Via NPR Music \\ Dolly Parton

 

NPR Music's pop critic pays tribute to the dearly departed Dolly Parton, who died on Tuesday at the age of 80.

Photo by Paul Natkin/Getty Images

I was in a Nashville hair salon (appropriate!) when I heard that Dolly Parton had died. Everyone’s phone started buzzing with texts: This was a cataclysmic event. As the town where Dolly first made her mark began to grieve, with people placing flowers at the many shrines to the country legend that dot the landscape, I went home to write an appreciation of her music. Below is an excerpt. The whole essay is here.