The Two Stories Behind Dolly Parton's 'Jolene'

Dolly Parton didn't invent her iconic song, "Jolene," out of thin air. She built her from two very real encounters, one sweet, one a little more complicated.

It’s no secret that Dolly Parton’s iconic song, “Jolene,” bore “a little bit of truth,” in the late singer’s own words. And as it turns out, the truth came from two different women entirely.

The album cover for "Jolene" featuring Dolly Parton | Source: Getty Images

Parton said the name "Jolene" belonged to a pretty little girl with red hair, green eyes, and fair skin who approached her for an autograph, a story she once shared in an old interview with Norwegian television. Parton was so taken with the girl that she promised to write a song using her name.

But the song's plot was inspired by another woman entirely, someone for whom Parton had anything but affection: a red-haired bank teller who had taken a liking to her husband, Carl Dean.

“She got this terrible crush on my husband," Parton told NPR in 2008. "He just loved going to the bank because she paid him so much attention."

Parton revisited the story at Glastonbury in 2014 and told the crowd, "I wrote that years ago when my husband… was spending a little more time with Jolene than I thought he should be.” In jest, she added, "I put a stop to that. I got rid of that redhead woman in a hurry."

Dolly Parton performing at Glastonbury, England in June 2014 | Source: Getty Images

Still, Parton always circled back to gratitude rather than grudge. At that same Glastonbury set, she told her audience that good things can come out of almost anything, and that without the whole ordeal, "Jolene" never would have existed, nor would the fortune it went on to earn her. She even thanked the woman by name for the inspiration.

Released in 1973, "Jolene," the song about fending off a woman trying to steal her man, became one of Parton's signature songs. It's since been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, and a 2016 duet version with Pentatonix won the Grammy for Best Country Duo/Group Performance.