Dolly Parton Was Unsure About This Song From 1977 (And Then It Went Gold)

By the year 1977, Dolly Parton had achieved country chart success with songs like “Jolene” and “I Will Always Love You”. The year prior, the country star decided to self-produce an album, New Harvest…First Gathering. The project did well on the country side of things but struggled to achieve mainstream success as she’d hoped. That was when Parton turned to pop producer Gary Klein for assistance.

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Klein was the one who suggested Parton record “Here You Come Again”, which would go on to become her first gold-certified single. The song had been offered to Brenda Lee, who had been holding on to it for about a year. Klein thought Parton could pull it off.

Apparently, she thought the song sounded a little too pop for her country audience. Or so said her former manager, Sandy Gallin.

“She said, ‘A monkey can sing this song and have a hit with it,’ Gallin told Sirius XM. “She was very nervous that it would turn off the country market, which she was very loyal to. There was no way she wanted to ever let anything insinuate that she may be turning her back on the country audience to go to pop.”

However, it would seem that with “Here You Come Again”, Parton did something unique. She was able to break into the mainstream market while also keeping her country roots close.

All while giving us one of the best crossover hits at the time.

The Deal Parton Made With Her Manager, Sandy Gallin

Parton was so uncertain about “Here You Come Again” that, according to Gallin, he had to make a deal with her to get her to release the song.

“I listened to the song, and I made a deal with her,” Gallin explained. “‘If the song is not No. 1 country and No. 1 pop, I never get into your music again.’ I said, ‘I’ll bet it’s No. 1.’ She said, ‘You’re sure of this?’ I said, ‘I’m positive.’”

Parton agreed to give the song a chance. However, if it didn’t do well, it was decided that she would make all her musical decisions alone, without Gallin.

As it turns out, though, Gallin ended up being pretty much on the money. The song reached No. 1 on the country charts and peaked at No. 3 on Billboard.

Photo by: Richard E. Aaron/Redferns