Stella Parton
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Stella Parton | ||
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 Stella Parton
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| Background information | ||
| Birth name | Stella Parton | |
| Born | May 4, 1949 (age 57) | |
| Origin | Sevierville, Tennessee | |
| Genre(s) | Country, Gospel | |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, Songwriter, Actress | |
| Years active | 1975– Present | |
| Label(s) | Mint Records Elektra Records Country Soul Records |
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| Associated acts |
Dolly Parton | |
Stella Parton (born May 4, 1949) is an American Country Music singer and songwriter. She is the younger sister of country music icon Dolly Parton. With the help of her sister, Stella Parton became a successful Country singer in her own right during the late 70s. Her biggest hit was the 1975 song "I Want to Hold You In My Dreams Tonight".
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[edit] Early life
She was born in Sevierville, Tennessee, the sixth of twelve children born to Robert Lee Parton and Avie Lee Owens. Her siblings are Willadeene Parton, David Parton, Denver Parton, superstar country singer and actress Dolly Parton, Bobby Parton, Cassie Parton, Larry Parton, Randy Parton, twins Floyd Parton and Freida Parton, and Rachel Dennison (an actress). She knew from an early age that she wanted to become a Country singer. When she was just seven, she and sister Dolly went on a local Knoxville, Tennessee TV program. Two years later, at nine years old, she debuted on radio. It was around this time, that Stella and her two other sisters formed a girl group that sang Gospel and commercial jingles around the eastern Tennessee area. In high school, Stella realized that she had a talent in songwriting and she started to write songs. However, just before her high school graduation, she got married and soon got pregnant with her first child, leaving behind her songwriting.
[edit] Recording career
After having been away from music for quite some time, in 1975 Parton founded her very own record company called Country Soul. Here, on this label, she released her first album called I Want to Hold You In My Dreams Tonight. The title track (of course called "I Want to Hold You in My Dreams Tonight"), became a national Country hit, climbing all the way to the Country Top Ten in 1975. Because of this big hit, Stella was given recording contract with Elektra Records in 1976. In 1977, she had a minor duet hit with Carmol Taylor called "Neon Woman". Through the years, 1977-1978, Stella Parton continued to have success on the Country charts. However, these songs did not come close to the success that she had with "I Want to Hold You in My Dreams Tonight". These songs only reached the Top twenty section on the Country charts, however, that still meant that these songs were hits. These Top Twenty hits were "The Danger of a Stranger", "Standard Lie Number One" and "Four Little Letters".
After the success that 1975-1978 brought, Parton's career slowed down again. Her chart success began to fade away. For the remainder of her recording career, parton only managed score Top 40 Country songs for herself, like the single "Steady As Rain" for example. However, despite her short career, Parton was able to prove to the public that she could be a successful Country singer in her own right, equal to the success of her big sister Dolly Parton.
[edit] Other Careers & Life Today
As Stella Parton's career began to slow down, she began to move onto other big things for herself. She worked on Broadway musicals like her sister Dolly Parton's movie The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. She also was a help to Dolly's Dollywood themepark because she wrote and choregraphed some her shows. As for music, Stella only recorded sporadically for small labels. She has toured in Europe and Australia and has appeared in four movies. She has also appeared in television shows like Good Morning America and The Today Show. In the early 1990s, Stella published a Southern cookbook called Country Cookin.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Singles
| Year | Single | U.S. Country Singles | Album | |
| 1975 | "I Want to Hold You in My Dreams Tonight" | #9 | I Want to Hold You In My Dreams Tonight | |
| 1977 | "I'm Not That Good At Goodbye" | #60 | Country Sweet | |
| 1977 | "The Danger of a Stranger" | #15 | Country Sweet | |
| 1978 | "Four Little Letters" | #20 | Stella Parton | |
| 1978 | "Standard Lie Number One" | #14 | Country Sweet | |
| 1978 | "Stormy Weather" | #21 | Love Ya | |
| 1978 | "Undercover Lovers" | #28 | Stella Parton | |
| 1979 | "Steady As the Rain" | #26 | Love Ya | |
| 1979 | "The Room at the Top of the Stars" | #36 | Love Ya | |
| 1982 | "Young Love" | #75 | Anthology | |
| 1989 | "I Don't Miss You Like I Used To" | #74 | Anthology |
[edit] Selected Albums
| Year | Album | |
| 1975 | I Want to Hold You in My Dreams Tonight | |
| 1977 | Country Sweet | |
| 1978 | Stella Parton | |
| 1979 | Love Ya | |
| 1979 | The Best of Stella Parton | |
| 1998 | Anthology | |
| 2003 | Applalachian Gospel |
