Dolly Parton: The Queen of Country Music and Iconic Hitmaker
Dolly Parton is the most famous female country singer in the world. With over 100 million albums sold, she is considered an icon of American popular culture.
Boasting 44 top-ten country albums and 110 charted singles, Dolly’s success in country music remains unmatched.
Having written over 3,000 songs, Dolly has been in the public eye since 1967 when she released her debut album. Let’s take a closer look at this remarkable woman’s tunes, decade by decade.
In the late ’60s, Dolly released four albums: Hello, I’m Dolly, Just Because I’m A Woman, In the Good Old Days (When Times Were Bad), and My Blue Ridge Mountain Boy. A mix of covers, her own compositions, and cowrites characterised these releases, but none produced major hits. The only well-known cover from this period was In the Ghetto (Elvis Presley).
The 1970s marked a turning point for Dolly, with an astonishing 17 studio albums released. While there were too many to list here, let’s focus on the standout tracks. Coat of Many Colors, released in 1971, was Dolly’s first big hit, earning her a Grammy and solidifying her status as the “Country Queen.”
In 1974, she released Jolene, which included the title track and I Will Always Love You, both of which went to #1.
In 1977, Dolly released New Harvest… First Gathering, which included covers of My Girl and Higher and Higher. That same year, she released Here You Come Again, the title track of which earned her a Grammy and topped the charts at #1.
Before the ’70s ended, she also released two well-known covers on Great Balls of Fire, including the title track (originally by Jerry Lee Lewis) and Help! (The Beatles).
The ’80s were less intense for Dolly, with 10 studio albums released compared to the 17 in the ’70s. However, her biggest hit of the decade was 9 to 5 from the album 9 to 5 and Odd Jobs, which was also a film. 9 to 5 remains one of her best-known solo singles. On the same album, Dolly also included another cover, The House of the Rising Sun.
Dolly’s biggest success
Dolly’s biggest success came in 1983 with the duet Islands in the Stream. Originally written by the Bee Gees for Diana Ross, Dolly and Kenny Rogers reworked the song into a country style, making it a worldwide #1 hit.
Following this, Dolly embraced the art of cover albums. In 1984, she released The Great Pretender, which featured tracks like Save the Last Dance for Me, I Walk the Line, Downtown, I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch), and, of course, the title track.
She followed up with a Christmas album, which also included mainly cover songs.
In 1985, Dolly and Kenny teamed up for another duet, Real Love. While it didn’t match the success of Islands in the Stream, it still reached #1 in both the U.S. and Canada.
1987 saw Dolly team up with Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris to release Trio, an album that featured hits like To Know Him Is to Love Him, Telling Me Lies, and Those Memories of You. The album earned them a Grammy for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group, and nominations for Album of the Year and Best Country Song (Telling Me Lies). At the Country Music Awards, Trio won both Album and Vocal Event of the Year.
The ’90s brought another Christmas album, a second Trio album, more cover songs (Walking on Sunshine, After the Gold Rush), and some Christian-themed recordings. However, the biggest moment of the decade for Dolly was when she allowed Whitney Houston to record I Will Always Love You. Produced by David Foster, it became one of the biggest hits of the ’90s, topping the charts in over twenty countries.
Since the turn of the millennium, Dolly has continued to release albums and collaborate with a variety of artists, including Norah Jones on Creepin’ In (2004). She also joined Kris Kristofferson in 2005 for a rendition of his classic Me and Bobby McGee, a song she had performed many times before.
Dolly Parton Tunes | Related Pages
9 To 5 | Chords + Lyrics
You can learn to play 9 To 5 by Dolly Parton using chords, lyrics, chord analysis, a chord chart, and the original recording.
| F# |
Tumble outta bed and I stumble to the kitchen…
Creepin’ In | Chords + TAB
Learn to play Creepin’ In by Norah Jones using chords, lyrics, chord analysis, a chord chart, and a Spytunes video guitar lesson.
| G | C (Csus2) | G | Dsus2 (D) |
There’s a big ol’ hole, that gone right through the sole, of this old shoe…
Check out the full TAB lesson here: Creepin’ In (Norah Jones) Guitar Lesson with TAB.
I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus | Chords + TAB
Learn to play I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus by The Ronettes using chords, lyrics, chord analysis, a chord chart and the original recording.
| A | A | C#m | F#m |
I saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus…
Check out the full TAB lesson here: I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus (The Ronettes) Guitar Lesson with TAB.
In The Ghetto | Chords + TAB
You can learn to play In The Ghetto by Elvis Presley using chords, lyrics, chord analysis, a chord chart, and the original recording.
| Bb Bbsus4 | Bb Bbsus4 Bb |
As the snow flies…
Check out the full TAB lesson here: In The Ghetto (Elvis) Guitar Lesson with TAB.
Islands In The Stream | Chords + TAB
Learn to play Islands In The Stream by Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton using chords, lyrics, chord analysis, a chord chart, and the original recording.
| C | C |
Baby, when I met you there was peace unknown…
Check out the full TAB lesson here: Islands In the Stream (Dolly Parton + Kenny Rogers) Guitar Lesson with TAB.
Jolene | Chords + TAB
You can learn to play Jolene by Dolly Parton using chords, lyrics, chord analysis, a chord chart, and the original recording.
| Am C |2/4 G |4/4 Am |
Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene…
Check out the full TAB lesson here: Jolene (Dolly Parton) Guitar Lesson with TAB.
Me and Bobby McGee | Chords + TAB
You can learn to play Me and Bobby McGee by Janis Joplin using chords, lyrics, chord analysis, a chord chart, and the original recordings.
| G | G |
Busted flat in Baton Rouge, waitin’ for a train…
Check out the full TAB lesson here: Me and Bobby McGee (Janis Joplin) Guitar Lesson with TAB.
Dolly Parton on the web
