A Record Producer Shared Dolly Parton’s ‘Major Weakness’ as a Songwriter
When Dolly Parton moved to Nashville, people became enamored not only with her unique voice but with her talent as a songwriter. Parton prides herself on her lyrics and has received well-earned credit for her ability to write. One Nashville music publisher saw a glaring problem with her writing, though.
A Nashville music publisher said Dolly Parton had a weakness as a songwriter
As Parton’s career took off, she received praise for her ability to write. Her songs were complex, emotional, and evocative of her childhood in Tennessee. When she wrote, it was clear that the product was a Dolly Parton song. This, according to record producer Clarence Selman, was a problem.
“Her major weakness as a writer is that she has so stylized her songs by the time she’s written them, that it would lead another artist to believe that they’re only for Dolly Parton,” Selman said in the book Dolly by Alanna Nash. “The only genuine way for her to get around that is to deliberately write a song for another artist. And I think that’s a weakness that she hasn’t discovered and done anything about.”
Ultimately, though, Selman said this would only be a true weakness if Parton’s goal was to solely be a songwriter. She wanted to perform, though.
“But, really, the word ‘weakness’ only applies if you think all she wants to do is write songs,” he said. “And since that isn’t all she wants to do, we have to assume that perhaps all of her songs are for her. As a professional writer, you have to isolate a weakness in your product and do something about it. In Dolly’s case, she doesn’t have to. She has an automatic record for anything she writes, because she’s her own vehicle. But as a writer, I think she should hope her songs are for everybody. Maybe she does, but she just can’t get them cut.”
Dolly Parton shared how much being a songwriter means to her
Parton is a prolific writer and thoroughly enjoys the art form. While she said not all her songs are hits, she enjoys writing each one of them.
“I take myself more serious as a songwriter than anything else,” she told CNBC. “I always say I’ve written about 3,000 songs and three good ones, but I just love the joy of writing.”
She writes every day, which is how she has managed to amass such a collection of songs.
“Writing’s just as natural to me as getting up and cooking breakfast,” she told The New York Times. “I ain’t never far away from a pencil and paper or a tape recorder. I write every day, even when I’m on a plane, in the tub, or on the bus. It burns in me. Songwriting is my way of channeling my feelings and my thoughts.”
What artists have covered Dolly Parton’s songs?
Though Selman said other artists may feel discouraged from covering Parton’s songs, many artists have released their own versions. Artists like Miley Cyrus, Linda Ronstadt, Reba McEntire, The White Stripes, Waxahatchee, and Beyoncé have released versions of Parton’s songs.
Perhaps most famously, Whitney Houston covered “I Will Always Love You” in 1992.
