In her extensive repertoire, Dolly Parton has some moving songs, many of which have been around since the beginning of her career. Most of these songs never made it to the radio because they were considered controversial for the time. But that did not stop Parton from writing them.
Why Dolly Parton loves to write ‘sad’ songs
When Parton was growing up, she was heavily influenced by the songs she heard as a child, which often had very dark themes.
“As a songwriter, I love to write these sad things and put myself in those situations,” she wrote in her 2020 book, Dolly Parton, songwriter: My Life in Lyrics. “It comes from those early days with all the old songs that I grew up with. I loved feeling all the sadness of a song. In my early days, I just wrote about everything. I just wanted to write great stories, or write about situations in which I could imagine myself. “
Many of the songs Parton wrote that were inspired by his childhood songs, never made it to the radio. But that did not stop her from writing more.
“I wrote a lot of songs that people wouldn’t play on the radio, but I didn’t care,” she wrote. “It bothered me at the time, but I never thought, ‘I shouldn’t have done this.’ Whatever I write is just what comes out of me, and I refuse to be judged. ”
‘The bridge’
“The Bridge” is an incredibly sad song that Parton wrote about a woman who, hopelessly, steps on a bridge. The Queen of Country wrote the song when she was in high school, before her career took off.
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“’The Bridge’ is a song I wrote before I left school,” wrote Parton. “I didn’t bid until much later. But I wrote a lot before [Bobbie Gentry’s 1967 hit] “Ode to Billie Joe.” I had my own bridge, at home. ”
She goes on to explain what the character of the song is thinking: “There is no escape from it, so I’m going to take the leap and leave.”
The theme is one that Parton relates to – “Many people go through this,” she wrote. “I have already had suicides in my own family. It is a horrible thing to deal with. “
Dolly Parton’s personal experience with suicide
In an interview with Jad Abumrad on the podcast, Dolly Parton’s America, Parton said that she herself had suicidal thoughts in the early 1980s.
“I was having some serious conversations with God at that time,” she said.
“I just said things like, ‘Look, this is ridiculous. I’m not happy,’ [and] discussing why, when they say you shouldn’t commit suicide, because this is a sin that you can’t be forgiven for, ”she continued. “Everything was just confusing for me and I was just angry and hurt, and I was unhappy, so I just said, ‘You are going to have to give me some answers or I get out of here. And then we will both deal with it. ‘”
At a particularly low point, Parton thinks that God sent him a signal.
“My puppy, Popeye, at the time, he jumped on the bed when I was writing mine – you know,” she said. “God is a dog spelled backwards, and I always thought it could be the right thing.”
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Parton classifies himself as “a very sensitive person”. That’s why your songs are so full of heart.
“I’m a songwriter, so I have to live with my feelings up my sleeve,” she told Southern Living in 2014. “I have to not harden my heart, because I want to be open to feeling things. So when I hurt, I hurt everything. And when I cry, I cry very hard. And when I’m angry, I’m totally angry. I am just a person; I like to experience whatever the sensation and everything I am going through. But I have a good attitude. And I was born with a happy heart. I am always looking for things to be better ”.
How to get help: In the USA, call National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255. Or text HOME to 741-741 to speak to a crisis counselor trained in the free service Crisis Text Line.