Introduction
The Dolly Parton, Priscilla Presley, and Elvis Timeline Contradiction
In the realm of music history, few stories are as famous as Elvis Presley nearly recording Dolly Parton’s country hit, “I Will Always Love You.” According to Parton in multiple interviews, the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll was deeply moved by the track and intended to cover it. She has frequently retold a touchingly intimate story passed down from Priscilla Presley: on October 9, 1973—the exact day Elvis and Priscilla finalized their divorce at the courthouse—Elvis supposedly leaned over to Priscilla and sang lines from Parton’s emotional ballad to her.
It sounds like a tragic, Hollywood-style moment of lingering affection. However, a close look at the historical timeline reveals a major plot hole in this story: either Dolly Parton or Priscilla Presley is misremembering the facts, if not fabricating the detail entirely.
The court records are clear: Elvis and Priscilla Presley finalized their divorce on October 9, 1973. If Elvis actually sang “I Will Always Love You” to Priscilla on that exact day, the song must have already been a massive, ubiquitous hit—or at least available to the public. Parton herself supported this idea in her interview clips, stating that when Colonel Tom Parker (Elvis’s manager) demanded half of the publishing rights for the track, she refused because the song was “already a big hit.”
The release dates of Parton’s music tell a completely different story:
Recording Date: Dolly Parton recorded “I Will Always Love You” on June 12, 1973.
Album Release: The album Jolene, which included the track, was released on February 4, 1974.
Single Release: The song was formally released as a commercial single on March 11, 1974.
The single did not even exist on public airwaves or record store shelves in October 1973. It was not released until five months after the Presley divorce, and it only hit the top of the country charts in mid-1974.
Therefore, it is impossible for Elvis to have sung a song to Priscilla at their divorce proceeding that was “already a big hit,” because the world had not heard it yet. Furthermore, Colonel Tom Parker could not have tried to negotiate publishing rights for a pre-existing hit in late 1973 if the song’s commercial success didn’t occur until 1974.
Did Priscilla misremember what Elvis sang to her during a chaotic day in court? Did Dolly conflate the dates of her publishing standoff with Colonel Parker? Or did the story simply grow more dramatic with decades of retelling? Whatever the explanation, the release dates prove that the iconic courthouse serenading couldn’t have happened when they say it did.