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
Where Have All The Flowers Gone
Dolly Parton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Where have all the flowers gone, long time ago?
Where have all the flowers gone?
Young girls have picked them everyone
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Where have all the young girls gone, long time passing?
Where have all the young girls gone?
Gone for husbands everyone
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Where have all the husbands gone, long time passing?
Where have all the husbands gone, long time ago?
Where have all the husbands gone?
Gone for soldiers everyone
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Where have all the soldiers gone, long time passing?
Where have all the soldiers gone, long time ago?
Where have all the soldiers gone?
Gone to graveyards, everyone
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Where have all the graveyards gone, long time passing?
Where have all the graveyards gone, long time ago?
Where have all the graveyards gone?
Gone to flowers, everyone
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Where have all the flowers gone, long time passing?
Where have all the flowers gone, long time ago?
Where have all the flowers gone?
Young girls have picked them everyone
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Oh, when will they ever learn?
The lyrics of "Where Have All The Flowers Gone?" are a poignant commentary on the cycle of war and its effects on different aspects of life. The song begins with the question "Where have all the flowers gone?" and the refrain "long time passing", suggesting that time has passed and things have changed. The flowers, symbolizing innocent lives lost in war, have been picked by young girls, showing the devastating impact of war on youth.
The second stanza moves on to young girls, who have been taken away by war to become wives, and their disappearance from society is reflected in the repeated refrain "long time ago". This stanza highlights how war diverts women from their dreams and aspirations and roles them into traditional gender roles.
In the third stanza, the focus shifts to the husbands of those young girls, who have gone off to fight in the war. The use of the phrase "gone for soldiers everyone" implies a sense of inevitability, that every man must fight in the war. The fourth stanza reveals that all the soldiers have gone to graveyards – emphasizing the costly and deadly consequences of war. Finally, the last stanza shifts back to the flowers that have disappeared, but this time they represent the hope and prospect of new life that can come from the creation of peace.
Overall, the song uses the repetition of the refrain "Oh, when will they ever learn?" to highlight the cyclical nature of war and how important it is for humanity to learn from past mistakes.
Line by Line Meaning
Where have all the flowers gone, long time passing?
What happened to all the flowers that were once here, a while back?
Where have all the flowers gone, long time ago?
Where did all the flowers disappear, many years ago?
Where have all the flowers gone?
What happened to every flower that used to grow here?
Young girls have picked them everyone
All the flowers were picked by young girls
Oh, when will they ever learn?
When will they realize what they are doing is not sustainable?
Where have all the young girls gone, long time passing?
Where did all the young girls that were here long ago go?
Where have all the young girls gone, long time ago?
Where did all the young girls who were here so long ago leave to?
Where have all the young girls gone?
Where did all the young girls disappear to?
Gone for husbands everyone
All the young girls got married and left
Where have all the husbands gone, long time passing?
Where did all the husbands who were here a long time ago go?
Where have all the husbands gone, long time ago?
Where did all the husbands disappear to, ages ago?
Where have all the husbands gone?
Where did all the married men go?
Gone for soldiers everyone
All the husbands went off to fight as soldiers
Where have all the soldiers gone, long time passing?
Where did all the soldiers disappear who were here ages ago?
Where have all the soldiers gone, long time ago?
Where did all the soldiers who were here many years ago disappear to?
Where have all the soldiers gone?
Where did all the military men go?
Gone to graveyards, everyone
All the soldiers have died and are now buried in graveyards
Where have all the graveyards gone, long time passing?
Where did all the graveyards that were here many years ago disappear to?
Where have all the graveyards gone, long time ago?
Where did all the graveyards that were here ages ago go?
Where have all the graveyards gone?
What happened to all the graveyards?
Gone to flowers, everyone
All the graveyards now have flowers growing in them
Where have all the flowers gone, long time passing?
Where did all the flowers that were here a long time ago go?
Where have all the flowers gone, long time ago?
What happened to all the flowers that used to be here, a while back?
Where have all the flowers gone?
What happened to all the flowers that once bloomed here?
Young girls have picked them everyone
All the flowers were picked by young girls
Oh, when will they ever learn?
When will they realize what they are doing is not sustainable?
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@sherryjohnson4020
Dolly is a gift to this world. I. Really 💘 her. Thank you Dolly. 💘 💘
@bernardkufuna9859
Long live Dolly a greater & beautiful to all country music fansl
@lindawatambwa5782
Indeed she is. I love her creativity. A true artist she is.
@missychadwick2840
❤❤❤❤ I just woke up drinking my coffee this is a beautiful song that Dolly sings 😍❤️ dolly is awesome and she's amazing 🤩😍❤ love always Melissa ❤️🤩💞
@ritakalamatila7808
My late dad's favorite song. I miss him too much. Continue Resting in Eternal Peace
@IMeMineWho
I feel you. Me too!😢
@lucygreene6401
This is the first song I learned on guitar. Thanks Grandma Lucy. She got me guitar lessons. Love this version. Thanks for sharing. Put a smile on me.
@trumplostlol3007
A small lady living in the south who is anti-racist, anti-war, anti-sexist, ... She has a small size, but a big voice and big heart.
@spazemfathemcazemmeleggymi272
so we're going to ignore her cover of Ballad of the Green Beret?
@lucygreene6401
A gift from heaven.