Posted on 06/03/2016 2:22:48 PM PDT by PROCON
Music fans know the importance of Friday.
"It was the 3rd of June, another sleepy, dusty Delta day."
That is the opening line of one of music's most discussed, examined and appreciated songs — "Ode to Billie Joe," written and performed by Bobbie Gentry, who was born in Mississippi's Chickasaw County. When her parents divorced and her mother left for California, Gentry moved in with her grandparents in Leflore County, near Greenwood.
"Ode to Billie Joe" was selected by Rolling Stone magazine as one of the top 500 songs of all time. It went to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and cracked the Top 10 on the Easy Listening and R&B charts. Billboard also rated it the No. 3 song of 1967.
She was only 22 when she recorded it. The tune earned Gentry three Grammy Awards — Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female; Best Solo Vocal Performance, Female; Best New Artist.
And here is one of those strange-but-true facts: "Ode to Billie Joe" was the B-side of Gentry's first single. The A-side, which Gentry's team at Capitol Records believed had the best chance of becoming a hit, was "Mississippi Delta," a gritty, hard-driving song that was a complete opposite of "Ode to Billie Joe."
(Excerpt) Read more at sunherald.com ...
There’s another one I miss; Johnny Carson :-(
I received a Bobbie Gentry doll for Christmas one year. Mother said it was either her or Mama Cass Elliott as they were both on clearance.
His shows were consistently entertaining. These days, my television stays in the basement.
At least there is this:
The song, "I am Woman" put an end to my first marriage, she became a big lib....
Bump, thanks!
I read “Ode to Billy Joe” as a teenager. It was a very disturbing story.
woof
Trick Statement.
There is no Buc-ee’s in Beaumont.
They just opened one close to our house, there was a huge line waiting before the doors opened on their opening day.
She is rich....
The business savvy lady from Chickasaw County, Mississippi, who maintained partial ownership of the Phoenix Suns basketball team, was astounded to learn that a fellow singer-songwriter could have such a nefarious recording and publishing contract that yielded paltry royalty checks to boot. Gentry advised Stafford to ditch his greedy handlers and start afresh.
http://www.examiner.com/article/jim-stafford-breaks-silence-on-breathtaking-song-weaver-bobbie-gentry
Is this the new one up in the Dallas area?
It’s on 35-W near the Texas Motor Speedway
Next month they’re starting construction on a new one on I-10 in Katy west of Houston, and of course the one in Baton Rouge that’s supposed to open early next year.
.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.