Dolly Parton’s “Jolene” is the most-recorded song the legendary country star has ever written, with more than 450 recorded versions of it.
Parton, 79, spoke about the classic single with the Country Music Hall of Fame as part of the Dolly Parton: Journey of a Seeker exhibit, which made its debut earlier this year. The Hall of Fame shared a clip of Parton speaking about “Jolene” on Instagram on Wednesday (October 15). The song released as a single in October 1973, and became Parton’s second No. 1 hit, the caption reads.
“‘Jolene’ is the most recorded song I’ve ever written,” Parton said. “The last time I heard, it was like 450 times that song had been recorded. People just love that little song, and even though I’ve had bigger-selling songs, like ‘I Will Always Love You,’ ‘Jolene’ seems to just be the favorite.
“That kind of was based on a true story about a girl I was jealous of over by husband [Carl Dean], that worked at the bank. And he was spending more time than we had money. So I told him, ‘get out of there,’” Parton continued as she shared the story behind the song. “We used to sign autographs after every show, Porter [Wagoner] and I, until they were all done. And this little girl came up and she said, ‘would you sign that to Jolene?’ And I said, ‘oh, I love that name. Were you named after your dad? Is his name Joe?’ She said, ‘no, my name’s just Jolene.’ And I said, ‘well, I’m going to write a song about that, and if you ever hear that song, you’ll know it’s about you.’ So, I took my story, to protect the guilty, I changed the name to Jolene.”
Parton’s first draft of handwritten “Jolene” lyrics are on display in the Journey of a Seeker exhibit. Parton said “there’s very few songs that I have out that I have written, because when I’m writing, I don’t spell very good, I don’t think about that.I’m just scribbling. I’m just writing. I’m striking it off. So, I don’t know how you got that, but I’m glad you did.”
Other artifacts on display include custom-built instruments, iconic wardrobe pieces, awards and more. The exhibit is open through September 2026. Find photos of some of the items on display here.
