| Dolly the queen of country love - 11jun04
COUNTRY Music Television in the United States has come up with its own list of can't-miss 100 greatest love songs.
Top of the haystack is the wailing anthem to love, Dolly Parton's I Will Always Love You, which she took to No. 1 on the country chart in 1974.
The tune got a rebirth 18 years later when Whitney Houston made it a No. 1 pop hit and it was featured in the movie The Bodyguard.
Parton once told CMT about a woman who stopped her and thanked her for writing the lyrics.
"The lady's father was dying of cancer, and he had never been able to tell his family how much he loved them," Parton said.
"When he heard the song, he went out and bought the cassette and brought each of his children in individually and played the song for them.
"He said, 'These are the words I want you to know are in my heart'."
"It was one of the proudest moments of my life," Parton said.
CMT released the list in a concert in which the top 12 were performed.
Parton was there, as were Kenny Rogers, Randy Travis, Lee Ann Womack, Brad Paisley, Dierks Bentley with the Del McCoury Band, Sara Evans, Joe Nichols, Michael McDonald, Lonestar, Josh Turner, Julie Roberts, Buddy Jewell and Raul Malo of The Mavericks.
McDonald, a pop and rock singer with a deep, soulful voice, performed Willie Nelson's You Were Always On My Mind.
"It's a beautiful song," McDonald said. "It expresses one of those great sentiments. There's no one out there who hasn't experienced that."
Rogers recalled how She Believes in Me stood out when he first heard it and how he knew right away he wanted to record it: "In the song it talks about the old guitar in the corner and he's out trying to hustle and make a living for himself. He comes home and when it really gets tough it's nice to know she believes in me."
The selection process was loose. A team at CMT came up with the list, trying to capture "the full breadth and scope of country music's rich history of love songs -- in their many aspects," a spokeswoman said. - AP | |
