Way, Way Overthinking "Jolene"

part three (of four!)

This is the third part of a four-part essay (one here, two here) on the Dolly Parton song “Jolene” in the context of the cover version on Beyoncé’s recently released album “Cowboy Carter.” In the first two parts, I wrote about the cultural impact of Parton’s original 1973 single, and about the lyrics and the instrumental and vocal arrangement. I’ll conc…