About this episode
It takes an extremely strong song to top the charts three separate times in three separate decades, but "I Will Always Love You" is just such a song. Written and recorded (twice) by Dolly Parton and then re-recorded in show-stopping fashion by Whitney Houston, the ballad has morphed from a fond farewell to a former mentor, to a theatrical goodbye to a lover, to a soaring ode to the very notions of love and loss. We follow that journey from the beginning, with all the vocal tricks, dramatic line-readings, and epic key changes that were added along the way. Band/Artist: Dolly Parton & Whitney Houston Albums: Jolene (1974), The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982), and The Bodyguard soundtrack (1992) Composed by: Dolly Parton Listen/Buy (Jolene) via Album.Link Listen/Buy (TBLWIT) via Album.Link Listen/Buy (The Bodyguard) via Album.Link ALSO REFERENCED/DISCUSSED: The sensational new WNYC podcast Dolly Parton's America "The Last Thing On My Mind" by Dolly Parton and Porter Wagoner "Applejack" by Dolly Parton from New Harvest...First Gathering , 1977 "Let It Go" from Frozen performed by Idina Menzel OUTRO SOLOIST: Dan Nervo Mr. Dan Nervo has the tiller for this episode's outro solo. Dan plays guitar all around the San Francisco Bay Area in bands like Neon Velvet , and also teaches private guitar lessons . Hit him up if you want to get really good at guitar: https://www.facebook.com/DanNervoGuitarLessons/ -------------------- November 2019 Whole-Note Patrons Andrew Walters - Caleb Rotach - Chad Barnard - Dan Apczynski - Dave Florey - Glenn Jared Norris - Mark Schechter - Merlin Mann - Ryan Torvik November 2019 Half-Note Patrons Alex Singer - Alexander Polson - Amanda Furlotti - Andre Bremer - Andrew Baker - Andrew Lee - Arjun Sharma - Bill Thornton - Brett Douville - Brian Amoebas - Brooke Wilford - Chas Lednicky - Chris Brown - Cyrus N. White - David Stroud - Earl Lozada - Eero Wahlstedt - Elliot Jay O’Neill - Emily Williams - Fishbones - Forrest Chang - Jaehoon Jeong - James Johnson - Jasmine Fellows - Jeffrey Olson - Jennifer Bush - John and Sharon Stenglein - Jon O’Keefe - Joujou - Juan Carlos Montemayor Elosua - Jules Bailey - Justin Liew - Justin McElroy - Kate Albury - Kevin Morrell - Kevin Pennyfeather - Kingy - Matt Gaskell - Max Schechter - Melanie Stivers - Michael Blackwell - Miriam Juskowicz - Molly Mueller - Nate from Kalamazoo - Nicholas Schechter - Richard Toller - Samuel Gardner - Shane DeLeon - Shaun Wiese - SP - Tanner Morton - Tim - Tom Clewer - Tom Lauer ----LINKS----- 💰 SUPPORT STRONG SONGS! Patreon | One-Time Donation 🏠 HOMEPAGE 👚 MERCH 💬 DISCORD SERVER 📬 KIRK'S NEWSLETTER 🎸 KIRK'S GEAR & INSTRUMENTS 🎶 KIRK'S MUSIC 📷 KIRK’S SOCIAL MEDIA: Instagram | Bluesky 🎧 EVERY STRONG SONG: Spotify | Apple Music | YouTube Music 🎨 SHOW ART: Tom Deja, Bossman Graphics