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

First Noël
Dolly Parton Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

The first noel, the angel did say,
Was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay;
In fields where they lay keeping their sheep,
On a cold winter's night that was so deep.
Noel, noel, noel, noel,
Born is the king of Israel.
They looked up and saw a star
Shining in the east, beyond them far;

And to the earth it gave great light,
And so it continued both day and night.
Noel, noel, noel, noel,
Born is the king of Israel.
And by the light of that same star,
Three wise men came from country far;
To seek for a king was their intent,
And to follow the star wherever it went.
Noel, noel, noel, noel,
Born is the king of Israel.
This star drew night to the northwest,
O'er Bethlehem it took its rest;
And there it did both stop and stay,
Right over the place where Jesus lay.
Noel, noel, noel, noel,
Born is the king of Israel.
Then entered in those wise men three,
Full reverently upon their knee;
And offered there in his presence,
Their gold, and myrrh, and frankincense.

Noel, noel, noel, noel,
Born is the king of Israel.

Overall Meaning

In the song "First Noel" by Dolly Parton, the lyrics describe the birth of Jesus Christ as told through the perspective of the shepherds and the Three Wise Men. The first verse sets the scene of the shepherds in the fields on a cold winter's night, where they are visited by an angel who tells them about the birth of the King of Israel. The repetition of the word "Noel" throughout the song is a French word that means "Christmas," and is used to emphasize the joyous occasion of Christ's birth.

The second verse describes how the shepherds followed a star that appeared in the east, leading them to the birthplace of Jesus. The third verse introduces the Three Wise Men, who also saw the star and traveled from afar to find the newborn king. They followed the star to Bethlehem, where it stopped over the place where Jesus lay.

The final verse describes how the Three Wise Men entered the presence of Jesus and offered him gifts of gold, myrrh, and frankincense. The lyrics end with the repetition of "Noel" and the reminder that the King of Israel has been born.

Line by Line Meaning

The first noel, the angel did say,
The angel first shared the good news

Was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay;
The angel delivered the news to shepherds who were taking care of their sheep in the fields

In fields where they lay keeping their sheep,
The shepherds were watching over their sheep in the fields

On a cold winter's night that was so deep.
It was a very cold and deep winter night

Noel, noel, noel, noel,
Rejoice, rejoice, rejoice

Born is the king of Israel.
The King of Israel has been born

They looked up and saw a star
The shepherds looked up and saw a star

Shining in the east, beyond them far;
A bright star was shining in the east, far beyond their sight

And to the earth it gave great light,
The star shone very brightly on the earth

And so it continued both day and night.
The star continued to shine both day and night

And by the light of that same star,
The three wise men were guided by that same star

Three wise men came from country far;
The three wise men came from a distant country

To seek for a king was their intent,
They were searching for a king

And to follow the star wherever it went.
They followed the star wherever it led them

This star drew night to the northwest,
The star led them to the northwest

O'er Bethlehem it took its rest;
It stopped over Bethlehem

And there it did both stop and stay,
The star stopped and stayed over the place where Jesus was born

Right over the place where Jesus lay.
It was directly over the place where Jesus was laying

Then entered in those wise men three,
The three wise men entered

Full reverently upon their knee;
They kneeled down respectfully

And offered there in his presence,
They offered gifts in the presence of Jesus

Their gold, and myrrh, and frankincense.
They brought gold, myrrh, and frankincense as gifts

Noel, noel, noel, noel,
Rejoice, rejoice, rejoice

Born is the king of Israel.
The King of Israel has been born

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Charles Calello

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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3y↑4

Mama's Heart of Gold!

We were raised in the Smoky Mountains and we were like a carton of eggs there were twelve of us kids!

We were numbered in the have nots and didn't know it, but we were rich because we had each other!

Daddy would hand milk the cows before the sun was up and do it all again before it went down!

We had no electric lights, but Mama would read the Good Book to us by candle light, because Daddy couldn't read!

Mama was like Jesus, not that she could walk on water or calm the sea, but that she loved all the little children, you see!

Daddy never cried, but one day Daddy was crying, I asked what's wrong, he said Mama went to live with Jesus!

You see she didn't have a lot of things, but Mama left what she had, a heart of gold for each of us to share!

So think about Mama's heart of gold, and share it wherever you go! In Memory of Dolly Parton Mama!!