OMG! I heard the other day that Dolly Parton had canceled yet another show because of unexplained health concerns, but now she’s dead—at 80. I don’t know anybody who isn’t fond of her; she was a great musician and, by all accounts, a lovely person. From the AP:
Dolly Parton, the country music icon whose soaring vibrato vocals, poignant songwriting and sparkling costumes defined her rise from a log cabin in the Tennessee mountains to the height of stardom and acclaim, has died. She was 80 years old.
Known for her curvy physique, massive blonde wigs and skin-tight outfits that served her self-deprecating wit, she was among the most beloved personalities in music and beyond — the rare celebrity whose appeal transcended generations, geography and politics.
She wrote hundreds of songs, including classics like “Jolene,” “Coat of Many Colors” and “I Will Always Love You,” that totaled more than 100 million worldwide sales and more than 1 billion online streams. Parton, who plucked bejeweled banjos, guitar and dulcimers with her long fingernails during performances, was a generous philanthropist and successful businesswoman whose projects included a theme park in the Smoky Mountain foothills near her birthplace.
The cause of death was not released, though some articles mention “accumulating health problems.”
As a tribute, I’ll post two of my favorite Dolly Parton songs released a few years apart. This one was apparently written for her mentor Porter Wagoner when she left his show. It’s from 1973.
“Here You Come Again” was written by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, and released by Parton in 1977.
RIP Dolly.
It wasn’t until “Trio” with Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt that I came to appreciate how good she was.
Very sad. She was great. I have nothing substantial to add.
A great talent, lost.
She was a genuinely good person who did a lot for the area of Tennessee where she grew up. Her book donation program for kids was an example of practical philanthropy, and has now given away more than 300 million books. Sad to see her go.
What an amazing bundle of energy, love, wit, humour and laughter.
Dolly making an impromptu appearance in a pub in Ireland while on holiday: https://x.com/curioXities/status/1864212930574614912
And paying tribute to Johnny Carson: https://x.com/lebatardshowfan/status/2092315004225650773
That was wonderful. There aren’t many singers nowadays who can pick up an unfamiliar microphone in a pub and sound as good as that without rehearsing. She was a true professional. Thanks for sharing.
She was a wonderful human, she showed us all that we could be kind and loving. And that voice! Our whole family is grieving.
I knew when I logged back on that I would see this here. The family visited her theme park in the Smoky Mts many years ago, when the kids were little.
Sad. I didn’t know about her self-deprecating wit. Good thing to have, even if it is often misunderstood.
Bet I’m not the only one here who immediately went over to youtube to listen to Jolene. Not remotely the sort of thing I usually listen to, but an authentic classic.
RIP everyone’s favourite person to have a cloned sheep named after them.
She was a National treasurer. A wonderful entertainer, smart business person, and philanthropist.
Her self-deprecating wit would always make me smile. “You wouldn’t believe how much it costs, to look this cheap.”
We will miss you Dolly
That’s my favorite line of hers too. She was someone we all could agree on.
My favourite was when she was asked if it bothered her that she was sometimes considered a dumb blond, and she said it didn’t, cause she new she wasn’t dumb and that she wasn’t blond, either.
I was not at all interested in Dolly or her music (my field at the time being music before 1750) until the film “9 to 5.” It was so easy to identify with the sexism and harassment and demeaning of women – and I loved her lines in the film, including her threat to make a hen out of the rooster. She won me over with that film, then even more with all of her philanthropic ventures, especially the books for kids and the financial aid she provided during natural disasters in Tennessee. The world has lost a generous, kind person; I am so sad at her passing.
Aside from her music, she was a first class philanthropist supporting children’s literature and, crucially, vaccine development giving $1m to Moderna to help develop Covid vaccines.
She was one of the good ones.
Dolly was a gifted song writer. She understood the form, “a song.”
Nevertheless, I’m posting a performance of one she didn’t write … the Bee Gees did … but her performances of it with Kenny Rogers filled the hearts of lovers all over the world…. Islands in the Stream.
https://youtu.be/HQW7I62TNOw
She was a class act. In a world where every celebrity feels that he/she tries to influence public opinion of some cause that he/she knows nothing about, she kept her opinions to herself and focused on her career and charitable causes.
RIP
I guess Jolene can do whatever she wants now.
Sad news. She seemed indestructible. But of course no one is.
Goodbye Dolly. You are the best of the best. Beautiful person; great talent.
I live in the Nashville area. There was a noticeable sadness and quiet everywhere I went today after the news broke. Trader Joe’s played a steady stream of her songs.
There is no other public figure in Tennessee whose passing would evoke such a universal response. That may be true for the country as well.
Here’s a recommendable obituary by music critic David Hurwitz: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVO-HB0tNpU