Jolene (song)

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"Jolene" is a song by Dolly Parton from her album Jolene (1974), produced by Bob Ferguson. It tells the tale of a housewife confronting a beautiful seductress who she believes is having an affair with her husband. It includes some of Parton's most striking imagery, and became her second solo number-one single on the country charts after being released as a single in late 1973 (prior to the album's release). It reached the top position in February 1974; it also was a moderate pop hit for her, and was released as a single in the UK the following year, where it did well.

It has since been covered by numerous performers, including Olivia Newton-John, Natalie Merchant, Reba McEntire, Mindy Smith, Susanna and the Magic Orchestra, as well as by the rock band the White Stripes, Queen Adreena, the eighties goth rock group The Sisters of Mercy, New Zealand Country Punk Rocker Darcy Clay, 1980s Scottish pop-goth group Strawberry Switchblade, dance music act One Dove, the Macedonian-German singer Alexander Veljanov and the Iranian singer, Leyla Foroohar. Mindy Smith covered the song "Jolene" in 2003 for her debut album One Moment More and the Dolly Parton tribute album Just Because I'm a Woman. Elisabeth Andreassen recorded the song on her 2004 album A Couple of Days in Larsville.

It has been said that the original inspiration for "Jolene" was a red-headed bank teller whom Parton suspected her husband at the time was fantasizing about, due to his suddenly frequent trips to the bank, though Parton herself has stated on many occasions that her inspiration came from a little red-headed girl seeking an autograph after a concert who told the singer her name was "Jolene".

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