Dolly Parton (1946-2026)

I never know whether to call myself a "crier" or not when someone asks.  I think I cry relatively regularly, but not excessively.  What I am, though, is consistent with my tears.  There are certain pop culture moments that pretty much always do it.  The finale of Lost.  The scene where they sing "Le Marseillaise" in Casablanca.  Every time I read the last ten pages of On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan.  All of them do it to me.  But one of the most consistent ways to make me cry?  Put on the opening notes of "Coat of Many Colors."  It's almost comical how, though it sometimes takes a second into the song, I will surely have started to tear up by the end of "back through the years, I go wandering once again, back to the seasons of my youth."  There's something about it that captures me in a way that few other things do.

But that makes sense, because, honestly Dolly Parton, more than any other singer, has been the soundtrack of my life.  On any given day, she'll have competition from Bob Marley, Joni Mitchell, Aretha Franklin, & Edith Piaf for the title of "my all-time favorite vocalist" but at the end of the day-Dolly is the singer who has mattered the most in my life.  It's not just "Coat of Many Colors."  Back when iTunes tracked such things, "Jolene" was unmatched for decades as the "most-listened to" song on the app for me.  The first time I sang karaoke in college, it was of course a duet of "Islands in the Stream."  Pretty much every breakup I've ever had, at some point I start driving around in my car blasting "Dumb Blonde" as loud as is humanly possible, singing that man out of my (brunette) hair.  Even as a child, the CD I would steal regularly from my mom was The Bodyguard, to the point that it eventually became mine.  Dolly didn't sing it, admittedly, but "I Will Always Love You" became my first favorite song for a reason-her brilliant lyrics.

But that's the thing about Dolly Parton-she felt personal to everyone.  My mom, who lost her Dolly-penned CD to her son, would tell my brother & I stories about dancing in the halls of her dorm room with all of her classmates singing "Here You Come Again."  "9 to 5" has become an anthem for an entire nation that's overworked and underpaid.  What other musician could've launched not just one of the most successful music careers of all-time, but side hustles as a movie star, TV host, baked goods entrepreneur, and the namesake of one of America's most beloved theme parks?  Dolly Parton's music allowed us all to dream, to love, to cherish, and occasionally to kick that scoundrel to the curb.  But Dolly Parton the person was so kind, generous, and beautiful that she felt like a beacon of a time gone by, someone that everyone could rally around.  I got to see her just once in concert (the Backwoods Barbie tour of 2008), and it was awe-inspiring going into that concert.  I sat in a row of gay guys in cowboy hats, but behind us were a group of middle-aged women, and in front of us a family with some young kids.  There was no specific cross-section or profile to her fans, and everyone felt like family as she sang.  Like puppies, ice cream, and payday...everyone loved Dolly Parton.