Stephen Colbert cries as Dolly Parton sings on 'The Late Show': ‘I’m under a lot of stress right now’
The talk show host was moved by the message behind the country legend’s song
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Dolly Parton brought Stephen Colbert to tears during her appearance on “The Late Show” on Tuesday night.
The country music legend sang “Bury Me Beneath the Willows” by Michael Daves and Chris Thile, which Parton, 74, explained to Colbert, 56, was a song her mother used to always sing when she was younger.
As the “Jolene” singer broke into song, the talk show host told someone offscreen, “I have goosebumps.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Colbert then started to tear up, took off his glasses, and wiped his eyes with a tissue.
“I better hush before you cry yourself to death and we can’t finish the show,” Parton joked as she cut the song short.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The talk show host tried to laugh it off and told the singer, “Like a lot of Americans, I’m under a lot of stress right now, Dolly. And, uh, you got under my tripwire right there, I’ll tell you right there...that was pretty beautiful.”
He added: “Isn’t it funny that sometimes there’s nothing happier than a cry?”
Dolly Parton made Stephen Colbert emotional during an appearance on "The Late Show." (Taylor Hill/Getty Images)
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“Yeah, I think it cleanses your soul,” Parton responded. “I think water’s good to wash it out. That’s what tears are for, I think.”
The country legend's story about “Bury Me Beneath the Willows” and its significance to her is one of the many stories her fans can expect to read in her book “Storyteller: My Life in Lyrics.”