Dolly Parton meant something to every country music artist and group out there, and for the Red Clay Strays, they associated the country icon’s name with home.
The news of the passing of the “Queen of Country” hit the country music world – and the world at large – incredibly hard. Though it was very well documented that Dolly was struggling with health issues, it was a shock to hear that she had passed at the age of 80-years-old after a brief battle with cancer.
To say country music fans and the country genre are heartbroken would be an understatement. The only thing that’s helped to ease the pain for many are the tributes that have poured in from all across the world, and the covers that artists currently touring have worked into their set lists.
The Red Clay Strays have made sure to let everyone know that Dolly Parton meant the world to them in more ways than one. Obviously, the musical impact that the “9 to 5” singer had on the Mobile, Alabama is important to note. Any artist and band out there today would benefit from taking a page out of the book of Dolly Parton.
But the Brandon Coleman-led band says Dolly meant a lot to them because she was always a reminder that they were almost home. The band even wrote a song about it, and you’ve likely heard it before (and maybe had no idea there was a Dolly Parton name drop in it).
“Stone’s Throw” tells the story of how much the Dolly Parton Bridge north of Mobile, Alabama means to the band, and they shed more light on that after the icon’s passing:
“Here’s what the ‘Dolly Parton Bridge’ means in the song ‘Stone’s Throw.’ The Dolly Parton Bridge is a bridge in I-65 South you hit right before getting to Mobile, Alabama. We’d be out on the road for months at a time. Tired and ready to get home. Counting miles. And when we got to that bridge, we knew we were almost home.”
On top of the bridge literally signaling that their journey home was almost complete, there’s just something comforting about seeing Dolly Parton’s name or image, right? The larger-than-life country superstar just had a way with making people feel welcome, and it cool to know that she meant so much to the Red Clay Strays and their journey to where they are today.
If you are like me, you’ve listened to “Stone’s Throw” dozens of times and never caught the Dolly Parton shoutout. In case you did miss it, I went ahead and included the song’s first verse and chorus below:
“If you can call what we got last night sleep
Lord, we got a few hoursBlurred lines, fighting like hellTo try to keep my eyes wide open
We’re always running from, running to, running late, or running out ofIt’s the return that keeps us going
We’ve been gone for way too longCan’t count all the roads we’ve been downTry to keep it between the ditchesTill the Dolly Parton bridge is in the front windowWe’ve been gone for way too longCan’t count all the roads we’ve been downOh we’re a stone’s throwOh we’re a stone’s throw from home.”
“Stone’s Throw” by the Red Clay Strays