Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946 in Sevierville, Tennessee, U.S… Read Full Bio ↴Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946 in Sevierville, Tennessee, U.S.) is an American country singer, songwriter, composer, producer, entrepreneur, author and actress.

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

Chas
Dolly Parton Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Chas I cook your a breakfast and send you to work
I mend your clothes Chas I iron your shirts
There's so much thought in each thing that I do
And all of the time Chas I'm loving you
And I greet you each evening Chas when you come home
I miss you so badly while you are gone
And if I make you happy then I'm happy too and all of the time Chas I'm loving you
Chas I rock your babies I teach them to talk

I care for your wife Chas because she can't walk
I do all the things she's unabled to do and all of the time Chas I'm loving you
I want you so much but your wife need you Chas
You'll never be mine and I'll never ask
I know that you love her and I love her too but all of the time Chas I'm loving you
I look at you Chas you look at me but what I am thinking must never be
I love you so much and it's hard to resist

I want you but I I couldn't take you from sis
But all of the time Chas I'm loving you

Overall Meaning

In the song "Chas", Dolly Parton sings from the perspective of a woman who is in love with a man named Chas who is already married to her sister. The lyrics describe the ways in which she shows her love for him through the everyday tasks she performs, such as cooking his breakfast, mending his clothes and caring for his family. The song is poignant in its portrayal of unrequited love and the sacrifices the woman makes for the man she loves.

Through her lyrics, Dolly Parton captures the pain and longing that comes with unreturned affection. The emotion in her voice is palpable as she sings about her deep love for Chas and the longing she feels for him. The line "I want you so much but your wife needs you, Chas. You'll never be mine and I'll never ask" is particularly heart-wrenching, as it captures the woman's sadness and resignation at the reality of her situation.

Overall, "Chas" is a bittersweet love song that explores the complexities of love, loss and sacrifice. It is a reminder that sometimes, even when we love someone deeply, we have to let them go.

Line by Line Meaning

Chas I cook your a breakfast and send you to work
I make you breakfast each morning and send you off to work

I mend your clothes Chas I iron your shirts
I mend and iron your clothes

There's so much thought in each thing that I do
I put a lot of thought into everything I do for you

And all of the time Chas I'm loving you
I love you all the time, Chas

And I greet you each evening Chas when you come home
I greet you when you come home each evening, Chas

I miss you so badly while you are gone
I miss you when you're away

And if I make you happy then I'm happy too and all of the time Chas I'm loving you
I'm happy when I make you happy and I love you all the time, Chas

Chas I rock your babies I teach them to talk
I take care of your children, rock them and help them learn to talk

I care for your wife Chas because she can't walk
I take care of your wife, who can't walk

I do all the things she's unabled to do and all of the time Chas I'm loving you
I do all the things your wife can't do, and I still love you all the time, Chas

I want you so much but your wife need you Chas
I want you, but I know your wife needs you, Chas

You'll never be mine and I'll never ask
I know we can never be together, and I won't ask for that

I know that you love her and I love her too but all of the time Chas I'm loving you
I know you love your wife, and I love her too, but I still love you all the time, Chas

I look at you Chas you look at me but what I am thinking must never be
We look at each other, Chas, but I can't express what I'm really thinking

I love you so much and it's hard to resist
I love you so much; it's hard not to act on my feelings

I want you but I I couldn't take you from sis
Even though I want you, I wouldn't take you from your wife, Chas

But all of the time Chas I'm loving you
Despite everything, I'll still love you all the time, Chas

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: DOLLY PARTON

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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