton was honored with a "Musical Score" award for the production.

Parton spoke with LiveDaily about the collector's edition, "9 to 5: The Musical" and the 25th anniversary of Dollywood.

LiveDaily: You must be pleased with the collector's edition of "Backwoods Barbie."

Dolly Parton: Yeah, I am. I'm enjoying my association with Cracker Barrel. I've been going to Cracker Barrel for years and years and years. They've sold music of mine and many of my friends' through the years. We wanted to do something a little special. So we pinked it up a little bit and put some new artwork on "Backwoods Barbie," and then added three new songs that you can only get at Cracker Barrel. We have a photo collector's book that you can only get there, too, with all the different things I've done throughout the years and a big pink rocking chair. We got three things--just a little bonus for everybody. So it's fun. We're enjoying it. We like eating the food when we go there.

Were the new songs you included on "Backwoods Barbie" collector's edition outtakes from the original recording sessions, or were they specifically written for Cracker Barrel?

These were not songs from the "Backwoods Barbie" session. These were songs specifically written for Cracker Barrel for them to put in their collector's item that was true to their audience and their clientele and my audience. A lot of them sound like the old-time stuff. I wanted it to fit and flow within the whole CD. I didn't want it to sound like three songs stuck in there that didn't fit. It all fits because I had written nine of the songs already, and these three additional. I picked songs that I felt would fit them: "Berry Pie"--they're so famous for their cobblers and cakes and pies. This is a love song about making a guy a berry pie, like a way to a man's heart is through his stomach. It's a fun song. One's called "Hallelujah Holiday" about people being overjoyed with the fact that they're off work and traveling around. When you're on vacation you always stop at Cracker Barrel when you get hungry. That one I thought fit. It's very spiritual and kind of gospel feeling. They're all about that as well. The other one's called "Rose of My Heart," which is about true love and forever love and staying together love. It's got that old Appalachian sound to it. We chose them carefully and wrote them carefully to fit.

"9 to 5: The Musical" is going to make its debut April 30.

I've actually been working on that for four years--not all the time. I've worked off and on, and we've been involved in it for four years. Hopefully it'll do good. It does open on April 30 and we start previews on the 7th in front of a live audience. Anybody can come starting on the 7th to see it. We have the red carpet and the big festivities on the 30th. Hopefully it'll be there for awhile. The economy's so bad, we're hoping it even gets there.

That must have been a lot of hard work

Yes, it is a lot of work. I've never worked on anything that's taken that long. Usually, when you work in the music business, for me, certainly my kind of singing, I can get an album done, completely written, recorded, mixed and artwork out within eight months to a year, at the most. A thing like this takes years. Then you never know. It's like one of those things. With Broadway you can work all that time, open one night and close the next. But, anyway, we think the show is great. If there is a show to see during these hard times, it would be this one, because it's very uplifting, very funny, got a lot of comedy and a lot of the songs are very uplifting. It would be a fun show. It's about working people. I think everyone in this day and time can relate to it.

Are you going to go on tour this year?

No, we're not going on tour this year. I've got to finish the work with "9 to 5: The Musical." I have to open Dollywood for the 24th season. I got a few things to do there in June with Kidsfest. I have a new children's book called "I Am a Rainbow" coming out. It's about the moods of children. It's catered for children from 0 to 5 years old. Then I'm gonna take off a little time and try to rest and do a few personal things and maybe write a few songs because I want to, not because I have to.

I can't believe Dollywood is 24 years old.

Can you believe it? Next year is our 25th anniversary. We're already trying to think of something great to do for that. Woo. Time flies.