Country music icon Dolly Parton carried a larger than life presence, and commanded attention everywhere she went.
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Before her death, Parton was often adorned in flashy attire and brightened rooms with her grand smile. The "Jolene" singer was a rock star in every sense of the word.
Her late husband, Carl Dean, was the polar opposite. Dean avoided the spotlight as much as he could and rarely made red carpet appearances with his superstar wife.
In a recent appearance on the Rolling Stone Nashville Now podcast, Country singer Brad Paisley recalled a time Dean drove Parton to his residence but never stepped out of the vehicle.
"Carl Dean, her husband, was just so happy to be in the shadows. She was in here a while. We walked around and talked in the house and had a great day," Paisley recalled.
Paisley noted that during his discussion with Parton, Dean waited happily in the car.
"And she went out to get in the car, and I see him waving. He didn't even come in! He was just so happy to drive her around. And she got in the car, and she drove away," he said.
Paisley also reflected on the life and resiliency of Parton, who died Aug. 25 after a brief battle with cancer.
"Dolly would do anything she believed in," the "She's Everything" singer said on the podcast. "When I cut ['When I Get Where I'm Going'], I said, 'I'm cutting this, but I need something that takes it into the angelic realm,' and so I sent it to Dolly and said, 'Would you sing this with me?' She wrote back, 'Absolutely.'"
Shortly after her death, Paisley honored Parton with a solo rendition of their collaboration "When I Get Where I'm Going."
Following his performance, a teary-eyed Paisley detailed the emotional origins of the hit song.
"When I recorded that song and sent it to Dolly, I said, 'A couple of people in my life I've lost, and I didn't know if this would relate to you,'" Paisley told the crowd at Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater. "She immediately said, 'Yes, let me sing on that,' and did."
Paisley admitted that the song has been especially emotional since the passing of the "Jolene" singer.
"I never thought it would be about her, but it is," he admitted. "It's everything she believed, and we will always love you, Dolly."
