Maine fans share memories, tributes and reasons why they’ll always love Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton performs during an event celebrating the expansion of Dolly Parton's Imagination Library in August 2023, in Overland Park, Kan. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)
Freelance writer Robert Ker remembers the crowd at Dolly Parton’s last Maine concert, back in 2016 at the Maine Savings Amphitheater in Bangor.
“There were young people I knew from the punk scene here in Portland next to elderly dairy farmers from central Maine,” said Ker, who reviewed that concert for the Portland Press Herald. “Not only were they gathered in the same place, but sharing a very similar love for this artist in a way that you could feel. … I can really count on one hand the amount of concerts that had that kind of range of people in the audience.”
It’s that unique appeal across generations and fan bases that made Parton, who died Tuesday at the age of 80, universally beloved.
Maine fans, from the governor to musicians to music lovers, are mourning the loss of the trail-blazing singer-songwriter whose philanthropy was global in scale and impact.
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Although Maine Gov. Janet Mills and President Donald Trump may agree on little else, they did agree Parton’s legendary stature merited national respect. On Tuesday, Trump ordered flags lowered to half-staff for a week, and Mills was happy to oblige.
In a statement, Mills noted not just Parton’s pioneering role as a woman in country music, but her philanthropy as well. In 2023, Maine joined her Imagination Library, an early childhood literacy initiative that mails free books to babies and children under the age of 5 every month. The initiative has expanded across the globe.
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Dolly Parton performs during an event celebrating the Missouri statewide expansion of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library in 2024, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
“Dolly’s Imagination Library has donated hundreds of millions of free books to kids across the nation, including here in Maine. Thank you, Dolly. We will always love you!” Mills said.
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‘MORE THAN A SINGER’
Parton performed at least three times in Maine, dating to 1969, when she appeared in Bangor and Portland alongside country legend Porter Wagoner.
Wagoner was an early supporter of Parton, inviting her to appear on “The Porter Wagoner Show.” They performed as a duo a number of times in the late 1960s and early ’70s, and released a total of 13 duo albums.
Parton’s iconic 1974 song “I Will Always Love You” was written as a thank-you to Wagoner when Parton parted ways with him professionally to pursue a solo career.
Dolly Parton, left, and Kenny Rogers rehearse a song for their appearance on the TV show “Live… And in Person” in Los Angeles on Sept. 27, 1983. (AP Photo/Doug Pizac, File)
Parton returned to Maine 36 years later with a 2005 concert at what was then the Cumberland County Civic Center. Former Press Herald arts writer Bob Keyes reviewed the show.
“Dolly Parton mixed moments of absolute brilliance with kitschy country,” he wrote. “Her vocals remain exceedingly sharp, and her skills as a musician are impressive.”
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Portland Press Herald arts writer Bob Keyes reviewed Dolly Parton’s Aug. 25, 2005 concert at the Cumberland County Civic Center. (Courtesy of Newspapers.com)
On Wednesday, Keyes recalled that night. “I remember being really pleased and impressed with how authentic she was, and I just really felt like I was sitting in her living room,” he said.
Keyes recalled interviewing Parton on the phone before the concert. He said it was one of the few times he was nervous. “She was so calming, personable and fun,” he said.
Interview with Dolly Parton by Portland Press Herald arts writer Bob Keyes that ran in advance of Parton’s Portland performance on Aug. 25, 2005. (Courtesy of Newspapers.com)
Rick Johnson, a disc jockey for 106.3 The Bone, 99.9 The Wolf and 107.5 Frank FM, was at her 2016 Bangor show.
“What struck me was the quality of her voice, even at 70 years,” Johnson said.
“She was more than a singer; she was a true entertainer. And she was very funny. … She really could have been a comedian if that country music thing hadn’t worked out for her.”
Johnson also noted Parton’s ability to “transcend the genre.”
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“You could not have heard a note of any other country song and her songs will still get through to you,” Johnson said. “She sings about things we can all relate to, whether it’s heartbreak and loss or not getting the raise and the promotion.”
‘A HERO TO SO MANY’
Lisa Redfern, a singer-songwriter in West Bath, saw Parton perform in San Francisco, and called her a role model for women in music.
“By sticking up for herself as a woman in a predominantly male centered music world, she paved the way for the rest of us in music to speak our minds and stand up for ourselves,” she said.
Redfern noted that Parton was also a vocal supporter of the LGBTQ+ community, as well as others in need. “She gave away so much of her money. She really is the best of us.”
Ken Brooks of Athens has been playing bluegrass and other genres of music for more than 40 years. In 2012, he was inducted into the Maine Country Music Hall of Fame, and later served as board chairman for several years.
He called her an icon of music.
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“She wrote a lot of songs and many of them were big hits,” he said. His favorite Parton album was “Trio,” a collaboration with Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris, released in 1987.
Dolly Parton, left, and Miley Cyrus perform “Jolene” at the 61st annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles on Feb. 10, 2019. (Photo by Matt Sayles/Invision/AP, File)
Singer-songwriter Sara Trunzo, of Belfast, said she was “heartbroken” when learning about Parton’s death on Tuesday.
“As a songwriter in the country genre, she’s a hero to so many of us,” Trunzo said.
Trunzo said she’s been especially inspired by Parton’s actions behind the curtain.
“She made very controversial business decisions and stood up for herself in her collaboration with, at the time, much more powerful men,” Trunzo said, including declining publishing rights when Elvis Presley sought to cover her song “I Will Always Love You.”
“We think of her as just having mainstream appeal — which she does — but she was also fully willing to go against the grain at pivotal moments for her art,” Trunzo said. “That’s the stuff that kind of gives me goosebumps when I think about her.”
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Trunzo was at the 2016 performance in Bangor, and at a pivotal point in her music career.
“It was right before I moved to Nashville to start pursuing my music seriously,” she said. “It was the end of my time living here full-time, and it’s beautiful because there was such an amazing cross-section of Mainers who were thrilled to see Dolly Parton right on the Bangor waterfront.”
Maine native and Grammy award-winning songwriter Amy Allen took to Instagram on Tuesday and posted a story over a clip of Parton singing “I Will Always Love You,” sharing her thoughts about Parton: “A true angel who I will always love with my whole heart and run to forever and ever.”
Dolly Parton performs at her 50th Opry Member Anniversary at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tenn., in October 2019. (Larry McCormack/The Tennessean via AP)
Joel Beaver-Meholic, marketing manager at the State Theatre, used to work at Monument Records in Nashville and got to meet Parton briefly while accompanying an artist appearing on Dolly Parton’s Pet Gala.
“She definitely was a presence when she entered a room,” Beaver-Meholic said. “It felt like you were in the presence of royalty, but still the nicest person that you would ever meet at that level. She took the time to say ‘Hi’ to everybody and really look you in the eyes.”
Reid and Will Nichols of the country band 12/OC said in a written statement to the Press Herald that Parton had been part of their lives since a young age, “whether it was us singing ‘Jolene’ around a campfire on Moosehead Lake or our mother waking us up for high school singing ‘9 to 5.'”
They said her influence on their band is undeniable.
“If you write and record country music, no matter how it unfolds, Dolly will always be a part of it,” the brothers said. “There aren’t many artists that achieve such a feat, but she was one who will forever live through country music as a whole.”
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Drew is the night reporter for the Portland Press Herald. He previously covered South Portland, Scarborough and Cape Elizabeth for the Sentry, Leader and Southern Forecaster. Though he is from Massachusetts,. More by Drew Johnson
Aimsel Ponti is a music writer and content producer for the Portland Press Herald. She has been obsessed with – and inspired by – music since she listened to Monkees records borrowed from the town. More by Aimsel Ponti
