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Starting Over Again (Donna Summer song)

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"Starting Over Again"
Single by Dolly Parton
from the album Dolly, Dolly, Dolly
B-side"Sweet Agony"
ReleasedFebruary 25, 1980
RecordedDecember 1979
GenreCountry
Length3:58
LabelRCA
Songwriter(s)Donna Summer, Bruce Sudano
Producer(s)Gary Klein
Dolly Parton singles chronology
"Sweet Summer Lovin'"
(1979)
"Starting Over Again"
(1980)
"Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle to You"
(1980)

"Starting Over Again" is a song recorded by American entertainer Dolly Parton. The song was written by Donna Summer and her husband Bruce Sudano.[1] Parton's recording was performed as a slow tempo ballad, gradually building to a dramatic crescendo. It was released in March 1980 as the first single from her album Dolly, Dolly, Dolly. "Starting Over Again" made the U.S. pop top forty, peaking at number 36, and reached number 1 on the U.S. country charts on May 24, 1980, becoming Parton's 12th number one. [2] Dolly’s recording would also make Donna Summer the first black female to co-write a number 1 country hit.[3]

Donna Summer performed it live numerous times on television specials during the 1980s, including her own program, The Donna Summer Show. A studio version of the track has yet to surface.

Content

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The song tells the story of a middle-aged couple separating after 30 years of marriage. It was based upon the divorce of Sudano's parents.

Chart history

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Weekly

Chart (1980) Peak
position
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[4] 1
US Billboard Hot 100[5] 36
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[6] 35
Canadian RPM Country Tracks 2

Year-End

Chart (1980) Peak
Position
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[7] 22

Reba McEntire cover

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"Starting Over Again"
Single by Reba McEntire
from the album Starting Over
B-side"I Won't Mention It Again"
Released1996
Recorded1995
GenreCountry
Length4:07
LabelMCA Nashville
Songwriter(s)Donna Summer, Bruce Sudano
Producer(s)Tony Brown, Reba McEntire
Reba McEntire singles chronology
"Ring on Her Finger, Time on Her Hands"
(1995)
"Starting Over Again"
(1996)
"You Keep Me Hangin' On"
(1996)

Reba McEntire also covered the song in 1995 for her Starting Over album. Released as the album's third single, McEntire's version peaked at number 19 on the Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart.[8] In the album's liner notes, McEntire wrote that she chose to cover the song as a tribute to Parton and Summer, both artists whom she'd admired.

Chart history

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Chart (1996) Peak
position
Canada Country Tracks (RPM)[9] 26
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[10] 19

Other cover versions

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Martine McCutcheon covered "Starting Over Again" in 2001.

References

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  1. ^ Tennessean Music Team (24 July 2009). "Bruce Sudano's 'Wedding Day' rings bells with listeners". Advertisement Music. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
  2. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 262.
  3. ^ "How Donna Summer made black female history on country charts before Beyoncé". 23 February 2024.
  4. ^ "Dolly Parton Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
  5. ^ "Dolly Parton Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  6. ^ "Dolly Parton Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard.
  7. ^ "Billboard Hot Country Songs - Year-End Charts (1980)". Billboard. Retrieved 4 December 2020.
  8. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1844-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 226.
  9. ^ "Top RPM Country Tracks: Issue 2987." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. June 3, 1996. Retrieved July 20, 2013.
  10. ^ "Reba McEntire Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
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