Dolly Parton: songteller, my life in lyrics

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Description

New York Times bestseller Dolly Parton, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics is a landmark celebration of the remarkable life and career of a country music and pop culture legend. This landmark volume explores the remarkable life and lyrics of the one and only Dolly Parton. As told in her own inimitable words, Songteller explores the songs that have defined Parton's journey. Illustrated throughout with previously unpublished images from her personal and business archives, the Washington Post calls it "a gold mine of little-seen photos and personal anecdotes." Mining over 60 years of songwriting, Dolly Parton highlights 175 of her songs and brings readers behind the lyrics. A celebrity memoir like no other, Dolly Parton, Songteller reveals the stories and memories that have made Dolly a beloved icon across generations, genders, and social and international boundaries. A RARE VISUAL ARCHIVE: Packed with never-before-seen photographs and classic memorabilia from Parton's archives, this book is a show-stopping must-have for every Dolly Parton fan. BEHIND THE BELOVED SONGS: Learn the history, personal stories, candid insights, and myriad memories behind classic Parton songs like "Jolene," "9 to 5," "I Will Always Love You," and more in this "splashy, entertaining guide to the lyrics of one of the most popular musicians of our time" (Kirkus Reviews). CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED: First published in hardcover with resounding response from fans and media alike, including showstopping interviews with Oprah, Stephen Colbert, Brené Brown, and The Today Show, features in People, Parade, Marie Claire, USA Today, Washington Post, and much more. EVERYONE LOVES DOLLY: The perfect gift for Dolly Parton fans, as well as lovers of music history and country singer-songwriters.Perfect for:
  • Fans of Dolly Parton's music, books, television and movie roles, theme park, and charitable work
  • Readers who loved Dolly's Coat of Many Colors; Run, Rose, Run, co-authored with James Patterson; and Dolly: My Life and Other Unfinished Business
  • Gift giving for birthday, Mother's Day, Father's Day, holiday, anniversary, or any special occasion for anyone who loves Dolly, country music, or American music history
  • To shelve alongside such music best sellers as Coal Miner's Daughter by Loretta Lynn, The Lyrics by Paul McCartney, Elvis and Me by Priscilla Presley, and Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen

More Details

Contributors
Oermann, Robert K. Author, author
Parton, Dolly Narrator, Author
ISBN
9781797211817
9781980072041
9781797205090
9781797208381

Table of Contents

From the Book

Introduction
My Tennessee mountain home
Down on Music Row
Porter Wayne and Dolly Rebecca
Putting wings on my dreams
Golden streets of glory
Bubbling over
They're singing my songs
Light of a clear blue morning
Working 9 to 5
Eagle when she flies
Hungry again
The grass is blue
Me, an "icon"?
Better days.

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Author Notes

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Similar Titles From NoveList

NoveList provides detailed suggestions for titles you might like if you enjoyed this book. Suggestions are based on recommendations from librarians and other contributors.
These books have the genres "life stories -- arts and culture -- performing arts -- musicians and composers" and "arts and entertainment -- music -- country"; and the subjects "country music," "women country musicians," and "country musicians."
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Grammy Award-winning county music superstars share the stories behind their lyrics in both candid and engaging memoirs laced with intimate insights and wry humor. -- Kaitlin Conner
We recommend Dolly on Dolly for readers who like Dolly Parton, Songteller. Both candid memoirs recount Dolly Parton's experiences in her own words. -- Halle Carlson
We recommend Boys in the Trees for readers who like Dolly Parton, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics. Both are candid autobiographies by notable American singer/songwriters. -- Yaika Sabat
These books have the genres "illustrated books" and "life stories -- arts and culture -- performing arts -- musicians and composers"; and the subjects "country music," "women country musicians," and "country musicians."
We recommend Unlikely Angel for readers who like Dolly Parton, Songteller, My Life in Lyrics. Both insightful nonfiction accounts look at the musicianship of Dolly Parton and how the lyrics of her songs reflect her life's journey. -- Halle Carlson
These books have the genres "life stories -- arts and culture -- performing arts -- musicians and composers" and "arts and entertainment -- music -- country"; and the subjects "country music," "women country musicians," and "women singers."
These books have the genres "life stories -- arts and culture -- performing arts -- musicians and composers" and "arts and entertainment -- music -- country"; and the subjects "country music," "women country musicians," and "women singers."
Both richly detailed books explore legendary musician Dolly Parton's songwriting. All the Songs is a comprehensive work; Songteller is Parton's behind-the-scenes memoir on the creation of 175 of her songs. -- Kaitlin Conner
These books have the genres "life stories -- arts and culture -- performing arts -- musicians and composers" and "arts and entertainment -- music -- country"; and the subjects "country music," "women country musicians," and "women singers."
We recommend She Come By It Natural for readers who like Dolly Parton, Songteller. Both life stories examine Dolly Parton's life through her lyrics and the impact her music had on others. -- Halle Carlson

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Published Reviews

Booklist Review

Working with music journalist Oermann, Parton here assembles the lyrics to 175 of her songs (from the roughly three thousand she has written). Beginning with a song she wrote at age six, addressed to a beloved corncob doll, the volume follows the singer-songwriter through a career in country music that started in earnest when she was in her teens, through sidetracks into pop music and movies, and returned to her bluegrass roots. Rather than stick to a strictly chronological approach, the book groups Parton's lyrics by subject matter, so a later-career song might appear in a chapter on her early life or family history. Each of the lyrics is preceded by a couple sentences of context provided by Oermann and notes on the song from Parton, many of which showcase her wry sense of humor, as when she remarks, "I've killed a lot of puppies and kids and ladies in my songs." Copiously illustrated with pictures of Parton, her costumes, lyric sheets, and other memorabilia, this is a sweet treat for the artist's many fans.Women in Focus: The 19th in 2020

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
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Library Journal Review

Cowritten by music journalist Oermann, this annotated collection of Parton's song lyrics is highlighted by commentary from the artist and photographs from every stage of her career, from her childhood in the Tennessee mountains to the rhinestone-studded glamour of country-music stardom. Though Parton has been the subject of much biographical, critical, and musicological commentary of late, this one stands out for its keen insights from the songwriter herself. Indeed, Songteller is an appropriate title, for Parton is as much a storyteller as she is a musician, and the title has a dual meaning: Parton's songs tell stories, and in this book she tells stories about her songs. Though not a biography in the strictest sense--1994's My Life and Other Unfinished Business is that, though obviously dated--the book is organized biographically as well as thematically, taking the reader from Parton's earliest attempts at lyric-writing to her response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Throughout, it's clear that Parton understands both the sheer power of music and her own considerable gifts as a songwriter, performer, storyteller, and collaborator. And the work is just plain heartening. One could do worse to cue up a Spotify playlist and curl up in a comfortable chair with a mug of tea and this book. VERDICT Heartwarming and insightful in equal measure. For Parton fans.--Genevieve Williams, Pacific Lutheran Univ. Lib., Tacoma

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
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Kirkus Book Review

A hefty retrospective on the six-decade career of a country music superstar who tells stories in song. Parton has been mining her East Tennessee roots for crowd-pleasing songs ever since she wrote her first tune, about a corncob doll, at around the age of 6. With Nashville-based music journalist Oermann, she serves up her highest-grade ore in a handsomely produced collection of the lyrics to more than 175 of her songs, some in print for the first time. All songs have brief introductions on topics such as when and how Parton wrote them, and longer pieces show her evolution from "a hard-core country artist" with a "girlish soprano tremolo" to a multifaceted star also at ease with pop, gospel, and bluegrass. Moving chronologically through the artist's life, the book reveals her abiding passions with thematic juxtapositions of songs, which range from "9 to 5" to the elegiac ballads "Jolene" (her song "most performed by others") and "I Will Always Love You" ("For what she did with that, I will always love you, Whitney Houston"). Hundreds of color and black-and-white photos of Parton and others display her over-the-top tastes in fashion and wigs faithful to her motto: "Leave no rhinestone unturned." Parton conceals more than she reveals about her 50-plus-year marriage to the reclusive Carl Dean and whether she's had affairs ("Well, I don't admit or deny anything"). She is frank, however, about professional setbacks. For example, when she was starting out in the industry, every major record company on Nashville's Music Row turned her down as a vocalist. In the final pages, Parton sounds a poignant note in the lyrics to a song written with Kent Wells and released during the pandemic. The song, "When Life Is Good Again," is the hymnlike lament of a repentant sinner who vows to change "when life is good again." A splashy, entertaining guide to the lyrics of one of the most popular musicians of our time. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
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Booklist Reviews

Working with music journalist Oermann, Parton here assembles the lyrics to 175 of her songs (from the roughly three thousand she has written). Beginning with a song she wrote at age six, addressed to a beloved corncob doll, the volume follows the singer-songwriter through a career in country music that started in earnest when she was in her teens, through sidetracks into pop music and movies, and returned to her bluegrass roots. Rather than stick to a strictly chronological approach, the book groups Parton's lyrics by subject matter, so a later-career song might appear in a chapter on her early life or family history. Each of the lyrics is preceded by a couple sentences of context provided by Oermann and notes on the song from Parton, many of which showcase her wry sense of humor, as when she remarks, "I've killed a lot of puppies and kids and ladies in my songs." Copiously illustrated with pictures of Parton, her costumes, lyric sheets, and other memorabilia, this is a sweet treat for the artist's many fans.Women in Focus: The 19th in 2020 Copyright 2020 Booklist Reviews.

Copyright 2020 Booklist Reviews.
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Library Journal Reviews

Cowritten by music journalist Oermann, this annotated collection of Parton's song lyrics is highlighted by commentary from the artist and photographs from every stage of her career, from her childhood in the Tennessee mountains to the rhinestone-studded glamour of country-music stardom. Though Parton has been the subject of much biographical, critical, and musicological commentary of late, this one stands out for its keen insights from the songwriter herself. Indeed, Songteller is an appropriate title, for Parton is as much a storyteller as she is a musician, and the title has a dual meaning: Parton's songs tell stories, and in this book she tells stories about her songs. Though not a biography in the strictest sense—1994's My Life and Other Unfinished Business is that, though obviously dated—the book is organized biographically as well as thematically, taking the reader from Parton's earliest attempts at lyric-writing to her response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Throughout, it's clear that Parton understands both the sheer power of music and her own considerable gifts as a songwriter, performer, storyteller, and collaborator. And the work is just plain heartening. One could do worse to cue up a Spotify playlist and curl up in a comfortable chair with a mug of tea and this book. VERDICT Heartwarming and insightful in equal measure. For Parton fans.—Genevieve Williams, Pacific Lutheran Univ. Lib., Tacoma

Copyright 2020 Library Journal.

Copyright 2020 Library Journal.
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