They say one of the worst things about getting older is losing your friends.
For Dolly Parton, that’s the sad reality.
The 71-year-old singer is mourning the loss of her dear friend and former manager Don Warden, who died last week aged 87.
You might remember Warden from The Porter Wagoner Show in the ’60s. It’s where he met Dolly for the first time and the pair started working together.
Warden was a founding member of the Porter Wagoner Trio and was inducted into the Steel Guitar Hall of Fame in 2008.
In 1974, he and Dolly left The Porter Wagoner Show, and he served as her manager right up until 2008.
Dolly posted a tribute to Warden on her website, describing him as “Mr Everything”.
“I’ve known and loved Don Warden since I joined The Porter Wagoner Show in 1967,” Dolly wrote.
“He was like a father, a brother, a partner and one of my best friends. I feel like a piece of my heart is missing today. Certainly a huge piece of my life is gone. Rest in peace Don and know for sure that I will always love you.”
Dolly and Warden took the stage together for the last time at a concert at Dollywood in 2008.
As her manager, fellow band member and friend, Warden played a big part in Dolly’s life and her music career.
In her 1994 book, Dolly: My Life and Other Unfinished Business, the singer wrote about how popular Warden was.
“Anybody who knows him – and he knows everybody – looks up to him,” she wrote.
“At one time there was even a T-shirt being sold around Nashville that read ‘I KNOW DON WARDEN.’ People are still calling me and asking, ‘How can I get one of those Don Warden T-shirts?’ Sometimes it feels like people are only using me to get to Don.”
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