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Dolly Parton dedicates new song to late husband Carl Dean

US country singer says If You Hadn’t Been There is tribute to her husband of nearly 60 years, who died this week

The couple were married for nearly six decades, with Dean, a businessman, remaining largely out of the spotlight as Parton became an two-time Oscar nominee and 10-time Grammy winner as well as one of the biggest-selling US musicians. Parton, who met Dean outside the Wishy Washy Laundromat the day she moved to Nashville at 18, previously told NPR in 2008 that she wrote the song Jolene about a flirty bank teller who seemed to take an interest in him. As well as her singing career, Parton is a successful actor, starring in films including 9 to 5, Steel Magnolias and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas.

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