Current:Home > Contact'Cowboy Carter' collaborator Dolly Parton reacts to Beyoncé's 'Jolene' cover: 'Wow' -×
'Cowboy Carter' collaborator Dolly Parton reacts to Beyoncé's 'Jolene' cover: 'Wow'
View
Date:2025-04-16 22:43:43
Dolly Parton heard Beyoncé's remake of her 1973 classic "Jolene," and she approves.
"Wow, I just heard Jolene," the country music legend posted on Instagram Friday. "Beyoncé is giving that girl some trouble and she deserves it! Love, Dolly P."
Beyoncé changed many of the lyrics on the track that bridges the gap from "Jolene" to "Becky with the good hair" from Beyoncé's 2016 hit "Sorry." In Parton's version of "Jolene," she pleads with a rival not to steal her man. However, Yoncé puts her own spin on the song, warning her adversary and affirming the strength of her relationship.
Parton appears twice on Beyoncé's new album, "Cowboy Carter," which released Friday. In interlude "Dolly P." she refers to the singer as "Miss Honey Bey."
Parton also appears on "Tyrant," kicking off the track with "time to strike up a match and light up this juke joint."
Prior to the release of the album, Parton hinted to Knox News, part of the USA TODAY Network, that Bey might sample or cover the classic.
"Well, I think she has! I think she's recorded 'Jolene,' and I think it's probably gonna be on her country album, which I'm very excited about that," Parton said earlier this month during a one-on-one interview about the season opening of her Dollywood theme park.
Beyoncé's 'Cowboy Carter' is here:Start with these 5 songs
How Beyoncé's 'Jolene' lyrics compare to Dolly Parton's
In the original version, Parton begins by begging: "Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene / I'm begging of you please don't take my man / Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene / Please don't take him just because you can."
Beyoncé tweaks the tune, singing: "Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene / I'm warnin’ you, don't come for my man (Jolene) / Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene / Don't take the chance because you think you can."
Parton continues to plead throughout the rest of the song with lyrics such as: "Your beauty is beyond compare / With flaming locks of auburn hair / With ivory skin and eyes of emerald green / Your smile is like a breath of spring / Your voice is soft like summer rain / And I cannot compete with you, Jolene."
Parton's second verse goes: "He talks about you in his sleep / And there's nothin' I can do to keep / From cryin' when he calls your name, Jolene / And I can easily understand / How you could easily take my man / But you don't know what he means to me, Jolene."
Finally, Parton sings Verse 3: "You could have your choice of men / But I could never love again / He's the only one for me, Jolene / I had to have this talk with you / My happiness depends on you/ And whatever you decide to do, Jolene."
In her remake, Beyoncé sings about her long relationship with husband Jay-Z and their three children together:
"You’re beautiful, beyond compare / Takes more than beauty and seductive stares / To come between a family and a happy man / Jolene, I'm a woman too / Thе games you play are nothing new / So you don't want no hеat with me, Jolene / We've been deep in love for twenty years / I raised that man, I raised his kids / I know my man better than he knows himself (Yeah, what?) / I can easily understand / Why you're attracted to my man / But you don't want this smoke, so shoot your shot with someone else (You heard me)."
Our critic's comprehensive review:'Cowboy Carter' is a little bit country — and a whole lot more
She goes on to kick the fierceness up a notch throughout the song, including in the second chorus: "Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene / I'm warnin' you, woman, find you your own man / Jolene, I know I’m a queen, Jolene / I’m still a Creole banjee bitch from Louisianne (Don't try me)."
In the bridge, Beyoncé is joined by a choir as she sings about her confidence in her relationship: "Me and my man crossed those valleys / Highs and lows and everything between / Good deeds roll in like tumblin' weeds / I sleep good, happy / 'Cause you can’t dig up our planted seeds / I know my man's gon' stand by me, breathin' in my gentle breeze (Ah)."
veryGood! (3)
Related
- 2025 'Doomsday Clock': This is how close we are to self
- 121 unmarked graves in a former Black cemetery found at US Air Force base in Florida, officials say
- 2nd suspect convicted of kidnapping, robbery in 2021 abduction, slaying of Ohio imam
- Texas man pleads guilty to kidnapping teen whose ‘Help Me!’ sign led to Southern California rescue
- Questlove charts 50 years of SNL musical hits (and misses)
- Lamar Jackson and Ravens pull away in the second half to beat Texans 34-10 and reach AFC title game
- Soldiers find workshop used to make drone bombs, grenade launchers and fake military uniforms in Mexico
- David Oyelowo talks MLK, Role Play, and how to impress an old crush
- Nearly half of US teens are online ‘constantly,’ Pew report finds
- FTC tied up in legal battle, postpones new rule protecting consumers from dealership scams
Ranking
- The White House is cracking down on overdraft fees
- North Carolina school board backs away from law on policies on pronouns, gender identity instruction
- Small-town Colorado newspapers stolen after running story about rape charges at police chief’s house
- The Non-Aligned Movement calls Israel’s war in Gaza illegal and condemns attacks on Palestinians
- The White House is cracking down on overdraft fees
- Alabama five-star freshman quarterback Julian Sayin enters transfer portal
- Indignant Donald Trump pouts and rips civil fraud lawsuit in newly released deposition video
- An unknown culprit has filled in a Chicago neighborhood landmark known as the ‘rat hole’
Recommendation
Paula Abdul settles lawsuit with former 'So You Think You Can Dance' co
Women and children are main victims of Gaza war, with 16,000 killed, UN says
Judge ends suspension of Illinois basketball star Terrence Shannon Jr., charged with rape
These home sales in the US hit a nearly three-decade low: How did we get here?
Tom Holland's New Venture Revealed
Air pollution and politics pose cross-border challenges in South Asia
An unknown culprit has filled in a Chicago neighborhood landmark known as the ‘rat hole’
Russia will consider property confiscations for those convicted of discrediting the army