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My guest tonight, a legendary country singer currently on tour with her latest album, Those Were the Days. Please welcome Dolly Parton.
And a good show.
They're very, very nice. It's so nice to meet you, and we're delighted to have you.
Well, thank you.
We watch your show at home, and we have a lot of people that love you a lot.
So there was I couldn't believe I was going to be on the show.
Here are.
I thank you.
I also couldn't believe you agreed to be on the show.
I was a little nervous. I said, you don't go to get all political with you this, No, I don't think so.
Can I tell you something?
Honestly, I'm just reading off.
I don't well, don't get me.
I don't know anything about it. I'm about like president.
As far as I know, Eisenhower's president, haven't. I don't like to follow this sort of thing. Uh, but you know what is interesting about you? You transcend red blue politics any of that. Everyone no one has anything bad to say about Dolly Partner. Everybody loves Dolly Parton. What is the secret? Just kindness, goodness or talent?
Oh, I've just been around so long. I think people just kind of know me. And I'm sure there's a lot of people that know a lot of bad stuff about me, but we don't want to hear from them. We have some fans out there, but actually, I've been in the business for a long long time and.
I like people.
I'm not a bit political, but I'm very patriotic, and that's kind of why I did some of these fun songs to kind of have a voice and all that's.
Going on today.
But not trying to make any big statements, but I'm just glad people like me, and it's kind of like like an older sister or a favorite ant or something like that.
I think that how people feel about you is not so sister le and antish.
Maybe some little Arnie goats.
Or something O, if that's what you want to refer to them as. I think that's fine. Now with your this is an album. It's called Dolly Parton Those were the Days, and uh, you collaborated with a lot of interesting people on this I did.
These actually were favorite songs of mine from the sixties and seventies, and I decided to do them because I'd always loved these songs, and right in the middle of recording, I thought, I wonder how many of the original artists or writers would.
Be willing to sing on this. So I started looking.
Around and ask a bunch of them, like Judy Collins, you know, she sang on we did both sides now and Leon Momack saying with her.
And we even got Cat Stevens.
Now, how did you get Cat Stephens?
Who?
I mean, as far as I know, he is ungettable.
Well, actually he's he's been out of the business for the most part, certainly, and out of this country.
Joseph Islama as he goes.
But I had always loved him, and I've recorded songs of his before. I did a song of his called peace Strain, and he had, many years back, sent me a fax and an email saying how proud he was of that. And I think he used the choir that I had used on his Peace Train on some things he did. And then I wrote a song called Hello God that he had heard on an airplane. He just facted me saying it was a song that needed writing and it.
Had touched him. And I know he's very involved in charity.
So since I love his songs, I had recorded a song in this CD called Where Did the Children Play? And I thought, well, it's worth a chance. So we sent an email and Steve Buckingham, who helped me round up a lot of these artists, we kind of collaborated and he said, I'll come play the guitar, so he did, and we send it over there.
He didn't come here to do it.
But the idea of you and Yuseff islam like blackberrying each other, like this is like this whole story is like, I'm mean. Then he was on a jet, so I get a BlackBerry and then it's got.
So I just I know, but that's the way it is with the writers.
And that's the way it went down. And so you got together and a sweet man.
Oh he's comfortable.
Man, he's just you know, he's got a got a lot of bad pressure lately. But I think he's out to try to say the world, not destroy it.
Anybody turn down, anybody say dey yeah, Bob Dylan.
I wanted yeah, I did up going it well. Actually, to be fair to him, he wrote the song, that's all he needed to do. But I didn't actually speak to him personally. I'd send a message to him because I wanted him to sing at least one line on the answer, you know, at least that much. But I got the message back that he didn't want to do it, so I got Nickel Creek, this wonderful new group to
sing on it. So in a way it worked out better because had had I got Bob Dylan, I wouldn't have them, and they did.
Such a If I may say this, you already you your life force could have infused him with I think it would have been good to him to just touch you, and it would have been like one of those things where he would touch you and all of a sudden all the like blood.
Except well, actually, like I say in all fantas, I didn't speak to him personally, so I don't know if he actually even got the message from me.
If that came from yeah, that's what I thought.
So.
Was walking back in the program, Dolly Barton, you'll fins that way.
This way you can.
Talk to me. I'm gonna say this. I don't say this to everybody. I've missed you.
Well you want to show a while and then you I haven't seen you in a little while. I'm missing your your personality. It's just very I guess it would would be vivacious.
Is that what they would say is that? No, but thank you.
Everybody said they loved us together, and I was excited about that.
So I'm happy that you're bringing me back.
So make the calls or I send the letters. It's not what you would call, let's say, harassment. Tell me about this joyful noise? What is this a movie about gospel?
Is this?
Well, it's all got all this great gospel music in it, and it's the story about a small town in Georgia that's falling on hard times and the economy is bad.
Exactly.
So it's about this church that's always competed in competitions, but they can't afford to do it. So anyway, Christofferson, who plays my husband, he dies early on.
He's the choir director.
So I think that I should be able to take over the choir. And of course, yeah, of course Latifa, she's a great singer there, and the committee says she should do it. So of course the rubb starts there. So we kind of fight all the way through. But it's about and there's a lot of fun in it, a lot of laughs.
Now you are.
In stature, obviously, a legend in the business, but physically smaller individual. The tiefa is if I may also a legend industry, but a larger was there ever? Was there physical fighting?
She gets me in a choke hold and I'm this tiny little thing down here.
I'll call us Biggie small from that world.
But anyway we do at the end when they sum up this whole thing, she really has me in the choke holds and she's got me. She could have hurt me bad if she'd have wanted to, but she didn't.
But she's great.
She is big.
She's what five nine.
That I'd like to say to you, Yeah, that's not much, But I look at that and think, oh God, if.
She's great, I love her. Her heart is funny.
Guys.
We had a great time and the music is spectacular. It's a Warner Brothers fam. I wrote three of the main songs in it. And I had a chance to, you know, to sing all the great stuff that I hadn't had a chance to do.
That brought music something. Yeah, gospel.
Well, I was brought up in the church Pentecostal Holy roller Wood.
We just say congregations.
We didn't have like a choir, but everybody was singing and shouting and a praise to the.
Lord and all.
What we Jews are like that except with complainings. We all get together and you're not like, oh my God.
Well, what's funny about this whole thing? It's very Christian.
It's all about Jesus and all these wonderful gospel choirs. But it was written by a Jew, Todd Graft, who wrote what.
We do, It's what we do.
Yeah, I know, but he did a great job. He did a wonderful He really got you know.
Do you were you able to harken back to your days in gospel? Was that just you know where you got the love of the music and where it all came together for you.
Yes.
My grandpa was a preacher and a great singer, great musician. My mother's people were all very musical, mostly in the church and around in the community. But I wanted to make a business out of it. But I still to this day because that's where I learned to sing in church. We always went to church, and I still have a feeling singing gospel music that I don't get in anything.
I love the sense and this may be an absolute sort of stereotypical picture that I had my head of it, of these communities and these families gathered together and everybody's got the music, and they're all sitting around on a Saturday night and just going around. I used to look at that and maybe romanticize it. That feeling of I don't know, just that that talent but also with family and doing it together.
Is that made up in my head?
Or that tell you that's exactly what we used to do. Especially my family and my brothers and sisters. We all used to sing, and we used to go around sing at all the funerals, all the weddings, all the square dances, anywhere there was music in the community, and certainly around our house. And on Sundays, you know, we'd get up in church too and do all that special sing and we'd play our guitars and all the instruments and it was great.
So exactly what you have in your mind is how I.
Did grow up with a family of twelve children, just country people, and the church and the music was what.
Kept us going.
Yeah, after school, what I would do is come home and there's a key that was put under a carpet, and then I'd go in and heat myself up some spaghettios, so it's very hard.
Well, we would have prayed for you. We will keep you in.
Oh, it's so great to see you again.
Come back and see us speaking.
You're you're gonna do a big musical. You're gonna come back and see us.
Anytime I get to talk to you all. Come back and go see the movie. It's great. It's called Joyful Noise, and it's fun.
Joyful Noise Dollar everybody.
My guests tonight are legendary singer songwriter Dolly Parton and best selling author James Patterson. They're here to discuss the novel that they've co written about the country music industry and the album Dolly wrote to.
Go with it.
James Patterson, Dolly Partton, Welcome to The Daily Show. Well are you I'm I'm. I could not be in a better place because you realize I am talking to two of the most successful people in the fields that they do anything in. I mean, James Patterson, You've written books that have gone around the world. I mean, hundreds of millions of people have consumed them. Dolly Potton, we're familiar
with your music. I grew up listening to it with my mom like would be driving around and are like Folks and Beatles singing to your songs with Kenny Rodgers, and I would like sing your part. My mom would do Kenny Rodgers.
It's it's a care you do her part.
Now you can't sing Dolly Poton to Dolly Parton, James, don't put me on the spot. Run Rose Run. It's not dark, but it's thrilling. I mean, it's a it's a really different site to the music industry than I think what a lot of people would have expected. You know, James, I maybe would have expected something like this from you. But Dolly Potton, what made you think? You know what I'm gonna I'm gonna show you, guys, maybe another world
in music that you might not be familiar with. And yes, it's fiction, but at the same time, it touches on some of the themes that people have encountered in music.
Well it does. And like I said, I knew all about the business. And I've never written a novel before. I've written books, written children's books, and so I know what it's like to kind of write. But I had often thought I liked to write an album when I was old, And so when James presented me with this. I thought, yes, why would James Pattersman even be searching me out? And I thought, why he don't need me,
look at what all he's done. But it made complete sense when he told me what the book was going to be about. And I knew I really could.
Because you know, I mean, Dolly came out of the hills of Tennessee and I came out as sort of a similar situation in upstate New York. And the character in the book also, I mean, we were both kind of million to one shots, and the character in the book is a million to one shots. She's very talented Anny Lee Keys, but that doesn't mean you're gonna make it.
But also her story, everybody has a story when they come to town. Everybody's going to past their childhood and how they grew up, and everybody's story is different. Everybody's life is a soap opera. And so it's really about her, her story. She was running to something. She loved the music,
but she was running from something. So I knew that I could write great songs of all the bad people in town, like snakes in the gra asked about the bad managers and things, the guys that we because I've experienced.
A lot of that myself, you know, when we met.
So I go back home and two days later I had to I had some notes for Dolly to react to. She sent me notes on the outline, and she sent me the lyrics for seven songs.
Well, I got a lot of to days.
I had said to him, I said, now, look, if I'm not the kind of person, but if we're going to work together, I'm not going to just put my name on a book, you know, if you put my name if I don't really work not so hi am I going to contribute the most to it? And then one day I thought, well, I write songs and I know these stories, and I would love to write a book, I mean, an album about these situations and the characters
in the movie. So it just seemed to fall from natural and it just really helped us both, I think.
So it was just such a magical thing.
It worked very quickly.
It was kind of like a TV show where every week we would have another episode or another two or three chapters to mess around.
With, and I really enjoy it. Just seemed to work.
I say it with the best thing at all. We really become really good friends.
You know, from my birthday, She's sang happy birthday and me over the telephone.
I mean, that's that's all about. That's everything the book is. The book is already a success in your world just because of that. Actually, James, from your side, you you worked with President Bill Clinton writing a book together. Now you you're a successful author on your own. I mean, this is what you do. You onet of the most
beloved authors around the world. But now when you're writing with somebody who has their own points of view, who has their own fan base, who has their own style, I'd love to know how you find a way to meld those two worlds, you know, and and and the second part of that question is what were the biggest differences between writing with Dolly Potton and Bill Clinton.
Well, the biggest difference between Dolly Dolly is a much better singer and does a better sax player. I thinks she plays.
Uh, you know, they're both great to work with, and they're both friends.
I mean it's really that's the most precious thing to me about both of the relationships. But the authenticity that built the President brought, and then the authenticity that that we worked on in terms of Ron ronins rotten and now he goes there was never any bumps in the road ever, not one, no bumps.
But I think people are accepted. She says, I can't sing. I don't like that you can't sing, and.
I don't know that perfect but he can't write. But I really think people are enjoying this book. Are going to enjoy it because I think, like you said earlier, they love to see the inside and the stories of these people, you know, some of the stories behind the scenes and what Nashville is kind of like kind of gives them an insight into the business end of it, not just the entertainment entertainment side.
You know, James Lost we spoke. We talked about your your family foundation and how you know you have scholarships and how you get books out to kids and just people who want to read, and it's it's really important to you, Darley. I didn't know why you got into it. I've always known you as a philanthropist. I've always known you as somebody who loves giving back and you know, loves getting kids reading and loves donating books. But I
didn't know why you got it. Is it true that your father couldn't read and so you said, you know what, not only is this important to me, but I think it should be important to everybody to be literates.
I absolutely started the Imagination Library because from my father, who I loved to death, and he seemed to always be embarrassed and kind of almost crippled, you know, that he couldn't read, and he thought he couldn't read after he was grown. But my daddy was so smart and so good and I just I just one day, I just thought, you know, I'm going to start something where children can learn to read when they're in their young days, that's when they're most impressionable.
And I wanted to get my daddy involved with me in it.
So my daddy, I took him with me. He helped with, you know, with all the little things, and he just loved to hear the kids call me the book lady, and I'd say, this is my dad, And of course I didn't say anything about that. But he couldn't read and write at the time, but anyhow, I was he got to live long enough to see the Imagination Library doing so good, and he was so proud, and so I have to answer to say, that's one of the most proud things that I have ever I'm proud of
to that. I mean as anything I have ever done in my whole career. That is because because of the kids.
That is so beautiful. I mean, I'm sure he's proud of you. I'm sure you know, and I'm glad that he got to see it, as you say, in his lifetime. People have been eternally grateful to your organization for this.
You know.
I remember as a kid, you know, one of the biggest things that changed my life was my mom spent the little money that she had to get me books, which changed my life forever. I was actually surprised to see that, you know, in I think it was a Kentucky state state legislator who said they don't want some of the books that you were offering because they didn't
think it was appropriate for young kids. What do you think some people miss in and around, you know, what kids can or cannot read, or how we process what we're reading.
Well, I would never, in many years begin to think that I would choose those books.
I don't choose.
We have a whole committee of people that choose the books that are made up of parents and all different people. So I would never be so bold as to think I knew what other people's kids should read. But it goes through a whole committee, and so we do the best we can. And I'll let people, you know, thought that out. So why does you want to be there for the kid?
I mean, they're not going to be reading going with the wind, you know, So anyway, let people figure that one out.
But we do have other people that choose. They choose the.
Books, not me.
James, Are you going to try your hand that songwriting? Is this gonna rubble for you on your side?
Now?
You know the answer is not. But when I was down here at Vandabilt, you can't help yourself. So I did. When I was down here, I did try to write some songs. It wasn't a good idea. What do you think?
What do you think is actually hard to honestly, do you think it's hard to write a novel or do you think it's hard to write a song for you? Specifically?
Well for me? No, for me, I can't know, because I can't write country songs or any other kind.
But I bet you could. I mean you're a runner.
Yeah, maybe I don't thing the novel thing.
I've kind of have a groove on it now, I believe, so yeah, and all kinds of now because I do the kids stuff and then nonfiction and you know, so we're you know, I know what I can do.
And what I can't do. Let's put it that way.
Darley. On your side, you you've said, and you know it's crazy that you have wishes that haven't been fulfilled in life yet. But I know one of your wishes is you've said that you wish that Beyonce would cover Jolene. There are over four hundred renditions of Jolene, multiple different languages. People have done it, and you said you specifically want Beyonce to do that. Are there any updates? Is that, like you know of this happening, you know? And and
why Beyonce? Maybe that's that's even more important.
I don't know if she's even got the message, but wouldn't that be killer? I think she's fantastic and beautiful and I love her music. I would just love to hear Joelene done in just a big way, kind of how Whitney did my I will always love you, just someone we can take my little songs and make them like powerhouses. So that would be a marvelous day in my life if she ever does, Joeline Darlie.
One last thing, you famously donated a million dollars for the research that went into helping us get the vaccine for COVID nineteen. How is it that you've always been on the right side of history? You know, you've said amazing things during the civil rights movements, you know, when many people were far behind, you said amazing things like you know about equality, about women's rights. You said amazing things now in and around the vaccines, like what is
the magic of Dolly Parton? That you were always on the right side of history.
I just love people. I think we're all God's children.
I make no difference in that I always try to find a God light and everybody. Always keep my ear and eye trained on what's going on. And I saw right away that that pandemic was going to be awful. I just sensed it, and I thought, well, what can I do to maybe help a little bit? So I donated the money to the research, and I'm happy I did. I got a lot more credit than I deserved that. I am very proud of whatever effect that I had
on that going on, because it's still going on. But I just kind of be aware and want to help when I can. I think when you get in a position to help, you should.
And you know, the other thing is is you know Dolly does what Dolly does.
But having been around here now for a year and a half, she is the smartest person I've ever dealt with.
Oh please, that's a piece of it.
Well, thank you both for the confliments.
James Patterson, Dolly Parton, thank you for your partnership, and thank you so much for taking the time and joining us on the Daily Show.
And we just love you. You have a lot of fans too. You've just got that God blow and I love it.
So keep up what you're doing.
Thank you very much. There are a few moments in life that I think my mom would actually like consider as me making it. Interviewing Dolly Partton is one of them. Like of all the things in life that is it. I'm gonna go back to her and be like, huh this now, and she'd be like, oh, you did one thing. Well done, James. Really wonderful seeing you again. Congratulations, it's a fantastic book.
Well done.
Thank you so much.
Thank you so much, Dorothy.
Great meeting you.
Hey, how do you mom for me?
I will do, I will do definitely.
Sending it right to her.
Okay, I'm gonna clip this and send it to her.
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