Songteller, by Dolly Parton, with Robert K. Oermann, published by Chronicle Books, 2020
Songteller is Dolly Parton’s own story of her career as a songwriter and performer. The book includes the lyrics of 175 of her songs which she began writing when she was just six years old. The major influence on Dolly’s life as a songwriter was her aunt Dorothy Jo who played banjo and guitar. Dolly and Dorothy Jo started writing songs together when Dolly was a teenager. Dolly also wrote songs with her Uncle Bill and grew up singing at Reverend Jake’s House of Prayer. Reverend Jake was her grandfather. Dolly’s first appearance at the Grand Ole Opry was in 1959 when she was thirteen years old. Johnny Cash introduced her. She later moved to Nashville as soon as she graduated from High School. Dolly met her husband, Carl Dean, the same day she arrived in town. Although notoriously adverse to publicity, Dolly likes to point out that her husband obligingly appeared on the album cover of My Blue Ridge Mountain Boy. Dolly and Carl have been married for fifty years.
Dolly teamed up with the legendary Porter Wagoner in 1967. Dolly recalls they fought like cats and dogs but they were awarded the Country Music Association’s favorite vocal awards on a number of occasions and also received a number of Grammy Award nominations. They performed hundreds of concerts each year when they were touring on the road. Eventually, their act broke up and their last performance together was in 1974, although, Porter continued to produce Dolly’s records until 1977. Dolly’s Grammy Hall of Fame recording “I Will Always Love You,” was written to commemorate her years spent performing and recording with Porter Wagoner. During their years together, Dolly also had five solo No. 1 hits.
Songteller isn’t just about the songs Dolly has written. She also tells fascinating stories about many of the great artists she has met and worked with over the years. And she also delves into her numerous roles in various Hollywood productions. The text of the book is also filled with intriguing photographs of Dolly with family and friends as well as an impressive number of legendary performers and admirers. All in all, Songteller is a great book about a great artist and her life in lyrics.
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