Dollywood Revisited

The queen is just one and her name is Dolly! Oooooooooooh yeah!

The sun was shining bright smiling to Sevierville, Tennessee on January 19, 1946 when Dolly Parton was born. She was the fourth of twelve children of the extremely poor family living in a one – room cabin of the rural South.

Dolly's divine soprano first developed  during the church services when she sang wholeheartedly.  The blond angel was soon discovered by a local radio station and at the age of thirteen she already recorded for a Louisiana label. As she met Johnny Cash and Hank Williams Jr. she focused on her homeland country music.

At first Dolly remained in the shadow as a songwriter for other singers. She also played various instruments, including harmony. Yet as bright a star could not stay unnoticed for long. Her first country single Dumb Blonde was released in 1967.

Later the same year Dolly was invited to The Porter Wagoner Show where she appeared till 1974 when the somewhat group character of the show started to be too limiting. Since then Parton started a solo career strictly speaking. She meant to combine traditional country with bits of contemporary pop, which although successful she abandoned in the late 1980s. The last decade of the 20^th century is a comeback to the roots, while the last couple of years Parton spent re-editing her works.

Apart from being a songwriter, singer and a multi - instrumentalist, Dolly Parton also played in numerous movies and TV series, including her own variety show Dolly!.

After her show business career kind of slowed down, Parton engaged in the touristic business in Tennessee and founded a philanthropic venture – Dollywood Foundation – concerned mostly with fighting illiteracy.

And now a couple of songs:

The Last Thing On My Mind, Light of a Clear Blue Morning, Here You Come Again, Heartbreaker, Baby I'm Burning, You're the Only One, Why'd You Come In Here Lookin' Like That, Yellow Roses, The Grass Is Blue. 

And a couple of movies/ TV series:

9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Rhinestone, Steel Magnolias, Straight Talk.

Finally, curiosities:

• Dolly Parton married Carl Thomas Dean, an asphalt road surface paving business owner, a person equally mysterious as Thomas Pynchon.
• Dolly Parton is the godmother of Miley Cyrus.
• Surprise, surprise, Dolly Parton is said to be addicted to cosmetic surgeries.
• MacLean&MacLean recorded a country song entitled Dolly Parton's Tits.