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
I'm Gone
Dolly Parton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Some chewing gum and candy, some magazines and snacks,
Some startin' over money that I've been holdin' back,
A change of clothes and notepad to write a letter back to say so long
A one-way ticket sayin' good-bye to everything
Threw my weddin' band out the window of the train
All I want's my freedom, reclaim my maiden name
You can tell the truth or you can lie
You can say I left you or I died
Say I'm in the Himalayas on some spiritual quest
And could spend years lookin' for the light
Say I'm in the witness program with the F.B.I.,
Say a U.F.O. abducted me from home
You can say what you chose, but I tell you the truth
You can say for sure I'm gone, 'cause I'm gone
You think that you're above me, like I'm not good enough
You make me feel unwanted, unwelcome and unloved
You're selfish, vain and greedy; you're hateful, rude and rough
And you're so wrong
But you'd rather live unhappy and tolerate the pain
Than separate and have me takin' half of everything
Well, I'm leavin' your possessions, left on the good-bye train,
Left you alone 'cause I'm gone
You can have the house, the car, the boat,
My records, books and stereo,
The dog and the cat, my ceramic shop out back,
My doll collection and my clothes
You can keep all our friends and all the pictures in the den,
And the fluffy pillows you sleep on
But when you lay your head on that big feather bed
You can rest assured I'll be gone; I'll be gone
You can tell the truth or you can lie
You can say I left or I died
Say I'm in the Himalayas on some spiritual quest
And could spend years lookin' for the light
Say I'm in the witness program with the F.B.I.
Say a U.F.O. abducted me from home
Well, you can say what you chose, but I tell you the truth
You can say for sure I'm gone
You can say what you like, but I'll tell you twice
You can say for sure, say for sure I'm gone, gone
Some chewing gum and candy, magazines and snacks,
Startin' over money I've been holding back,
Change of clothes and notepad to write a letter back to say so long
I got a one-way ticket sayin' good-bye to everything
I threw my weddin' band out of the window of the train
All I want's my freedom, reclaim my maiden name
I'm moving on 'cause I'm gone
Oh, I'm gone, gone, gone; I'm gone
I'm so gone, I'm gone; gone, I'm gone
The song "I'm Gone" by Dolly Parton may appear to be a typical breakup song - a woman packing up her things and leaving her husband. But upon closer examination, it becomes clear that the lyrics reveal a deeper meaning of a woman asserting her independence and taking control of her life. The singer has been holding back "startin' over money," indicating that she has been planning this departure for some time. She throws her wedding band out the window, suggesting that she is not just leaving her marriage, but the entirety of the societal expectations and constraints placed upon her. She wants to "reclaim [her] maiden name," further emphasizing her desire to break free and establish her identity as an individual.
Throughout the song, the singer also challenges the idea of truth and perception. She acknowledges that her ex-husband can tell people whatever he wants to explain her absence, whether it be that she "left or died," or that she's on a "spiritual quest" in the "Himalayas." It doesn't matter to her what he says because she knows her own truth; she has made the conscious decision to leave and start over.
Overall, "I'm Gone" is a female empowerment anthem that encourages women to take control of their lives and not be held back by societal expectations or toxic relationships. It's a message that still resonates with many listeners today.
Line by Line Meaning
Some chewing gum and candy, some magazines and snacks,
I'm taking these items with me on my journey.
Some startin' over money that I've been holdin' back,
I've been saving up some money to start fresh.
A change of clothes and notepad to write a letter back to say so long
I'm bringing some clothes and a notepad to write a letter to say goodbye.
A one-way ticket sayin' good-bye to everything
I have a one-way ticket to leave everything behind.
Threw my weddin' band out the window of the train
I threw away my wedding ring to symbolize the end of the marriage.
All I want's my freedom, reclaim my maiden name
I want to be free and go back to my own name.
I'm movin' on 'cause I'm gone
I'm leaving and not coming back.
You can tell the truth or you can lie
You can tell people what happened truthfully, or make up lies about where I am.
You can say I left you or I died
You can say that I left you or that I have died because I'm not coming back.
Say I'm in the Himalayas on some spiritual quest
You can say that I've gone off to the Himalayas looking for spiritual enlightenment.
And could spend years lookin' for the light
You can say that I may not come back for years looking for answers.
But I tell you the truth
I'm telling you the real reason why I'm leaving.
Because I'm gone
I left and I'm not coming back.
You think that you're above me, like I'm not good enough
You think you're better than me and have made me feel unimportant.
You make me feel unwanted, unwelcome and unloved
You have made me feel rejected and unwanted.
You're selfish, vain and greedy; you're hateful, rude and rough
You have bad qualities like being selfish and greedy, rude and unpleasant.
And you're so wrong
Your behavior is not right and it's time for me to leave.
But you'd rather live unhappy and tolerate the pain
You're unwilling to change and would rather live unhappy than make things better.
Than separate and have me takin' half of everything
You'd rather stay together than risk losing possessions and assets.
Well, I'm leavin' your possessions, left on the good-bye train,
I'm leaving all your belongings behind and moving on with my life.
Left you alone 'cause I'm gone
I left you and now you're alone.
You can have the house, the car, the boat,
You can keep all our material possessions.
My records, books and stereo,
You can keep my records, books, and stereo.
The dog and the cat, my ceramic shop out back,
You can keep our pets and my ceramic shop.
My doll collection and my clothes
You can keep my doll collection and my clothes.
You can keep all our friends and all the pictures in the den,
You can keep our mutual friends and all the photos in the living room.
And the fluffy pillows you sleep on
You can keep the pillows you sleep on.
But when you lay your head on that big feather bed
When you sleep in our bed at night,
You can rest assured I'll be gone; I'll be gone
You'll know for sure that I've left and I'm not coming back.
Oh, I'm gone, gone, gone; I'm gone
I'm really gone with no intention of returning.
I'm so gone, I'm gone; gone, I'm gone
I have left and there's no turning back.
Lyrics ยฉ Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: DOLLY PARTON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Mark Blackburn
Four minutes of musical Joy (when we can really use it!)
โWhen you lay your head on that big feather-bed
you can rest assured -- I'll be gone.โ
You're only as good as your most recent work, and Dolly's latest is giving us goosebumps. The lyrics are brilliant and the melody has change ups (multiple bridges) that song writers yet unborn will study a hundred years from today.
Really, what can't Dolly Parton do? โ an actress, a multi-instrumentalist and a singer whose voice never grows old, who writes songs Hank Williams would have admired. [My wife and I have been saying 'forever' that Dolly Parton is the โbest singer-songwriter since Hankโ --who wrote lyrics like โNone of us are gettin' out of here alive.โ]
Yes, getting goosebumps again watching this one on re-play: With each viewing you spot things you didn't see before. Thanks, in part to note-perfect 'retro' look of the 80's graphics which has you asking: 'Is this REALLY new?'
The best kinds of ART are artless โ you listen or look, and say: โHeck I could do that!โ Oh no you can't. Case in point.
โShe's a saint,โ declares my eldest son; and this is my favorite quote from Saint Dolly this day: โThere are two kinds of people in this world and you're not one of them.โ
Thanks for sharing, Dolly Parton. Celebrated this day at Sinatra Family - Forum - "Siriusly Sinatra" - MY FAVORITE VERSION, YOURS TOO? https://sinatrafamily.com/forum/showthread.php/50225-My-Favorite-Version-%28yours-too-%29?p=1287488#post1287488
m
Lyrics
Some chewing gum and candy
Some magazines and snacks
Some startin' over money
That I've been holdin' back
A change of clothes and notepad
To write a letter back to say, "So long"
A one-way ticket sayin', "Goodbye everything"
Threw my weddin' band out the window of the train
All I want's my freedom
Reclaim my maiden name, I'm movin' on
'Cause I'm gone
You can tell the truth or you can lie
You can say I left you or I died
Say I'm in the Himalayas on some spiritual quest
And could spend years lookin' for the light
Say I'm in the witness program with the F.B.I.
Say a U.F.O. abducted me from home
You can say what you choose, but I tell you the truth
You can say for sure I'm gone, 'cause I'm gone
You think that you're above me like I'm not good enough
You make me feel unwanted, unwelcome and unloved
You're selfish, vain and greedy
You're hateful, rude and rough and you're so wrong
But you'd rather live unhappy and tolerate the pain
Than separate and have me takin' half of everything
Well, I'm leavin' your possessions
Left on the goodbye train, left you alone
'Cause I'm gone
You can have the house, the car, the boat
My records, books and stereo
The dog and the cat, my ceramic shop out back
My doll collection and my clothes
You can keep all our friends and all the pictures in the den
And the fluffy pillows you sleep on
When you lay your head on that big feather bed
You can rest assured I'll be gone, I'll be gone
You can tell the truth or you can lie
You can say I left you or I died
Say I'm in the Himalayas on some spiritual quest
And could spend years lookin' for the light
Say I'm in the witness program with the F.B.I.
Say a U.F.O. abducted me from home
Well, you can say what you choose, but I tell you the truth
You can say for sure I'm gone
You can say what you like, but I'll tell you twice
You can say for sure, say for sure I'm gone, gone
Some chewing gum and candy
Magazines and snacks
Startin' over money
I've been holdin' back
A change of clothes and notepad
To write a letter back to say, "So long"
I got a one-way ticket sayin', "Goodbye everything"
I threw my weddin' band out of the window of the train
All I want's my freedom
Reclaim my maiden name, I'm movin' on
'Cause I'm gone
Oh, I'm gone
(I'm gone) Gone, gone
(I'm moving on) I'm gone, I'm so gone
(I'm gone) I'm gone
(Gone) Gone, I'm gone
Fairly Vague
And who doesnโt need a bit of Dolly right now?! โฅ๏ธโฅ๏ธโฅ๏ธโฅ๏ธโฅ๏ธโฅ๏ธโฅ๏ธโฅ๏ธโฅ๏ธโฅ๏ธ
Pamela Cook
I love her
AnAngelWithHornzZ
Right!!!!
Christine C.
Dolly will always be the queen of country music. A complete Goddess... songwriter, actress, vocalist, musician, & very beautiful & talented woman.
Kimyana
I freaking love this Dolly Parton acid trip, Iโm replaying it.
Bo Pitbull Live Music
There's never a bad Dolly Parton song just going to be the queen of country forever
Jeffery D Smith
Only Dolly could get away with this video in the country genre. This was released 17 years ago. Wow!
Kelton Jeter
Jeffery D Smith it was never released
Stephss
@Kelton Jeter The song was released in 2002.
Kelton Jeter
Steph Ss I know that I meant the video