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
You Can't Make Old Friends
Dolly Parton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Who's gonna tell me the truth?
Who's gonna finish the stories I start,
The way you always do?
When somebody knocks at the door,
Someone new walks in
I will smile and shake their hands,
You can't make old friends
Can't make old friends
It was me and you, since way back when
But you can't make old friends
How will I sing when you are gone?
'Cause it won't sound the same
Who'll join in on those harmony parts,
When I call your name?
You can't make old friends
Can't make old friends
It was you and me, since way back when
You can't make old friends
When Saint Peter opens the gate,
And you come walking in
I'll be there just waiting for you
'Cause you can't make old friends
'Cause you can't make old friends, no no
When I'm out on the stage all alone
And I hear the music begin
We all know the show must go on
But you can't make old friends, no no
You can't make old friends
Can't make old friends
And you and me, will be young again
You can't make old friends
You and me, will be together again
'Cause we both know, we will still be old friends
You can't make old friends
Not the way we have always been
Dolly Parton's song "You Can't Make Old Friends" is a poignant ode to the importance and irreplaceability of lifelong friends. From the opening lines, the singer expresses her fear of losing not just a friend, but a confidant and co-storyteller who shared so many of life's experiences with her. She wonders who will be able to take up the mantle of honesty and support that her friend provided, and who will finish the stories that they both began. The next verse focuses on music, another shared passion between the two friends. Here, the singer describes how their voices harmonize perfectly and how she won't be able to sing the same songs without her friend's voice.
Line by Line Meaning
What will I do when you are gone?
How will I cope without you when you are no longer here?
Who's gonna tell me the truth?
Who will be honest with me and tell me like it is?
Who's gonna finish the stories I start, The way you always do?
Who will listen to my stories and finish them the way you always have?
When somebody knocks at the door, Someone new walks in, I will smile and shake their hands, But you can't make old friends
Even when new people come into my life, no one can replace the bond we share as old friends
It was me and you, since way back when
We have been friends for a long time
How will I sing when you are gone?
How will I continue to sing when I no longer have you to harmonize with?
'Cause it won't sound the same, Who'll join in on those harmony parts, When I call your name?
Without you, the harmony won't have the same sound and I will miss your voice joining in when I call your name
When Saint Peter opens the gate, And you come walking in, I'll be there just waiting for you, 'Cause you can't make old friends
Even in the afterlife, I will be waiting for you because old friendships cannot be replaced
When I'm out on stage all alone, And I hear the music begin, We all know the show must go on, But you can't make old friends
Even when I am performing alone, the show must go on but old friends cannot be replaced
And you and me, will be young again, You can't make old friends
Our friendship will remain the same, and we will always remember the youthful memories we shared together
You and me, will be together again, 'Cause we both know, we will still be old friends
When we meet again, we will still be old friends because our bond cannot be broken
Not the way we have always been
No one can replace the way we have always been together as old friends
Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC, Red Brick Music Publishing, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Spirit Music Group
Written by: CAITLYN SMITH, DON SCHLITZ, RYAN KING
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.