Dolly Parton had already chosen one of the songs she wanted played when the time came to say goodbye.
Years before her death, the country music icon revealed that she wanted an old gospel hymn with a deeply personal connection to her family to be sung at her funeral.
Parton died on Tuesday (Aug. 25) at 80 following a brief battle with cancer.
The Song Dolly Parton Wanted at Her Funeral
In a 2014 interview with Entertainment Weekly, Parton was asked to choose the soundtrack to her life. Among the songs she named was “If We Never Meet Again,” an old country-gospel hymn about reuniting in heaven.
There’s a song called ‘If We Never Meet Again,’ It’s an old country-gospel church song that talks about if we never meet again this side of heaven, I will meet you on that beautiful shore.
She then explained why the song was so personal. “That was my daddy’s favorite,” Parton said. “We did sing it at his funeral, and I would like it to be sung at mine.”
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The song’s message about separation and an eventual reunion now carries an even deeper meaning.
‘I Will Always Love You’
Parton also expected another song to be part of her funeral: “I Will Always Love You.”
Parton wrote the song in 1973, and it became one of her signature songs. Whitney Houston‘s version became a massive hit after appearing in the 1992 film The Bodyguard.
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Parton was deeply affected when Houston died in 2012. She later recalled watching Houston’s funeral and hearing “I Will Always Love You” as her coffin was carried out.
I’m sure they’ll be playing ‘I Will Always Love You’ when I die, just like they did with Whitney Houston. When they picked her coffin up and started in on that song, I started to cry, and I thought, ‘Oh my Lord.’ That’s when it hit me that she was really gone.
Dolly Parton’s Final Wishes
Parton’s immediate family will hold a small, private service at her request, according to her representative.
Her family has asked fans who want to honor her to make donations to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library in lieu of flowers.
Parton’s nephew Bryan Seaver announced her death Tuesday, saying she had asked him years ago to deliver the news when the time came.
“Dolly has lived in the light and is in the arms of Jesus, surely met by Carl, her parents and countless others who have watched her and longed to meet her in the heavens,” Seaver said.
Parton’s choice of “If We Never Meet Again” now feels especially personal: It was her father’s favorite song, they sang it at his funeral, and she wanted it played at hers.
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Gallery Credit: Carena Liptak
