For the 2022 American Country Music (ACM) Awards, Dolly Parton sparkled like a disco ball in a mirrored dress.
But that shine is nothing compared to the light Parton spreads all over the world with her beautiful music.
That’s why Kelly Clarkson wanted to pay homage to Parton who served as the show’s host along with Jimmie Allen and Gabby Barrett.
She did so with a stunning rendition of Parton’s “I Will Always Love You.”
Well, it was a little closer to a cover of Whitney Houston’s rendition of Dolly’s Parton’s classic hit.
Either way, the crowd went wild over it. So, did Parton. Parton wrote and recorded her hit in 1973.
“Oh, my gosh. That is so great. I know that Whitney is smiling down on us tonight,” Parton said. “She’d be proud of that. I was backstage trying not to cry my fake eyelashes off.”
According to Wikipedia, the song was written as a goodbye to her mentor and business partner Porter Wagoner when she decided to embark on a solo career.
“I Will Always Love You” was released as a single in 1973 as the second single on Parton’s Jolene album.
It twice reached the Billboard Hot Country Song list in 1974 and 1982, and was recorded for The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas soundtrack.
Whitney Houston later covered her own rendition of Parton’s song for The Bodyguard in 1992.
That song spent 14 weeks at number one on the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
It set a new record with the song going on to be one of the best-selling singles of all time and the best-selling single by a woman.
“I Will Always Love You” was also recorded by Linda Ronstadt, John Doe, Amber Riley, Sarah Washington, and LeAnn Rimes.
Elvis Presley had actually wanted to record it but his manager Colonel Tom Parker wanted Parton to sign over half of her publishing rights to the song if Elvis recorded it. She refused.
“I said, ‘I’m really sorry,’ and I cried all night. I mean, it was like the worst thing. You know, it’s like, Oh, my God… Elvis Presley.’ And other people were saying, ‘You’re nuts. It’s Elvis Presley.’ …I said, ‘I can’t do that. Something in my heart says, ‘Don’t do that. And I just didn’t do it… He would have killed it. But anyway, so he didn’t. Then when Whitney [Houston’s version] came out, I made enough money to buy Graceland,” Parton once said in an interview.
Parton, who called Clarkson “one of the greatest singers in the world,” ran up on stage to hug Clarkson after her performance which apparently people were fond of.
The guided audience swayed their hands back and forth mechanically and on cue during the performance.
They looked just authentically thrilled. They were then prompted to a standing ovation at the song’s completion.
The performance was highlighted in several media outlets.
Videos of the performance got over a million views.
And what did Dolly Parton, the legend herself, have to say about Kelly’s performance?
“She smashed it,” Parton reportedly said
Watch Clarkson’s amazing performance in the video below.
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