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
Silver Dagger
Dolly Parton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You'll wake my mother
She's sleeping here right by my side
In her right hand is a silver dagger
She says that I can't be your bride
All men are fools
So says my mother
They'll tell you again
And then they'll go
And court some other
Leave you alone to pine inside
My daddy is a handsome devil
He's got a chain five miles long
On every link, a heart does dangle
Of another maid he's loved and wronged, oh
Go court another tender maiden
In hopes that she might be your wife
For I've been warned so I decided
I'll sleep alone all of my life, ohh...
Beware, beware, a silver dagger
The song Silver Dagger by Dolly Parton is about a young woman who is warned by her mother not to fall in love with anyone. The mother is sleeping with a silver dagger in her hand to protect her daughter from any potential suitors. The first line of the song, "Don't sing love songs, you'll wake my mother," indicates the mother's strictness and how she doesn't want her daughter to engage in any romantic relationships. The mother knows that all men are untrustworthy and warns her daughter against falling for their sweet words and false promises. Instead, she wants her daughter to focus on herself and not rely on any man for her happiness.
The second verse of the song introduces the young woman's father who is a womanizer. He has a chain with hearts of multiple women, whom he has loved and wronged. This suggests that the father is not a good role model for his daughter, and the mother's warning is justified. The father's behavior further supports the mother's disdain for men and why she doesn't want her daughter to end up like her.
The song overall presents a cautionary tale for young women about love and how it can be deceitful. The mother wants her daughter to take control of her own life and not be dependent on any man for her happiness.
Line by Line Meaning
Don't sing love songs
Do not express romantic affection towards me
You'll wake my mother
My mother is asleep beside me and I do not wish to disturb her
She's sleeping here right by my side
My mother is physically present and could awaken from any disturbance
In her right hand is a silver dagger
My mother symbolically wields a weapon to protect me from potential suitors
She says that I can't be your bride
My mother forbids any romantic involvement between us
All men are fools
My mother has a low opinion of men in general
So says my mother
My mother has taught me this lesson from personal experience
They'll tell you again
Men will repeatedly express their affection for women despite negative outcomes
Love and lies
Men tend to deceive women with false promises of love
And then they'll go
After achieving their own desires, men will leave women behind
And court some other
Men will seek out new romantic interests
Leave you alone to pine inside
Women are left to suffer and yearn for past relationships
My daddy is a handsome devil
My father is an attractive but untrustworthy man
He's got a chain five miles long
My father has been with many women and has a long history of mistreating them
On every link, a heart does dangle
Each woman my father has been with has given him her heart, only to be disappointed
Of another maid he's loved and wronged, oh
My father has a pattern of loving women, then breaking their hearts and leaving them
Go court another tender maiden
I advise you to seek out a different woman to pursue romantically
In hopes that she might be your wife
Perhaps another woman will be more willing to become your spouse
For I've been warned so I decided
I have been forewarned about men like you and have made a conscious decision not to marry
I'll sleep alone all of my life, ohh...
I have chosen a life of solitude and will not enter into any romantic relationships
Beware, beware, a silver dagger
My mother's warning is to be taken seriously and should not be ignored
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Downtown Music Publishing
Written by: JOAN C. BAEZ
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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.