Dolly Parton Joins Rory Feek On “One Angel,” A Song Dedicated To His Late Wife Joey

Aug 11, 2021 by apost team

Losing a loved one is never easy. While everyone grieves in their own way, a country music artist has turned to his passion to remember his late wife, and reflect on the five-year anniversary of her death. Rory and Joey Feek made up the musical duo Joey + Rory. They were both singers and songwriters, and Rory played acoustic guitar for their music. The happy couple had gotten married back in 2002, six years before they officially entered the music scene as a duo.

Prior to the duo’s formation in 2008, Rory worked as a songwriter for a number of other country artists, including Blake Shelton, Kenny Chesney and Randy Travis. After auditioning for CMT’s “Can You Duet,” Rory and Joey signed a recording contract and quickly got to work. Together they released seven studio albums, one holiday album and two compilation albums. Receiving great reviews and earning recognition, the married couple continued to play around with their sound and style as they moved forward in the music industry.

On March 4, 2016, Joey passed away after a long battle with cancer. During her battle, Rory updated fans periodically through his blog posts, and has since released songs in honor of his late wife. “One Angel” is a song about Joey, detailing the hardships of seeing her fight and moving forward with the grieving process. It was originally written by Rory to sing on his own, but he has since teamed up with country megastar Dolly Parton, who has lent her beautiful, angelic vocals to the track to further carry the song’s message.

After the married couple discovered that Joey’s cancer was terminal, they continued to share the rest of the time they could together, and poured their hearts and souls into their final album as a duo. “Hymns That Are Important to Us” was released on Feb. 12, 2016, less than a month before Joey lost her fight to cancer. While undergoing treatment at the Cancer Treatment Centers of America, Joey had recorded some of her vocals in a room at the hotel she was staying at. The album was well received and went on to win the Grammy Award for Best Roots Gospel Album in 2017.

Throughout his wife’s battle with cancer and the grieving process since her death, Rory has expressed his thoughts and feelings through his personal blog. On March 8, 2021, Rory posted on his blog to reflect on the five-year anniversary of his wife’s death. He explained what brought his new song, “One Angel,” to life. “Death is a scary thing for most children. For most of us grown-ups too I think,” he wrote. Rory went on to detail just how different the grieving process can be for everyone. “Some of us are filled with gratitude for the time we had with them, and some are angry, that their time here with us and our with them, has ended too soon,” he wrote.

In his blog post, Rory explained that he and Joey had met Sandy Lawrence, a songwriter, about 20 years ago, although not together. “Their love of good horses and great songs bonded them as close friends ever since,” Rory wrote, describing Lawrence and Joey’s friendship. 

apost.com

Grieving the loss of one of her dearest friends, Lawrence poured her emotions into her songwriting, and later sent the track to Rory. “...I had to get this song out of me to come to peace with the loss of my friend,” Lawrence wrote in the email she sent to Rory that contained the heart-wrenching song. The song “One Angel” is a beautiful yet sad piece about Joey. In the lyrics, Rory sings about how hard it was to watch her during her battle with cancer and move forward since her death, but he knows that she’s up in heaven now, singing, “But I do believe one angel knows my name.” 

While the song was originally written by Lawrence and given to Rory, Rory opted to bring in another talented artist to further enhance the already emotional song. Parton, known for her impeccable songwriting abilities and angelic voice, joined Rory on a newer version of the song, with her vocals harmonizing with his during the chorus.

A music video for “One Angel” was released in April 2021, and it is filled with personal meaning to Rory and Lawrence. In his blog post from March 2021, Rory explained that Sandy’s husband Jack had saddled his horse and came to pay respects to Joey. This moment appeared to be the inspiration for the music video. 

“Jack’s face. Sandy’s words. My voice. And one angel...,” Rory wrote, explaining what brought the music video for “One Angel” to life. The video featured exactly what Rory had detailed in his blog, with added footage of Rory singing and playing guitar. Although she wasn’t featured in the video, Parton’s voice soared through the song, further enhancing the emotional tone behind it.

"The voice of an angel, sang for an angel,” Rory wrote about the song. 

What do you think about Dolly Parton joining Rory Feek on this sad yet beautiful song about Joey? Let us know, and be sure to pass this along to any country music fans you know.