Country music queen Dolly Parton rose to the top of the charts with the 1973 classic “I Will Always Love You.” The ballad has earned a place in music history as one of the greatest love songs and remains a beloved classic.
However, if things had worked out differently 50 years ago, Elvis could’ve had dibs on the song.
In a recent interview with BBC Radio, Parton revealed that although she wrote the song, Elvis was initially going to record it.
“He loved the song, wanted to do it, had it worked up. They called me to come down to the studio to meet him and hear the song. And that night, Colonel Parker says, ‘We don’t record anything with Elvis unless we have publishing on it. Or at least half the publishing.”
Parker’s demands were too much for Parton, who bowed out of the deal.
“And I said this is the most important publishing copyright and I can’t do that. He said, ‘Well, we can’t do it.’ And I was heartbroken. I always wanted to hear how Elvis did it.”
Elvis serenaded Priscilla Presley with Dolly Parton’s song
While Parton was bummed that the deal with Elvis fell through, she later learned The King of Rock ‘n’ Roll was a fan of the song. According to Parton, the Hound Dog singer serenaded his ex-wife Priscilla Presley with the ballad.
“Elvis loved the song. In fact, I talked to Priscilla not very long ago. She said to me, ‘You know, Elvis sang that song to me when we walked down the courthouse steps when we got divorced. He was singing to me ‘I Will Always Love You.’”
Parton’s admiration for Elvis continues five decades later. Her latest album Rockstar pays tribute to the late singer with the track “I Dreamed About Elvis.”
