The siblings often collaborated, most recently on the 2020 track 'You Are My Christmas.'
Dolly Parton is mourning the death of her younger brother. On Thursday, the country icon announced on Facebook that her brother, Randy Parton, "lost his battle with cancer." He was 67.
"The family and I are grieving his loss but we know he is in a better place than we are at this time," she wrote. "We are a family of faith and we believe that he is safe with God and that he is joined by members of the family that have gone on before and have welcomed him with joy and open arms."
Dolly, who just celebrated her 75th birthday on Tuesday, went on to describe her brother as "a great singer, writer, and entertainer." In fact, she shared, Randy played both guitar and bass in her band "for many years." Additionally, Randy headed his own show at Dollywood, the country singer's Tennessee amusement park, since its opening in 1986.
Dolly noted that, while Randy "had several chart records of his own," she counted her 1980 duet with him, "Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle to You," as a "highlight" of her own career.
The pair once again teamed up for "You Are My Christmas" on Dolly's 2020 holiday album, A Holly Dolly Christmas, this time with Randy's daughter, Heidi. That experience, Dolly wrote, "will always be a favorite."
"It was his last musical recording and he shined on it just like he’s shining in heaven now," she wrote of the holiday song. "... We will always love him and he will always be in our hearts."
Randy is survived by his wife Deb, daughter Heidi, son Sabyn, and grandsons Huston and Trent.
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