The world lost a legend this week in Dolly Parton, and it only takes a quick look at all of the celebrity tributes to see how many lives she touched. Heck, even the Big Brother Houseguests were talking about her, and they hadn’t even heard the sad news. Parton accomplished a lot in her 80 years, and her music is one of the biggest parts of her legacy. Whitney Houston also famously sang one of her iconic songs, “I Will Always Love You,” for The Bodyguard, and Parton describing her reaction to hearing it for the first time is an experience in itself.
The world has been recalling all of our favorite memories since Dolly Parton passed away on August 25 after a brief battle with cancer. She was 80 years old. So many tributes have included the song “I Will Always Love You,” and that feels like it reflects the world’s collective feelings about the singer herself. But I love what Parton had to say about Whitney Houston’s version of it. As she told Reese Witherspoon’s Shine On with Reese:
When The Bodyguard movie came out, Kevin Costner sent word, you know, 'Can you send us that song?' Because they were looking for the perfect love song. So, I sent it out, totally forgot all about it. And then I was driving home, and all of a sudden I hear this sound on the radio, it was like how she started that acapella. Like, 'If I should stay.' I thought my heart was going to bust. I had to pull over, unless I should wreck. It was the most overwhelming feeling I've ever had.
That’s such a lovely thing to say. For one thing, I love that Dolly Parton gave no thought at all to letting Whitney Houston have that song for The Bodyguard soundtrack. Then to hear how much she connected with a version of it that was so different from her own is simply magical. In fact, hearing how Houston delivered it gave her a new perspective on her own songwriting, as she continued:
She took it to so many levels. To think that my little song, my little heartfelt, heartbreaking song, could be that big. I felt like I had arrived as a writer.
How amazing is that? You can see Dolly Parton tell the story herself, below:
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Both versions of that iconic movie song will last forever, and it's awful to think that neither Dolly Parton nor Whitney Houston is still with us.
Dolly Parton’s death has affected a lot of people, including her goddaughter Miley Cyrus, who penned a heartbreaking tribute to her “Aunt Dolly.” She said Parton would want her to feel the grief, channel it into a song and then move on.
I hope Miley Cyrus follows her godmother’s advice, because I’d imagine that’s how you end up writing a song that’s authentic enough to make you pull over when you hear it on the radio for the first time.
Our condolences continue to go out to everyone affected by Dolly Parton’s passing.
