The country singer Dolly Parton wanted to be huge: “Great on the stage”
Those who aren’t especially big fans of country music will likely never get why others enjoy it so much. However, those who do understand its charm, like Dolly Parton, will know that it’s more than just infectious melodies and authentic lyricism.
As Parton once said, “It’s mighty big, but I think that country music is music with a lot of class, and a lot of soul. Of course, it’s just ordinary stories told by ordinary people, and sometimes in an extraordinary way. It touches home.”
While Parton was also inspired by many of the biggest legends in country music, from Hank Williams to June Carter Cash, she herself embodied those qualities, pouring her heart and soul into her own music and spotlighting her experiences growing up in ways that “touched home” for countless others.
One of her most personal songs, ‘Coat of Many Colors’, not only tells the story of a patchwork hand-me-down coat her mother sewed because she didn’t have the money to buy clothes, but also the special bond she had with her family and how she didn’t need material possessions or lots of money to be happy or appreciate what she had at the time. As she sings in the song, “Although we had no money, I was rich as I could be.”
While there are countless others with a similar message, some, like ‘I Will Always Love You’, showcase her artistic vulnerability in different ways and how she could channel otherwise heartbreaking experiences into timeless compositions that still bring people to tears to this day.
A departure anthem aimed at her former musical partner and mentor, Porter Wagoner, ‘I Will Always Love You’ remains a powerfully bittersweet tune about accepting a situation without any lingering bitterness, a message that is no doubt part of the reason why she is still one of the most significant artists in music.
After all, despite her struggles, including the fact that she’d had to navigate the perils of being a woman in a predominantly male-dominated genre and industry, Parton has always taken things in her stride, reframing so-called weaknesses as her own sources of empowerment. And if this doesn’t appear in her music, it appears in the countless times she’s faced scrutiny or suggestive comments in interviews, constantly responding with wit, charm and perhaps most importantly, grace.
Parton also often recognises the same qualities in others, mostly when it comes to their own talent and whether or not they have the potential to make it on a bigger scale. Tanya Tucker, for instance, navigated the industry alongside Parton when they were younger, with Parton guiding Tucker during her first and most significant moments in the spotlight.
In country music and the industry as a whole, it’s easy for similar artists to become rivals, but really, all Parton ever wanted for Tucker was for her to make it. As she told Playboy, Tucker truly had the potential to become one of the legends, she just needed the right team around her to actually make it happen.
“If she ever gets with the right producer and the right label and gets the right manager, I think she can really be great, especially as a rock-‘n’-roll singer,” said Parton, concluding, “Her voice is so powerful, like a Janis Joplin or a Linda Ronstadt. She could really be a huge artist, because she is great on the stage.”
