Dolly Parton has never hidden her admiration for Elvis Presley. So when she learned that the King of Rock and Roll wanted to record one of her songs, she was understandably excited. But the recording never happened, and Parton has since explained why she made the difficult decision to turn him down.
The song was “I Will Always Love You,” which Parton wrote in 1973 as she prepared to leave The Porter Wagoner Show and pursue her solo career. Released in 1974, the ballad reached No. 1 on Billboard’s country chart.
Presley wanted to record his own version, and Parton was initially delighted. However, his manager, Colonel Tom Parker, had a condition: she would have to give up half of the song’s publishing rights.
Parton wasn’t prepared to do that. In a 2023 interview with Howard Stern, the singer recalled how difficult it was to walk away from the opportunity. “I cried all night about that,” she said.
At the time, Parton was building her career as both a performer and a songwriter. She understood the importance of owning her music, particularly a song that was already successful.
Turning down Presley was painful, but she believed giving away such a large share of the publishing rights would have been a mistake.
Parton has also made clear that she had no problem with Elvis himself. She admired him and would have loved to hear him sing the ballad. Her disagreement was with Parker’s business terms.
Years later, she heard something that made the story even more personal. According to Parton, Priscilla Presley told her that Elvis had sung “I Will Always Love You” to her around the time of their divorce.
Although Presley never recorded the song, it went on to reach an even wider audience. In 1992, Whitney Houston recorded “I Will Always Love You” for The Bodyguard. Her version spent 14 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and became one of the biggest hits of the decade.
Parton first heard Houston’s version while driving home and listening to the radio. She hadn’t heard the recording before and initially didn’t recognize her own song. When Houston reached the chorus, Parton was so overwhelmed that she had to pull over.
Houston’s success also showed why Parton had been so determined to keep control of her publishing rights. The recording generated substantial royalties for the songwriter, who continued to benefit from the song’s popularity long after its original release.
Parton later admitted she wished Elvis had recorded “I Will Always Love You.” But she never regretted turning down the deal that would have cost her half the song’s publishing rights.
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