"The Bargain Store" is a song written and recorded by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

artist

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, philanthropist, and businesswoman, known primarily for her work in country music. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton made her album d ...

. It was released in January 1975 as the first single and title track from the album ''

The Bargain Store ''The Bargain Store'' is the fifteenth solo studio album by Dolly Parton. It was released on February 17, 1975, by RCA Victor. In the Parton-penned title track, one of her best-known compositions, she used worn, second-hand merchandise in a disc ...

''. The song was Parton's fifth number one on the country chart as a solo artist. The song stayed at number one for a single week and spent nine weeks on the country chart.

Content

Worn, second-hand merchandise in a discount store is used as a metaphor for a woman emotionally damaged by an ill-fated relationship. However, the song was dropped from a number of country stations' playlists when programmers mistook the line "you can easily afford the price" as a thinly veiled reference to prostitution.

Chart performance

References

Songs written by Dolly Parton Dolly Parton songs 1975 singles Song recordings produced by Bob Ferguson (musician) RCA Records Nashville singles 1975 songs Obscenity controversies in music {{1970s-country-song-stub