Leave it to the country’s current record holder to tackle one of Dolly Parton’s most famous (and frequently covered) songs. during wednesday night CMA Presents I Will Always Love You: A Celebration of Dolly PartonElla Langley performed her 1974 hit “Jolene”, which Starr first performed at her Auburn, Alabama concert shortly after Parton’s death. After an introduction by Katy Perry (who called Parton her “blueprint”), Langley performed a smoldering version of the classic that paid homage to Parton’s original arrangement.
It’s a fitting song choice for Langley, who broke it down board Hot 100 chart record with “Choosin’ Texas”, a song about losing your man to the manipulations of another – not unlike the premise of “Jolene”, which Parton wrote after she saw her husband Carl Dean chatting with an attractive woman in a bank.
“She had this terrible crush on my husband,” Parton told npr in 2008. “And she loved going to the bank because she paid so much attention to it. It was like a running joke between us – when I’d say, ‘Hey, you’re spending so much time at the bank. I can’t believe we have that kind of money.’ So it’s actually an innocent song all around, but sounds like an awesome one.
Following Parton’s death, Langley took to his social media accounts to pay tribute to the artist, whom he described as a seminal influence. Langley posted, “Dolly, thank you for standing up for yourself as an artist, a songwriter, a musician, a producer, a writer, a creative and most importantly a woman in this industry. You paved the way for many to be brave.” “Thank you for being fearless in showing your most authentic self. The world needed Dolly and will never see another like her. Heaven’s Gate has welcomed home a beautiful soul.”
Staged at Belmont University in Nashville, CMA Presents I Will Always Love You: A Celebration of Dolly Parton It will air live on ABC and Disney+ on October 21, and will be available to stream on Hulu starting October 22. Income from event profits Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. Other cast members included Brad Paisley, Zac Brown, Carrie Underwood and Vince Gill.