Dolly Parton's greatest songs, and the stories behind them

NEW YORK (AP) — Dolly Parton was more than a musician, actor, author, philanthropist, or theme-park entrepreneur. Parton, who died Tuesday at age 80, occupied a space in our global cultural imagination — a figure of American mythology, someone best described as larger-than-life and then a little bit more. But from the very beginning, at the heart of everything she accomplished, she was a songwriter.

Selecting 11 songs across her many decades of recorded music is a fool’s errand, but there are some classics that stand above others. Here are a few across her discography — from country songs that challenge traditional gender dynamics to the greatest ballad ever committed to record. Listen to all of the tracks on our Spotify playlist.

1968: Parton was long celebrated for the feminist themes throughout her music. That progressive sociopolitical stance is evident from the beginning of her career, which overlapped with the emergence of the women’s liberation movement. On the country classic “Just Because I’m a Woman,” Parton’s protagonist reminds her partner he need not judge her for having previous sexual partners — after all, he’s had some, too.

“My mistakes are no worse than yours,” she sings, “Just because I’m a woman.” She said the song was inspired by a conversation with her late husband, Carl Dean, who asked her if she’d been with any men before they met. 1971: The quintessential example of Parton the raconteur is “Coat of Many Colors.” It’s an autobiographical tale about her mother, who made a coat for Parton out of rags. She was mocked by other kids but understood its value.

“Now I know we had no money, but I was rich as I could be,” she sings, “In my coat of many colors my momma made for me.” 1973: It is not only one of Parton’s best-known hits, but also one of the best-known country music songs of all time. “Jolene” was inspired by Dean; Parton told NPR in 2008 that she wrote the song about a flirty bank teller who seemed to take an interest in him. “She got this terrible crush on my husband,” she said.

“And he just loved going to the bank because she paid him so much attention. It was kinda like a running joke between us — when I was saying, ‘Hell, you’re spending a lot of time at the bank. I don’t believe we’ve got that kind of money.’ So, it’s really an innocent song all around, but sounds like a dreadful one.” 1974: The second single from Parton’s 1…