Dolly Parton‘s social media recently broke the news that Parton’s husband, Carl Dean, had passed away on March 3 at age 82. The pair were married for more than 60 years after meeting at a laundromat in Nashville around 1964. Parton was quoted in the post as saying, “Carl and I spent many wonderful years together. Words can’t do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years. Thank you for your prayers and sympathy.”
Now, “Jolene” is arguably one of Dolly Parton’s most famous songs. However, did you know that it was actually inspired by a real life incident in her life? Or, at least, partially inspired by a beautiful woman who worked at a bank in Nashville. Here’s the story behind “Jolene,” in Parton’s own words, and how her husband came into play.
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It All Started When Dolly Parton’s Husband Started Going to the Bank More Often
According to various interviews over the years, from NBC to NPR, Dolly Parton has shared the story behind the song “Jolene.” Apparently, the name came from a young fan who she met in the 1960s. However, the narrative of a beautiful man-stealing redhead was based on a bank teller in Nashville. Apparently, Parton’s husband was going to the bank more often than usual, and she was suspicious.
“Well, actually, [“Jolene”] was based on a little truth. Her name was not Jolene, but she was working at the bank, and she was this beautiful girl,” Parton has said. “And that was bad enough, that [husband Carl Dean] was having to go to the bank as much as he was going. And I kept thinking, we ain’t got that kinda money, not yet anyway. He was in asphalt paving, he and his father, and I said, ‘Why are you having to talk to her all the time?’”
She continued, “And he said, ‘I’m trying to get a loan, I’m trying to do this for our asphalt paving company.’ And I said, ‘Well, couldn’t you talk to one of those hairy legged boys about a thing like that?’ And he said, ‘No.’”
Then Dolly Parton came back with possibly the most clever rebuttal. “And I said, ‘Look, you better be talkin’ to one of those boys, or it’s gonna be your ass and your fault! So there’s your asphalt.’”
Parton Later Realized That She Might Have Just Been Jealous
Even though Dolly Parton is known for her unwavering confidence, she revealed that she had a few insecurities at the time. “But I was just jealous, ‘cuz she was prettier than me and I think I just felt threatened,” she admitted. “He didn’t have a thing going with her, but he was flirtin’. But I’m a flirt, too. Anyways, I thought, this makes a great idea for a song. So I wrote it.”
The rest is history. “Jolene” became a huge hit, and Dolly Parton and Carl Dean stayed married for more than 60 years until his death this month. However, as much as she admitted the real story, she also liked to embellish it for audiences when introducing the song.
During her 1980s variety show, Parton introduced “Jolene” by saying, “Now this is a true story for those of you that don’t know. I wrote this song about 20 years ago about this woman down in Nashville, that worked at the bank. She was trying to take care of my husband while I was out on the road.”
Parton continued, “Well that didn’t go over too big with me, I fought that red-headed woman like a wildcat. She jerked my wig off and almost beat me to death with it. But I kept my husband, I got that sucker home and I beat the tar out of him.”
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