SHE STARTED IT — naming her latest album "Backwoods Barbie" and all.

So before the country legend's performance next week at the Fox Theatre, we thought we'd follow her lead, and break down Dolly Parton's appeal, part by part:

Kevork Djansezian/AP (ENLARGE)
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Map it and review it RELATED LINKS: • PHOTOS: Dolly Parton’s influence on other artists • CD review: “Backwoods Barbie”

Hair — Higher than a tall building, and more blonde than anyone would expect a 62-year-old's hair to be, this singer's mane has become as much of a signature as the infamous duo that lies below. (How Patti LaBelle has a line of wigs, and she doesn't, is baffling!)

Mouth — Her ever-sunny personality beams from this bright, shiny asset. "I've always had a good attitude," Parton says in her press material. "I wake up every day expecting things to be good. And if they're not, then I set out about trying to get it fixed. I try to live every day like it might be my last. I don't want to have to wake up, face God and say, 'Well, duh, I should have tried.' "

Throat — For proof of her vocal pipes, one need only listen to "Islands in the Stream" (with Kenny Rogers) and her crossover pop song "Here You Come Again."

Heart — Even if you didn't know she had an American Eagle Foundation on her Dollywood Theme Park site — which recently released a young America bald eagle blown from its Florida nest back into the wild — or that she raised $500,000 for a new hospital in her native Sevier County, Tenn., there's no way you could have heard her "Coat of Many Colors" and not known she has heart.

Head — Don't let the "Dumb Blonde" persona fool you. (Actually the title of her 1967 single). The woman who released her latest CD on her own independent label (Dolly Records) has a mind for business. And a portfolio that includes a theme park and an entertainment production company.

(Investing in herself has also worked out quite well. "Backwoods Barbie" has climbed as high as No. 2 on the Billboard album chart in its second week in stores. It's her highest chart position in 17 years.)

Cleavage — Nicknamed "shock" and "awe" by Parton, she never has a problem showing them — or talking about them. "They do seem like public property in a way," she told Ladies' Home Journal. "They serve me well — I don't know if I'm supporting them or they're supporting me."

"I've always had nice ones," she said to the New York Post. "But of course I've had 'em jacked up a bit."

Parton also blamed them for her recent back troubles, which prevented her from starting her tour earlier. "You try wagging these puppies around for a while and see if you don't have back problems," goes the widely reported quote.

Ribs — If you've read this far, surely you agree she's a rib-tickler with a great sense of humor — joking mostly about herself. "All the stuff I got made fun of as a kid — bubble butt, fish lips, the dark skin — I'm proud of now," USA Today reported. "And if someone asks me point-blank, 'Have you had plastic surgery?' ... It's like, well, duh."

Hand — Going back to that savvy businesswoman part, where Whitney Houston certainly saw a truckload of acclaim for her role in "The Bodyguard," with Kevin Costner, it was Parton who saw a truckload of publishing money for penning that movie's monster hit, "I Will Always Love You." (It spent 14 weeks atop the charts, a record-breaker until Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men came around four years later with "One Sweet Day.")

Heels — Among the toe-tappers in her 4-decade-old catalog are "Jolene," "9 to 5" (from the movie of the name same, which she co-starred in) and her more recent single, "Better Get to Livin'. "

* THE 411: Dolly Parton. $55 to $100. 8 p.m. April 29 at the Fox Theatre, 660 Peachtree St. 404-249-6400 or www.ticketmaster.com.