Dolly Parton tells Stephen Colbert her 3 favorite Dolly Parton songs, brings him to tears


"Joining me tonight is legend who has written over 3,000 songs, won 10 Grammy Awards, and has a new book called Dolly Parton: Songteller," Stephen Colbert said on Tuesday's Late Show. He asked Parton about the title of her book. "I really think of myself as a songteller, because I write songs but I tell stories in my songs," she said. Parton said loves singing and performing for her fans, "but there's just something about writing songs, it's just kind of like my personal time with God, you know. I don't need anything other than me and whatever instrument I'm using at the time."
Colbert asked Parton if she remembered any of the songs her mother used to sing to her, and she said yes, all of them. "Mamma used to sing all of those old songs brought over from the Old World," Parton said, "and so many of those songs were sad — and as I say, some of them just plum pitiful. But I remember many songs. There was a song she used to sing called 'Bury Me Beneath the Willow.'"
She sang it, a cappella, and Colbert teared up. "Oh, are you crying?" Parton asked in the middle of the song. "So I'd better hush before you cry yourself to death and we can't finish the show," she teased him at the end. Colbert laughed: "Like a lot of Americans, I'm under a lot of stress right now, Dolly. And you got under my tripwire right there." Parton said she and her mom would also cry when she sang those songs, and they agreed that crying is good for cleansing your soul.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"Everybody's got their favorite Dolly Parton songs," his being "Butterfly," Colbert said. "What are your Top 3 Dolly Parton songs?" Her top one was "The Coat of Many Colors," and there was also the deep cut "Down From Dover." And if we're going to be strict about it "Jolene" didn't make the cut. Watch below. Peter Weber
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
September 1 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Monday’s political cartoons include Labor Day picnic, branding strategy, and more
-
What is Tony Blair's plan for Gaza?
Today's Big Question Former PM has reportedly been putting together a post-war strategy 'for the past several months'
-
When does autumn begin?
The Explainer The UK is experiencing a 'false autumn', as climate change shifts seasonal weather patterns
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclub
Speed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's ills
Speed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, Stallone
Speed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
-
White House seeks to bend Smithsonian to Trump's view
Speed Read The Smithsonian Institution's 21 museums are under review to ensure their content aligns with the president's interpretation of American history
-
Charlamagne Tha God irks Trump with Epstein talk
Speed Read The radio host said the Jeffrey Epstein scandal could help 'traditional conservatives' take back the Republican Party
-
CBS cancels Colbert's 'Late Show'
Speed Read 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' is ending next year
-
Shakespeare not an absent spouse, study proposes
speed read A letter fragment suggests that the Shakespeares lived together all along, says scholar Matthew Steggle
-
New Mexico to investigate death of Gene Hackman, wife
speed read The Oscar-winning actor and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home with no signs of foul play