Original by: Dolly Parton Leave it to the late, great Whitney Houston to turn Dolly Parton's lifeless, listless country song into a chart-topping showstopper. Despite breaking all the rules (a country song covered by an R&B artist; an odd, a cappella opening; and a relatively long runtime for a pop song at almost 5 minutes), the power ballad from the movie soundtrack of The Bodyguard went on to stay number 1 for 14 weeks and became the best-selling single of all time by a female artist. (In other words: bad movie, great song.) And, as we now all know, the song was even played at her funeral, as her casket was ushered out of the churcha fitting tribute to her lasting legacy.