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I’ve been a huge fan of Dolly Parton since my teens. Her death affected me deeply, as it did many other people. While she  was primarily a country singer, her talent and drive broke barriers and she was loved by millions, no matter what their political affiliations, creed, color, sexual orientation or socioeconomic status.

Dolly Parton started her career in the 60s and had a string of hits with her singing partner Porter Wagoner, with whom she worked until the mid-70s. Starting in 1967, she also recorded her own material and had at least a dozen albums under her belt by that point.

I first listened to Ms. Parton’s songs in high school in the mid-70s. I was not aware of her career with Porter Wagoner at the time, or of her early solo work. However, Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris admired her greatly, and I was a big fan of theirs. Linda recorded I will Always Love You on her 1975 lp, Prisoner In Disguise and Emmylou included Coat of Many Colors in her 1975 debut album, Pieces of the Sky. To Daddy appeared on her Quarter Moon in a Ten Cent Town lp in 1978.  

Linda Ronstadt’s version of I Will Always Love you appeared on her 1975 lp, Prisoner in Disguise.

This is from Emmylou Harris’s first album on the Reprise label. Released in 1975.

The three appeared together on Dolly’s  April 27, 1976 television program, THE DOLLY SHOW. They all sang Applejack, Bury Me Beneath the Willow, and The Sweetest Gift, among others.  Linda and Emmylou also performed I Can’t Help It If I’m Still in Love With You. I swear I saw their performance on Dolly’s show a very long time ago at my parents’ house, but I can’t say when. Maybe it was a re-run or something. Unfortunately, THE DOLLY SHOW only lasted a year (9/13/76-3/7/77).

There had been talk of a Trio album since this show, but it would take almost a decade before the first studio Trio album was released.

In 1977, I bought Here You Come Again, my first Dolly Parton album.  It was a huge crossover success, and it catapulted Dolly to superstar status. The title cut became a #1 hit and spent five weeks at number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and peaked at number three on the mainstream Billboard Hot 100.

The album included songs that were corny, and others that were quite good, with memorable melodies and lyrics. My favorite corny song is “God’s Coloring Book”. (If you listen very carefully, it isn’t corny at all. It’s an outline of Dolly’s spiritual philosophy). I have to admit that “Me and Little Andy” is a bit much to handle, however. I liked Two Doors Down and Sweet Music Man a lot.

On  April 21, 1978, I purchased the album titled Dolly, which featured the song, The Seeker (released in1975), followed by the lps Jolene (released in 1974), My Tennessee Mountain Home (released in 1973), Nine to Five (1980) and Heartbreak Express (1982). I also bought the New Harvest, First Gathering (1977), and My Blue Ridge Mountain Boy (1969) lps. I found most of these albums at used record stores like Al Bums or Zips. I rarely bought albums new, but I did buy Here You Come Again brand new. It took about ten years (1977-1987) to acquire all of these. There were so many more to find!

In 1987, the Trio album was released, and I snagged that up as quickly as I could. Finally!–an entire album of songs featuring the amazing harmonies of these three incredible singers. The album was well worth the wait and was a huge success. My favorite song is Wildflowers. Dolly wrote it and sings lead. There’s also My Dear Companion and Little Rosewood Casket, both of which touch my heartstrings deeply. Adio!!!

I left Tucson at the beginning of January 1987, and lived in Nogales Az. for 7 months, and then moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan where I stayed until April, 1992. Each time I moved, I took my ever-growing record collection with me, and I continued to search for Dolly’s records everywhere I could. The compact disc became everyone’s format of choice sometime in the mid-80s, so I also started collecting those, as well as cassettes and 45s. Even with all that, I’ll be the first to admit that I have but a snippet of Dolly’s recorded output. My collection consists of approximately 36 titles, including 13 lps, 12 compact discs and a handful of 45s (6) and cassettes (5). The date range is from 1967 to 2005. The one album I thought of buying but haven’t yet is Rock Star, the recording Dolly did after she was nominated to be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I’m not sure if I am going to like it, but I think it should be in my collection. We’ll see. I am not striving to be comprehensive in  collecting Dolly material. I’m happy with what I have! There’s too much out there anyway. It would take forever and cost a bundle to fill in all the gaps.

Here are some of Dolly’s songs that I really like:

• Coat of Many Colors
• Dark as a Dungeon
• Detroit City
• Eagle When She Flies
• God’s Coloring Book
• Here You Come Again
• Hollywood Potters
• I will Always Love You
• Jolene
• My Blue Ridge Mountain Boy
• My Blue Tears
• My Tennessee Mountain Home
• Single Women
• To Daddy
• Wildflowers

A few more memories…

When I lived on Highland Ave in 1978,  I had a Dolly Parton poster on my wall. It’s the one where she’s laying back on a big stack of hay and she has very short shorts on and a very tight fitting top. Cheesecake, anyone? She also graced the cover of Playboy at the time, and I think I still have that issue somewhere. I also had a Linda Ronstadt poster and an Emmylou Harris poster at the time. I’ve loved these singers for over fifty years now. Each were such amazing talents. Now Emmylou is the only one who still performs. Linda is holding on, but not singing.

During my first year or two of college, I would attend folk concerts at a place called the Cup. One  day a young red headed woman with a big guitar got up and sang Dolly’s song,  Jolene. She was excellent and really brought the song to life. It was the first time I’d heard it, actually. I was about 19 at the time, and was star struck. Her other gig was selling flowers on the street corners of the city. Yes, many young women did that at the time. Here’s a live version of Dolly singing Jolene.

I saw Nine to Five shortly after it premiered in December, 1980, probably some time in January. I don’t remember.  It was a big movie, a big, funny, feminist movie. Dolly stole the show. I loved it. Oh god, it was great. I also loved the album. It includes two of my favorite Dolly songs–Dark as a Dungeon and Detroit City. She didn’t write them, she but can sure sing them like she did! Wow. My favorites.

Dolly has been a steady presence in the media for decades. She has taken on a lot of projects, ranging from feature films to tv specials, to releasing one album after another over the years. This has earned her millions of dollars. Rather than hoard her money, or rest on her laurels, Dolly found ways to stay connected to people throughout her life, and she’s done what she could to support those in need over the years.

Her Imagination Library project started in 1995. She’s since given away millions of books to children all over the world. What an angel. That’s a huge impact. When I was a member of the Council of the American Library Association, we granted Dolly honorary lifetime status in ALA, and she posed for one of our famous READ posters.

A few months ago, I purchased another Dolly Parton biography, titled “Ain’t Nobody’s Fool”. This one is up to date, as it was published at the end of 2025. The first one that came out was published in 1994. I devoured it when I bought it. I am going to start reading the new one today!

What a beautiful angel. I can’t get over her passing, but I know she would want us all to stand tall and carry on together as one big, happy, human family. Thank you, Dolly, for everything.