Dolly Parton Wrote Her First Song at Six
The singer Dolly Parton has died, and other singers say thank you for her music.
The singer Dolly Parton has died.
She wrote her first song at about six years old. It was about her doll.
She sang on The Porter Wagoner Show from 1967. Then she left and sang alone.
She wrote the song I Will Always Love You.
Elvis Presley wanted to sing it. His manager asked for half the money. Dolly said no.
In 1992, Whitney Houston sang the song. Dolly got a lot of money.
Taylor Swift and Beyoncé said thank you for her music.
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Dolly Parton, Writer of 9 To 5 and Jolene, Has Died
Tributes came from Taylor Swift and Beyoncé after the death of the American country singer.
Dolly Parton, the American country singer, has died. Taylor Swift and Beyoncé are among the singers who paid tribute to her.
She wrote her first song, Little Tiny Tasseltop, when she was about six years old. It was about her favourite doll. Her big break came in 1967, when she was hired as the "girl singer" on The Porter Wagoner Show. Together they released 21 hit duets.
Later she decided to work alone, and she wrote I Will Always Love You for Wagoner. He sued her in 1979 for $3m (£2,2m), but she settled for about $1m. She never said bad things about him, because he gave her an important career break.
Elvis Presley wanted to record I Will Always Love You, but his manager said Elvis would only do it if Parton gave him half of the publishing rights. She said no, because she wanted to leave the song to her family. "I cried all night," she said.
In 1992, Whitney Houston recorded the song for The Bodyguard. Parton still owned the rights, so she earned a lot of money. She invested it in a black neighbourhood in Nashville, Tennessee.
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Dolly Parton's Legacy: 9 To 5, Jolene and a Fight Over Song Rights
The country star, who wrote her first song aged about six, has died, and Taylor Swift and Beyoncé have led the tributes.
Dolly Parton, the American country singer and songwriter, has died. Taylor Swift and Beyoncé led the tributes to her.
Parton was about six years old when she wrote her first song, Little Tiny Tasseltop, about her favourite doll. Her breakthrough came in 1967, when she was hired as the "girl singer" on The Porter Wagoner Show, a programme watched by millions of viewers each week. She and Wagoner released 21 hit duets, but as her career grew she decided to work as a solo artist. She wrote I Will Always Love You as a letter of apology to her former mentor, and in 1979 he sued her for breach of contract, demanding $3m (£2,2m). To avoid a long court case, she settled for about $1m. "I made up my mind that if he could live with it, I could live without it," she wrote in her autobiography.
Elvis Presley wanted to record I Will Always Love You, but the night before the session his manager, Colonel Tom Parker, told Parton that Elvis would not record it unless she gave him half of the publishing rights. She refused, saying she wanted to leave the song to her family. "And he said, 'Well, then we can't do it.' And I cried all night," she told Reba McEntire's podcast in 2020.
When Whitney Houston recorded the song for The Bodyguard soundtrack in 1992, Parton still owned the rights and earned "enough money to buy Graceland". She invested the money in a black neighbourhood in Nashville, Tennessee, saying it was an apt way to honour Houston's legacy.
Her songs often came from her own life. Coat of Many Colors, from 1971, describes her pride in clothes her mother sewed for her, while Jolene was written about a love rival. Mourning her death, Swift said Parton had a "backbone of steel".
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