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
With You Gone
Dolly Parton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sitting in my lonely room just staring at the wall
For lack of something else to do I count the tears that fall
Trying to get it through my head you don't care at all
What am I gonna do with you gone?
What does life hold for me anymore?
With you gone what once mattered don't matter no more
What am I gonna do with you gone, with you gone?
I can hear the lonesome whistle of a passing train
I can feel my heart beat a rhythm with the pouring rain
Realizing that my life won't ever be the same
What am I gonna do with you gone?
Will I ever be happy again?
With you gone my whole world has just come to an end
Will I ever forget you, or will I forget
What am I gonna do with you gone, with you gone?
With you gone, What does life hold for me anymore?
With you gone what once mattered don't matter no more
And you still have the key to my heart and my door
What am I gonna do with you gone, with you gone?
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh, what will do I with you gone?
Dolly Parton's song, "With You Gone," is a heartbreaking portrayal of the aftermath of a relationship that has ended. The main character is struggling to come to terms with the fact that the person they loved is no longer with them, and they are left wondering how they will continue to live without their former partner. The song starts with a series of "ohs," which create a haunting and melancholic atmosphere that permeates throughout the entire track. The character is sitting in their room, staring at the wall, and counting the tears that fall, highlighting their feelings of loneliness and despair. They acknowledge the fact that their former lover does not care at all, and this realization adds to their feelings of hopelessness.
As the song progresses, the lyrics continue to express the character's emotional turmoil. They question what their life holds for them now that their partner is gone. Everything that once mattered to them now feels insignificant. They still have the key to their heart and their door, which further emphasizes their feeling of being incomplete without the other person. The character can hear the lonesome whistle of a passing train and can feel their heart beating in rhythm with the pouring rain. These sounds symbolize the character's depressive state and the realization that their life will never be the same. The song ends with the character wondering whether they will ever be happy again, whether they will forget their former lover, or whether they will forget themselves.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh, what will do I with you gone?
The singer is wondering what they will do now that their significant other has left them.
Sitting in my lonely room just staring at the wall
The singer is spending their time alone and feeling depressed about the breakup.
For lack of something else to do I count the tears that fall
The singer is so bored and upset that they have started counting the tears that they cry.
Trying to get it through my head you don't care at all
The artist is struggling to accept that their significant other no longer cares for them.
What am I gonna do with you gone?
The artist is still trying to figure out how to move on from the breakup.
What does life hold for me anymore?
The singer is feeling lost and uncertain about their future without their significant other.
With you gone what once mattered don't matter no more
All the things that used to be important to the singer no longer hold the same significance now that their significant other has left them.
You still have the key to my heart and my door
The artist's heart and home are still open to their significant other despite the breakup.
I can hear the lonesome whistle of a passing train
The artist is feeling isolated and alone, as represented by the sound of a lonesome train whistle in the distance.
I can feel my heart beat a rhythm with the pouring rain
The artist is feeling the pain of the breakup so strongly that it feels like their heart is beating in time with the rain pouring outside.
Realizing that my life won't ever be the same
The singer is coming to terms with the fact that their life has changed forever now that their significant other has left them.
Will I ever be happy again?
The artist is questioning whether they will ever be able to find happiness again without their significant other.
With you gone my whole world has just come to an end
The singer feels like their entire world has been shattered by the breakup.
Will I ever forget you, or will I forget
The singer is unsure if they will ever be able to forget their significant other or if the memories will stay with them forever.
With you gone, What does life hold for me anymore?
The singer is still grappling with the question of what their life will look like now that their significant other has left them.
And you still have the key to my heart and my door
Despite the breakup, the artist is still willing to open their heart and home to their significant other.
What am I gonna do with you gone, with you gone?
The artist is still trying to come to terms with their breakup and figure out how to move on with their life.
Contributed by Annabelle V. 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.