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

She Don't Love You
Dolly Parton Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

She don't love you like I love you
Cause if she did she wouldn't break your heart
She don't love you like I love you
She's tryin' to tear us apart
Fairly well I know you're leavin'
For the new love that you found
The pretty girl that you've been dating
Oh I've got a feeling she's gonna put you down

Cause she don't love you like I love you
Cause if she did she wouldn't break your heart
She don't love you like I love you
She's tryin' to tear us apart

She uses all the great quotations
She says all the things I wish I could say
But she's had so many rehearsals
Oh, to her it's just a lover's play

But wait when the final act is over
And you're left standin' all alone
When she takes her bow and makes her exit
Oh, well I'll be there to take you home

She don't love you like I love you
Cause if she did she wouldn't break your heart

She don't love you like I love you
She's tryin' to tear us apart

Overall Meaning

In Dolly Parton's song "She Don't Love You," the lyrics spell out the insecurities and heartaches of someone who loves someone else more than the person they are with. The singer is trying to convince a man that his current girlfriend does not love him like she does and is perhaps manipulating him. The song is a warning message to the man, telling him that his new love is trying to "tear us apart" and that she will ultimately put him down.

The lyrics are beautiful and heartfelt, with each line showing the singer's pain and her deeply-felt emotions. She is trying to get through to the man she loves and make him see that the woman he is with may not be what she appears to be. She compares herself to the other woman, saying that she uses all the right words and expressions that the singer herself wishes she could, but it is all just acting to her.

Line by Line Meaning

She don't love you like I love you
The love this person has for you is not comparable to the love the other person claims to have for you.

Cause if she did she wouldn't break your heart
If the other person truly loved you, they would not cause you pain and heartbreak.

She's tryin' to tear us apart
The other person is intentionally attempting to ruin the relationship between the two lovers.

Fairly well I know you're leavin'
It is apparent that you are leaving and saying goodbye.

For the new love that you found
You have found a new love and are pursuing a relationship with them.

The pretty girl that you've been dating
You have been seeing a beautiful girl and beginning a romantic relationship with her.

Oh I've got a feeling she's gonna put you down
The author believes that the new girlfriend will ultimately hurt you emotionally.

She uses all the great quotations
The other person speaks poetically and knows how to use beautiful words to impress and persuade.

She says all the things I wish I could say
The other person has a way with words that the author wishes they possessed themselves.

But she's had so many rehearsals
The other person has had a lot of practice and experience with love and relationships.

Oh, to her it's just a lover's play
To the other person, love and relationships are just a game or something to be played with.

But wait when the final act is over
However, when the relationship ends, and the game is over.

And you're left standin' all alone
When the other person has left, and the author is the only one left behind.

When she takes her bow and makes her exit
When the other person leaves the relationship and takes their final bow.

Oh, well I'll be there to take you home
The author will be there for you, to comfort and support you after the relationship has ended, and you are left alone.

Contributed by Alice Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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