Jolene, the Album

Abstract Dolly Parton’s Jolene was her thirteenth studio album (1974). At the time of its release, critics recognized the album’s excellence, and later critics viewed it as a major shift in her career, both in style and in Dolly’s stature as an artist. Not long after Jolene’s release, Dolly began her move to a pop crossover style. Jolene can be loosely considered a concept album, although its songs are not connected as strongly as that notion suggests. In 2007, Jolene was reissued. It included four additional songs written by Dolly that were recorded in the same sessions as the originals on the album. Three of them strengthen the concept album reading of Jolene. Moreover, several of Dolly’s other songs about cheating expand the Jolene story. Finally, despite the song’s title, “Jolene” is not about Jolene; it is about the narrator’s feelings—her fears and insecurities.