Here’s another of those musical moments in a TV show or movie that uses song and performance for a big emotional impact. I’d love to dedicate an entire blog to scenes like this one but they’re very hard to come by on the Web because of those pesky copyright laws.
Along with my wife, I was a pretty loyal watcher of Gilmore Girls for most of its run. But when creator Amy Sherman-Palladino left the show toward the end of its run, I tuned out. The show was so much a product of her sensibility (she and/or her husband wrote almost every single episode, which is extremely rare in network TV) that it just felt like another show about the same characters. It didn’t help that our cable provider stopped carrying The CW.
But dropping the show didn’t lessen my appreciation for Lauren Graham, whose Lorelai Gilmore is a creation for the ages. Quick wit, fierce intelligence, unapologetic goofiness and simmering insecurities were all wrapped up behind that wonderful smile. I liked watching Gilmore Girls because it was well-made and entertaining but also just to spend time with Lauren/Lorelai.
Today’s scene, one of Graham’s finest moments, came in that final season. It’s karaoke night and she launches into Dolly Parton’s ‘I Will Always Love You’ as a tribute to her daughter Rory’s graduation. But midway through the song, her friend and ex-lover Luke walks into the bar… theirs was the great love affair of the series and she’d done him wrong earlier in the season, seemingly dooming their chances.
She sees him, and her performance of the song turns from a joke into something very meaningful. A wonderful moment from a wonderful show.
Well, I would only be in your way
And so I’ll go, and yet I know
That I’ll think of you each step of my way
And I will always love you
I will always love you
Bitter-sweet memories
That’s all I have, and all I’m taking with me
Good-bye, oh, please don’t cry
‘Cause we both know that I’m not
What you need
But I will always love you
I will always love you
And I hope life, will treat you kind
And I hope that you have all
That you ever dreamed of
Oh, I do wish you joy
And I wish you happiness
But above all this
I wish you love
I love you, I will always love
I will always, always love you
I will always love you
I will always love you
I will always love you
Meet Me In Montauk 
Very moving scene. And very courageous of you to check your masculinity at the door and admit your fondness for this show:)
What a great scene. I never watched the show, yet I got choked up halfway through this scene.
I think that’s a testament to two great performances: Lauren Graham’s as Lorelai and Dolly Parton as the songwriter.
When we were in Nashville last year, we went to the Country Music Hall of Fame. I loved the place for a lot of reasons, but getting to listen to and read more about Dolly Parton was one of the biggest. This song, she unabashedly admits, has made her millions of dollars, so she’s just fine with how Whitney Houston or anybody else sings it.. Still, to hear it the way Parton initially recorded it is to understand the song in its purest form – the way she intended it. Graham’s performance in this clip actually comes pretty close.
Here is a clip from The Porter Wagoner show, something else I learned about in Nashville 🙂 This is from 1974, a year after she wrote the song (apparently for Porter, as they were coming to the end of their musical partnership). The fact that the song holds up so beautifully 35 years later is a testament to Parton’s songwriting chops. She thinks of herself as a songwriter who happened to get a chance to sing some of her songs. I find that amazingly cool.
Okay… something completely unrelated (well, almost completely unrelated) to today’s post. As I reflected on what a great songwriter Dolly Parton is I remembered what a great mentor she was on American Idol. The fact that her songs worked so well for so many different types of singers further demonstrates how well they are constructed.
While I enjoyed many of the performances the week she appeared, the one I enjoyed most was “Travelin’ Thru.” Not only because it was performed by my favorite contestant Jason Castro (though that didn’t hurt) but because I’d never heard the song before. This song was written for the film Transamerica, which stars Felicity Huffman as a transgendered man who is completing the process of becoming a woman.
The notion of Dolly’s country fans listening to her song accompanying such a story just delights me. As does Jason’s rendition here:
I’ve never watched the show, but I agree that is a touching scene. I just love Dolly Parton, she’s so smart, funny and talented. Oh, and if anyone knows the guy with the jacket, I would like to borrow it sometime 🙂 As for the last video, it was a perfect song for the movie Transamerica–a wonderful movie that gave Felicity Huffman the Golden Globe for best actress as well as a nomination for the academy award. Jason Castro does a great job.