FEW voices in country music could tell a story quite like Dolly Parton , warm, unmistakable and capable of turning even the simplest memory into a song that stayed with generations. The Iconic country musician died at the age of 80.
Many who grew up with country music, and lovers of the genre, will remember Dolly Parton’s ‘Coat of Many Colors’ — a song drawn from her childhood and centred on a mother’s love.
Parton wrote the song in 1969, drawing on the memory of a coat her mother, Avie Lee, made for her from pieces of fabric given to the family. As her mother sewed, she told Dolly the biblical story of Joseph and his coat of many colours.
When Dolly wore the coat to school, some children made fun of her because it was made from rags. But to Dolly, the coat meant something far greater. It represented the love her mother had sewn into it and taught her that what matters most cannot always be measured by money or material possessions.
Her recording of ‘Coat of Many Colors’ was released in 1971 and became one of Dolly Parton’s most personal songs. The story later inspired a children’s book, first published in 1996, as well as two television films, Coat of Many Colors in 2015 and Dolly Parton’s Christmas of Many Colors: Circle of Love in 2016.
Perhaps that is why, decades later, ‘Coat of Many Colors’ continues to resonate with listeners, alongside songs such as ‘I Will Always Love You’ and ‘Just Because I’m a Woman’ in Dolly Parton’s memorable collection of songs.
