The legendary country singer got dolled up in an iconic Playboy Bunny suit Tuesday to give Carl -- her husband of 57 years -- a special 79th birthday gift ... recreating her original Playboy cover from 1978.

Carl's a lucky dude, because the fact is ... DP's plan was to share this gift with the whole world. You might recall, she told "60 Minutes Australia" back in March 2020 she'd be down to pose again when she's 75.

Fast forward to now ... Dolly is 75, but, as she explained, Playboy's not in any condition to make it happen. No matter, she's holding up her end of the bargain.

Goes without saying ... Dolly's still got it, and she ain't afraid to toot her own horn as you see in the video. She asks -- rhetorically, we think -- if Playboy should pay her anyway for a photoshoot.