Home is at the heart of Parton’s music, author says

Harvard Gazette reports that author Martha Ackmann told a Radcliffe audience that Dolly Parton's Appalachian upbringing is the heart of her songwriting. Ackmann, who wrote a new biography of Parton, argues the singer wouldn't be the same artist if she'd grown up elsewhere. The talk covered Parton's early career, including her decision to turn down Elvis Presley's manager over publishing rights for "I Will Always Love You." Parton, who turned eighty this year, recently received the Academy of Country Music's Poet's Award. Ackmann says Parton's devotion to home, inspired by her grandmother's advice to return before dark, shaped both her music and her philanthropy.

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