Parton began performing as a child, singing on local radio and television in East Tennessee. At age 12 she was appearing on Knoxville TV, and at 13, she was recording on a small label and appearing at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. When she graduated from high school in 1964 she moved to Nashville, taking many traditional elements of folklore and popular music from East Tennessee with her.
Parton's initial success came as a songwriter, with her songs being covered by Kitty Wells, Hank Williams, Jr., Skeeter Davis, and a number of others. She signed with Monument Records in late 1965, where she was initially pitched as a bubblegum pop singer, earning only one national chart single, "Happy, Happy Birthday Baby," which did not crack the Billboard Top 100. Additional pop singles also failed to chart.
The label agreed to have Parton sing country music after her composition "Put It Off Until Tomorrow" as recorded by Bill Phillips (and with Parton, uncredited, on harmony) went to No. 6 on the country charts in 1966. Her first country single, "Dumb Blonde" (one of the few songs during this era that she recorded but didn't write), reached No. 24 country 1967, followed later the same year with "Something Fishy," which went to No. 17. The two songs anchored her first full-length album, Hello I'm Dolly, that same year.
In 1967, Parton was asked to join the weekly syndicated country music TV program hosted by Porter Wagoner, replacing Norma Jean. She also signed with RCA Records, Wagoner's label, during this period, where she would remain for the next two decades. Wagoner and Parton immediately began a hugely successful career as a vocal duet in addition to their solo work and their first single together, a cover of Tom Paxton's "The Last Thing on My Mind," reached the top ten on the U.S. country charts in late 1967, and was the first of over a dozen duet singles to chart for them during the next several years.
Parton is a hugely successful songwriter, having begun by writing country songs with strong elements of folk music in them based upon her upbringing in humble mountain surroundings. Her songs "Coat of Many Colors" and "Jolene" have become classics in the field, as have a number of others. As a composer, she is also regarded as one of country music's most gifted storytellers, with many of her narrative songs based on persons and events from her childhood.
In 1982 Dolly Parton sang her song "I Will Always Love You", for the movie "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas", starring Parton and Burt Reynolds. The song - originally composed around 1974 - made few ripples, but it wasn't until Whitney Houston re-recorded it for "The Bodyguard" a decade later, that the song made yet another international hit for Dolly Parton. She later put out her own version on the 1996 album of the same name.
In 1987, Parton left her longtime label, RCA, and signed with Columbia Records, where her recording career continued to prosper, but by the mid 1990s, Parton, along with many other performers of her generation, found that her new music was not welcome on country radio playlists. She recorded a series of critically acclaimed bluegrass albums, beginning with "The Grass is Blue" (1999) and "Little Sparrow" (2001), both of which won Grammy Awards. Her 2002 album "Halos and Horns" included a bluegrass version of the Led Zeppelin classic Stairway to Heaven. In 2005, Parton released Those Were The Days, her interpretation of hits from the folk-rock era of the late 1960s through early 1970s. The CD featured such classics as John Lennon's "Imagine," Cat Stevens' "Where Do The Children Play," Tommy James' "Crimson & Clover," and the folk classic "Where Have All The Flowers Gone", as well as the title track.
In 2007, Dolly paved new musical ground by forming her own record label, Dolly Records. The label's first release - Backwoods Barbie - debuted at #2 on the Billboard country albums charts and marks Parton's first mainstream country album in 17 years. Parton is touring North America and Europe throughout 2008 in support of her latest release.
1955
A Habit I Can't Break
Dolly Parton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
If I loved you I couldn't stay gone so there's no use in going
Loving you is a habit I can't break
I haven't found a way yet but I've been tryin'
To stop loving you but I can't wait there's no use a lyin'
Loving you is a habit I can't break
Loving you is a habit I can't break
I've been loving you much too long now to change the way I feel
Loving you is a habit I can't break
[ piano ]
(A habit I can't break)
Loving you is a habit I can't break...
Loving you is a habit I can't break
The song "A Habit I Can't Break" by Dolly Parton is about being stuck in a toxic relationship. The singer acknowledges that loving the other person is not good for her because it keeps her in a state of sadness, constantly shedding tears. Yet, she can't help herself and finds herself unable to leave. She tries to find a way to stop loving the person, but no matter how hard she tries, she can't seem to break the habit. The singer knows that she needs to accept that this is how it is going to be, and that she needs to get used to the heartache.
The song is both melancholy and empowering. Melancholy because the singer is resigned to the fact that she is stuck in this horrible situation, but empowering because she recognizes that she is in control of her own life and that she can only change herself. She can't change the other person or make them love her in return.
In conclusion, "A Habit I Can't Break" is a poignant song about the struggles of a toxic relationship. The lyrics explore complex emotions such as longing, sadness, and resignation, while also portraying the singer as a strong person who is in control of her own life.
Line by Line Meaning
Loving you isn't good for me you keep my tears flowing
My love for you is causing me immense emotional pain and making me cry constantly.
If I loved you I couldn't stay gone so there's no use in going
Even if I do still love you, I know that it's better for me to stay away from you, and leaving you again wouldn't make a difference.
Loving you is a habit I can't break
Despite my efforts, I can't seem to stop loving you, it seems like it's something that's become ingrained and automatic for me.
I haven't found a way yet but I've been tryin'
I'm fully aware of how toxic our relationship is, and I'm actively trying to find a way to break free from this pattern of loving you.
To stop loving you but I can't wait there's no use a lyin'
Even though I want to stop loving you, pretending that I can simply move on and leave you behind is pointless because I know that it's not something I can do easily.
I've been loving you much too long now to change the way I feel
I've been in love with you for such a long time that it's difficult to imagine that I could ever stop feeling this way towards you.
So I might as well get used to these heartaches
Since I can't change how I feel about you, I've come to accept that the heartaches and pain that come with loving you are just something I have to deal with.
Loving you is a habit I can't break
This repetition emphasizes that no matter how much time passes, loving you remains a destructive pattern and habit for me.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: BILL OWENS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Romy K.
on Gypsy Joe And Me
As a matter of fact she's contemplating suicide standing on the bridge, that's how they'll be together again.