The down-to-earth truths behind Dolly Parton’s life reveal a queen of country who never needed a crown to prove her power. ML
From Humble Beginnings To The Queen Of Country
Not many celebrities come from roots as humble as Dolly Parton. Her family home had one bedroom, and she played music with a homemade guitar. As she rose to fame, Parton did everything she could to stand out from the others—including undergoing extensive plastic surgery. But she’s never made a secret of this.
What is in fact secret is the story behind her bizarre and furtive relationship with her husband.
1. She Grew Up Poor
On January 19, 1946, Dolly Rebecca Parton was born in a log cabin consisting of just two rooms. She was the fourth child of her parents, and there were seven more to come. The family was so poor that to pay for Dolly’s delivery, Dad offered the doctor a bag of cornmeal—it was all he had.
2. She Started Early
Music was always prevalent in the Parton household, and Mom kept her brood of kids entertained with ballads and stories. They also regularly attended church, where music was a constant. Before long, Dolly Parton wanted to perform in front of the congregation. She made her debut at the age of six.
Now all she needed was an instrument.
3. She Had A Kind Uncle
Parton had no money to buy an instrument, so she used a homemade guitar, which she played until she was eight. A kind uncle then bought her a real one. Parton soon began performing on radio and television shows in and around East Tennessee. When she was 13, she made her first recording. The song was called “Puppy Love”. Her next stop was the prestigious Grand Ole Opry, where she would meet Johnny Cash. The Man in Black had unforgettable advice for her.
He told her she had to follow her own instincts when it came to music. She took his words to heart.
4. She Met A Guy
The day after she graduated from Sevier County High School, Dolly Parton said goodbye to her family and moved to Nashville, Tennessee. While doing her laundry at a laundromat, she decided to sit in the sun. It was a small decision, but it would change her life. As she sat outside, a Nashville local named Carl Thomas Dean walked up and suggested she take better care to avoid a sunburn.
Little did Parton know, but this good-natured man would be in her life for a long, long time.
5. She Wrote Hits
Parton and Dean started dating, but she still made time to get down to work. She picked up a job writing songs for Combine Publishing. She joined forces with her uncle, Bill Owens, a country songwriter, and the two got down to writing. But Parton wasn’t content with just writing songs for other people; she wanted to sing.
This did not start well.
6. She Started In Pop
Eventually, Dolly Parton signed on with Monumental Records, but they didn’t think her soprano voice was right for singing country music. They convinced Parton to sing as a bubblegum pop singer. Parton obliged, but none of her singles were hits, except for one: “Happy, Happy Birthday Baby”.
Parton wasn’t happy, and then the label did something that made her angry.
7. She Defied An Order
At this time, Parton was still dating Dean, and it was time for them to take a walk down the wedding aisle. The record company had a surprising reaction. They thought this was a bad idea. They didn’t want to risk losing this huge talent to a marriage. But Parton wasn’t one to back down so easily, and they tied the knot in a tiny church.
She’s stood up to the record label. Now she had to convince them of one more thing.
8. She Proved Them Wrong
It was time for Dolly Parton to prove herself—and that’s exactly what she did. When one of her compositions made it to the number six spot on the 1966 country chart, Monumental Records finally felt like they owed something to Parton. And so, they let her sing country music. She recorded “Dumb Blonde”, which went to the number 24 spot on 1967’s country chart, and “Something Fishy”, which hit the number 17 spot.
Clearly, the record company had been wrong, and it was time to record an album.
