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
Oh He's Everywhere
Dolly Parton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Someone speaks his name and he appears
I can see his face in total darkness
Oh, he's everywhere
He left a memory that lives with me
A memory of how it used to be
And I remember all the things we used to share
Oh, he's everywhere
He waits in the corners of my mind
And in the stillness of the night, he walks around
Sometimes his memory's so real I think he's really there
Oh, he's everywhere
He left a memory that lives with me
A memory of how it used to be
I remember all the things we used to share
Oh, he's everywhere
Oh, he's everywhere
The lyrics to Dolly Parton's song "Oh He's Everywhere" depict the lingering presence of a past love in the singer's life. The first two lines of the chorus set the tone for the rest of the song, painting a picture of the constant and haunting presence of this person in the singer's mind. Even though the relationship has ended, memories of this person continue to manifest themselves in the singer's thoughts and even in the physical world, as the person seems to appear when their name is mentioned or in the darkness of night.
The second verse further emphasizes the hold the past love has on the singer's mind, and how their memory is so real that it can feel like they are still there. The repetition of the chorus at the end underscores the idea that no matter where the singer goes or what they do, the memory of this person follows them and is always present.
Overall, the lyrics of "Oh He's Everywhere" capture the feeling of being unable to fully escape the memory of a past love, and how that memory can seem to infiltrate all aspects of life.
Line by Line Meaning
He walks in my mind like a shadow
His memory lingers in my mind like a shadow
Someone speaks his name and he appears
Just by hearing his name, he seems to appear in my thoughts
I can see his face in total darkness
Even in the dark, I can vividly see his face in my mind
Oh, he's everywhere
He is constantly present in my memories and thoughts
He left a memory that lives with me
His memory is still alive in me
A memory of how it used to be
A memory of how things were between us in the past
And I remember all the things we used to share
I recall all the experiences we shared together
He waits in the corners of my mind
His presence is waiting in the hidden parts of my mind
And in the stillness of the night, he walks around
During silent nights, I can feel his presence wandering in my thoughts
Sometimes his memory's so real I think he's really there
At times, his memory is so vivid that I feel like he's actually present
Oh, he's everywhere
In every little thing, memory, and thought, he's present
Contributed by Sadie O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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.