Dolly Parton’s name appears on the UK charts this week and is almost certain to find space on multiple Billboard rankings when the company releases new counts. The world remembers the country’s legend by purchasing and streaming its entire catalog right now, as is common whenever a beloved artist passes away. Multiple albums from the superstar return to the charts across the Atlantic, and the same can be said for many of his hit singles, some of which return with new highs.
A song that Parton wrote and turned into a hit multiple times, but is perhaps more closely associated with another superstar, re-enters multiple counts and even manages to reach a new peak position decades after it took over the world. Whitney Houston’s rendition of “I Will Always Love You” is once again a UK bestseller following Parton’s death, and it’s not the only version of the composition to appear in the charts this week.
“I Will Always Love You” by Whitney Houston is back
Houston’s cover of Parton’s “I Will Always Love You” returns to the Official Singles Downloads and Official Singles Sales charts at No. 56 and No. 61, respectively. The decades-old cut is once again a major player in the music industry, if only for a few days.
“I Will Always Love You” reaches a new sales peak
Surprisingly, “I Will Always Love You” is counted as one of the best-selling songs in the United Kingdom for the second time since the introduction of the official singles sales chart. For years, the ranking of the country’s top songs focused specifically on purchases, but as other forms of consumption were incorporated – such as streaming – a separate count of sales only became necessary.
Houston’s performance did not reach the official single sales chart until November 2024, when it debuted at No. 83 and then quickly disappeared. It is now back to a new all-time high of 61st place.
“I Will Always Love You” lands in the middle of Whitney Houston’s catalog
Houston first reached the Official Singles Sales Chart posthumously in October 2014, and has now amassed 10 hits on the chart. Despite its status as perhaps the song that defined her career, “I Will Always Love You” sits somewhere in the middle of those hits in terms of peak placement. Several famous Houston cuts have stalled lower, including “I Have Nothing” at No. 66 and “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)” at No. 75.
Surprisingly, Houston has only reached the top 10 once, when she and Kygo rose to No. 1 with “Higher Love,” which combines her vocals on Steve Winwood’s composition with the DJ’s production. That track spent five weeks hosting the show in the summer of 2019.
Whitney Houston returns to the download list
“I Will Always Love You” also returns to the Official Singles Downloads chart, where it performs slightly better, appearing at No. 56. The dramatic love song debuted on that count at its all-time high of No. 13 in February 2012, following Houston’s untimely death. It hung around for three frames and then disappeared, and hadn’t returned for over a decade before this week.
Whitney Houston’s greatest hits album remains
houston I will always love you – The best of This framework can also be found in two UK rankings. The compilation, which shares a name with the hit song, charts at No. 61 on the Official Albums Streaming Chart and No. 84 on the Official Albums Count. It had previously risen to 12th and 13th on those lists, respectively, and narrowly missed its way into the top 10 in both rankings. The collection has also proven exceptionally strong, with 263 weeks on the streaming chart and 271 on the full albums chart.
Dolly Parton’s original becomes a top 10 hit
Parton’s own “I Will Always Love You,” which was released decades before Houston transformed the composition into the biggest hit in history. The bodyguard soundtrack, also emerged after the death of the composer. The original tune re-enters the Official Singles Downloads and Official Singles Sales charts at Nos. 3 and 4, respectively, reaching new peaks on both charts and granting Parton another pair of posthumous top 10 wins.
Parton’s recording also debuts at No. 96 on the official streaming chart. As it arrives, the cut gives the country icon only fourth place of his career on the streaming-focused list.
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