Dolly Parton was far more than a musician, actor, writer, philanthropist, or theme-park mogul. Parton, who died Tuesday at 80, occupied a unique place in global culture — a figure of American mythology who was truly larger than life. Yet at the core of all her achievements, she was primarily a songwriter.
Distilling 11 songs from her vast, decades-long catalog is a formidable task, but certain classics stand out. Here is a key selection from her body of work — ranging from country tracks that challenged traditional gender norms to what remains the greatest ballad ever recorded. Parton was long celebrated for the feminist themes throughout her music.
That progressive sociopolitical stance is evident from the beginning of her career, which overlapped with the emergence of the women’s liberation movement. On the country classic “Just Because I’m a Woman,” Parton’s protagonist reminds her partner he need not judge her for having previous sexual partners — after all, he's had some, too. The quintessential example of Parton the raconteur is “Coat of Many Colors.” It’s an autobiographical tale about her mother, who made a coat for Parton out of rags.
She was mocked by other kids but understood its value. It was kinda like a running joke between us — when I was saying, ‘Hell, you’re spending a lot of time at the bank. I don’t believe we’ve got that kind of money.’ So, it’s really an innocent song all around, but sounds like a dreadful one.” The second single from Parton’s 13th studio album, “I Will Always Love You” is most known for its rendition by Whitney Houston.
But the Parton original was written for Porter Wagoner ahead of her departure from “The Porter Wagoner Show.” (She left in 1974, having collaborated with him since 1967.) There have been several versions, but none as resonant as Houston’s, recorded in 1992 for the soundtrack to “The Bodyguard.” The song topped the all-genre Hot 100, where it stayed for a then-record-breaking 14 weeks. Parton wrote an overwhelming number of her hits, which makes “Here You Come Again” an interesting outlier. It was penned by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, first recorded by B.J.
Thomas and originally conceived with the idea that Brenda Lee would record it. The song made its way to Parton and became a tentpole pop crossover hit for the country artist. But make no mistake — Parton made sure the steel guitar was heard loud and proud.
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