Dolly Parton Said She Wishes She Could Have Performed ‘I Will Always Love You’ With Whitney Houston
Dolly Parton is one of the most popular singers in the world. The Queen of Country is also a songwriter with an impressive catalog that includes “I Will Always Love You” which later became one of Whitney Houston’s biggest hits.
The “Jolene” artist wrotethe track in 1973 for her longtime business partner Porter Wagoner when she decided it was time to leave his show. In 1982, the song was used for the movie The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas which starred Parton and Burt Reynolds. The songbird played Miss Mona and belted out the tune while saying goodbye to Reynolds’ Ed Earl character. Ten years later came Houston’s rendition of “I Will Always Love You” for her film The Bodyguard. Parton has said she really appreciated Houston’s powerhouse version and would have loved to have had the chance to sing it with her even though that might have presented a little problem.
Another artist was offered the song before Houston
Even though Parton wrote the song and sang it first, a lot of people still associate “I Will Always Love You” with Houston but it almost went to another music legend.
Parton actually offered it to Patti LaBelle first. On Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, LaBelle revealed that she almost covered the track. “Dolly Parton offered it to me before The Bodyguard,” LaBelle told Cohen. “And I said to Dolly, ‘Oh, yes. I want to do that song, honey.’ Who wouldn’t?”
She added, “Before I could say real yes [officially accept the offer], it was in the movie and Whitney killed it. So, I have not done it since Whitney, but I plan to put it in my show one day.”
Parton was blown away when she heard Houston’s ‘I Will Always Love You’ and would have loved to do a duet
Parton spoke about how she reacted the first time she heard Houston singing her song during an episode of The Oprah Conversation on Apple TV+.
The country music legend explained that she was driving home from her office in Nashville one day when she heard it play on the radio and couldn’t believe her ears.
“I was shot so full of adrenaline and energy, I had to pull off because I was afraid that I would wreck, so I pulled over quick as I could to listen to that whole song,” Parton told Winfrey. “I could not believe how she did that. I mean, how beautiful it was that my little song had turned into that, so that was a major, major thing.”
During an appearance on WWHL, Parton said that she was never asked to sing a duet version of the song with Houston but wishes they had collaborated. “I was never asked to perform that with Whitney,” she shared. “I wish that could’ve happened, I would have loved that, but I don’t think I could’ve come up to snuff with her, though. She’d have out-sung me on that one for sure.”
Parton earned $10 million in royalties in the ’90s after Houston’s version of “I Will Always Love You” was released.
Houston died on Feb. 11, 2012.
