The cast of NBC sketch show Saturday Night Live dedicated their most recent cold open to celebrating Mother’s Day on Saturday night (May 8), with cast members such as Kate McKinnon and Aidy Bryant appearing alongside their moms at the top of the show.
Those clips were backed by an emotional performance from musical guest Miley Cyrus, who covered “Light of a Blue Clear Morning” by her country superstar godmother, Dolly Parton, for the occasion.
Parton released ”Light of a Blue Clear Morning” in 1977 as the first single off her 18th album, New Harvest…First Gathering. The song was a Top 15 hit on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. While Parton had already released many albums by 1977, New Harvest…First Gathering was her first self-produced project.
Cyrus’ emotional delivery of “Light of a Blue Clear Morning” underscored the song’s message of emerging from a period of emotional tumult into the metaphorical “light of a brand new day.” It was an especially poignant message for 2021, nodding to the uncertainties presented by the COVID-19 pandemic.
At the end of her SNL performance, Cyrus was joined onstage by the show’s cast and their moms as well as her own mom, Tish Cyrus. She wished both her mom and Parton a happy Mother’s Day.
In addition to her personal tie to Parton as her goddaughter, Cyrus has collaborated musically with the legendary country artist, too. On Parton’s 2020 holiday album, A Holly Dolly Christmas, Cyrus joins Parton to reflect on the true meaning of the holiday season in a duet called “Christmas Is.”
See Country Stars With Their Moms