''Jolene'' is the thirteenth solo studio album by American entertainer

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 ...

. It was released on February 4, 1974, by

RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...

. The title track, " Jolene", tells the tale of a housewife confronting a beautiful seductress who she believes is having an affair with her husband. It became Parton's second solo number-one country single; it also was a moderate pop hit for her, and also did well in the United Kingdom. Since the introduction of downloads to the Official Chart in 2005, it has amassed 255,300 downloads and 6.68 million streams. It has been covered by numerous performers. The album was released around the time Parton was embarking on a solo career, after having spent seven years as part of

Porter Wagoner Porter Wayne Wagoner (August 12, 1927 – October 28, 2007) was an American country music singer known for his flashy Nudie and Manuel suits and blond pompadour. In 1967, he introduced singer Dolly Parton on his television show, ''The ...

's weekly TV series and road show, and one of the album's songs, "

I Will Always Love You "I Will Always Love You" is a song written and originally recorded in 1973 by American singer-songwriter Dolly Parton. Written as a farewell to her business partner and mentor Porter Wagoner, expressing Parton's decision to pursue a solo career, ...

", was reportedly written to express the remorse Parton felt over the professional breakup. Released as the album's second single, it also became a number-one country single. "Early Morning Breeze" is a re-recording of a song which previously appeared on 1971's ''

Coat of Many Colors In the Hebrew Bible, the coat of many colors ( he, כְּתֹנֶת פַּסִּים, ketonet passim) is the name for the garment that Joseph owned, which was given to him by his father, Jacob. Biblical narrative Joseph's father, Jacob (also ...

''. "Lonely Coming Down" had first appeared on Parton's Wagoner tribute album, ''

My Favorite Songwriter, Porter Wagoner ''My Favorite Songwriter, Porter Wagoner'' is the tenth solo studio album by American singer-songwriter Dolly Parton. It was released on October 2, 1972, by RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Ente ...

'', from 1972. Another re-issue was released in conjunction with Dolly's 2007 European Tour along with two other older out-of-print albums. This re-issue included additional previously unreleased songs. In 2010,

Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainmen ...

reissued the 2007 CD ''Jolene'' in a triple-feature CD set with ''

'' and ''

My Tennessee Mountain Home ''My Tennessee Mountain Home'' is the eleventh solo studio album by American entertainer Dolly Parton. It was released on April 2, 1973, by RCA Victor. The house pictured on the album cover was the house in which the Parton family lived during t ...

'' and they have never been out of print.

Critical reception

A positive review of the album by ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...

'' said, "With the title taken from her latest hit single, Dolly goes about recording a whole bunch of others—hits, that is. There are perhaps five or six here which could stand on their own, including the exceptional ballad, 'Lonely Coming Down'. Most of the writing is her own, as usual, and that's always a plus."

Track listing

Personnel

*Dolly Parton – vocals, guitar *Jimmy Colvard – guitar *Dave Kirby – guitar * Bobby Thompson – guitar *

Chip Young Chip Young (born Jerry Marvin Stembridge, May 19, 1938 – December 20, 2014) was an American session guitarist, and later record producer who worked primarily out of Nashville, Tennessee. Biography Chip Young was born Jerry Marvin Stembridge in ...

– guitar * Pete Drake –

pedal steel guitar The pedal steel guitar is a console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all steel guitars, it can ...

*Stu Basore – pedal steel guitar *Bobby Dyson – bass *

Jerry Carrigan Jerry Kirby Carrigan (September 13, 1943 – June 22, 2019) was an American drummer and record producer. Early in his career he was a member of the original Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section and later worked as a session musician in Nashville for over ...

– drums *

Larrie Londin Ralph Gallant (October 15, 1943 − August 24, 1992), better known by the stage name Larrie Londin, was an American drummer and session musician. According to journalist James Byron Fox, "If not the best known, Larrie is one of the most listene ...

– drums *

Kenny Malone Kenny Malone (August 4, 1938 – August 26, 2021) was an American drummer and percussionist. Life and career Malone was born in Denver, Colorado. From the 1970s onwards, he was a prominent session musician in folk, country and many other acousti ...

– drums *

Buck Trent Charles Wilburn "Buck" Trent (born February 17, 1938) is an American country music instrumentalist currently performing in Branson, Missouri. He invented the electric banjo and also plays the five-string banjo, dobro, steel guitar, mandolin, ...

– banjo *

Mack Magaha Mack Magaha (August 1, 1929 – August 15, 2003) was an American bluegrass fiddler best known as a member of Porter Wagoner's band, and a long-time backup player in the pioneering bluegrass band, Reno and Smiley. Music career In 1955, Magaha ...

– fiddle *

Johnny Gimble John Paul Gimble (May 30, 1926 – May 9, 2015) was an American country musician associated with Western swing. Gimble was considered one of the most important fiddlers in the genre. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999 ...

– fiddle *

Hargus "Pig" Robbins Hargus Melvin Robbins (January 18, 1938 – January 30, 2022), known by his nickname "Pig," was an American session keyboard player. Having played on records for many artists, including John Stewart, Dolly Parton, Connie Smith, Patti Page, Lor ...

– piano * David Briggs – piano *Onie Wheeler – harmonica * The Nashville Edition - background vocals

Chart positions

Album Album (Year-End)

Certifications

References

External links

Jolene at Dolly Parton On-Line
{{Authority control Dolly Parton albums 1974 albums Albums produced by Bob Ferguson (music) RCA Records albums