Old Flames (Can't Hold A Candle To You) (feat. Dolly Parton)

The country singer Hugh Moffatt and songwriter Pebe Sebert wrote this song in 1977 soon after they were married. Sebert came up with the title after running into an old boyfriend. She came home, told Moffatt about it, and let him know he shouldn't worry, because "old flames can't hold a candle to you." Moffatt, whose résumé includes songs recorded by Ronnie Milsap, Alabama and Johnny Cash, knew it was a great title and set to work on the song with Sebert, who wrote a very "cliché country melody" to go with it. Sebert considered the song a near parody of country music, but it worked, giving her and Moffatt a huge hit to their credit.

Sebert and Moffatt split up in 1984 just as she was about to record a solo album. Distraught, she never finished it, and spent the next few years in a drug-induced wilderness. In 1987, she had a daughter, Kesha, who inherited Pebe's talents and became both a pop star and a hit songwriter. Mother and daughter often wrote together; they teamed up on three tracks from Kesha's 2010 debut album, Animal: "Your Love Is My Drug," "Stephen" and the title track.

Dolly Parton's version is actually a cover: The song was originally a #14 Country hit for Joe Sun in 1978. Dolly then took the tune to the top of the Country chart in 1980.