Category: Music

The Mystery of Bobbie Gentry

Bobbie Gentry created great music in addition to her mysterious “Ode to Billie Joe” before her early retirement.

Where is Bobbie Gentry?Roberta Lee Streeter, who later took the stage name Bobbie Gentry, was born in Chickasaw County, Mississippi on July 27, 1944.  Best known for the song “Ode to Billie Joe,” the singer-songwriter eventually became almost as mysterious as the song.

Bobbie Gentry released her first single, “Mississippi Delta,” in 1967.  But it was the flip-side song, “Ode to Billie Joe” that became the hit. There are various reports that the four-minutes-plus song was originally written as a seven-minute song with extra lyrics, although others doubt that story.

Ode To Billie Joe, the album that featured the song, also became a hit.  It replaced The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band in the number one position on the Billboard Albums Chart.

The Mysteries of “Ode to Billie Joe”

Listeners loved “Ode to Billie Joe” partly because it left so many questions unanswered.  The song tells the story of two Mississippi teen lovers who share a secret, with the young man, Billie Joe MacAllister, committing suicide by jumping off the Tallahatchie Bridge.

In the song, the young woman listens to her parents talk about Billie Joe.  The parents do not know what the listeners understand about the young woman’s connection to the young boy.

Fans still debate what the girl and the boy earlier threw off the bridge.  But Gentry has stated that the item is not the point of the song.

Gentry explained to Fred Bronson in an interview, “[T]he real message of the song, if there must be a message, revolves around the nonchalant way the family talks about the suicide. They sit there eating their peas and apple pie and talking, without even realizing that Billie Joe’s girlfriend is sitting at the table, a member of the family.”

Below, Bobby Gentry performs “Ode to Billie Joe” on BBC Live in 1968.

The year “Ode to Billie Joe” was released, Gentry won three Grammy Awards, including Best New Artist.  Rolling Stone today lists “Ode to Billie Joe” as the 47th greatest country song of all time.

Gentry’s Career After “Ode to Billie Joe”

After “Ode,” Gentry continued to write and record songs like “Fancy” (later covered by Reba McIntyre).

Gentry hosted a TV show on BBC-TV. Below is an episode of The Bobbie Gentry Show from 1968.

The 1970s was the era of variety shows, and Gentry appeared on several of them.  For example, she appeared with The Smothers Brothers and on Dick Van Dyke’s 1976 show Van Dyke and Company. In 1974 she even hosted her own summer replacement CBS variety show, The Bobbie Gentry Happiness Hour.

Below, Gentry sings “Let it Be Me” with Glen Campbell on The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour in 1969.  During the making of the show, the two realized how well their voices blended.  So, Campbell and Gentry ended up making an album together too.

Gentry’s song “Ode to Billy Joe,” though, continued to be her biggest hit and to have a life of its own.  The song was eventually transformed into a film that provided its own answers to the questions asked in the song.

In 1978, Max Baer, Jr. directed Ode to Billy Joe, which starred Robby Benson and Glynnis O’Connor.  Gentry re-recorded “Ode to Billie Joe” for the movie, which had changed the spelling of the main character’s first name to “Billy.”  Below is the trailer. 

Retirement

In 1978, Gentry decided to retire and married singer-comedian Jim Stafford.  The marriage ended after about a year, but the retirement was more lasting.  In addition to her work in music, her success with investments (such as purchasing a share of the Phoenix Suns NBA team in 1969) allowed her to exit the public stage.  In the last several decades, Gentry has stayed out of the public eye and denied requests for interviews.

In a June 2016 Washington Post story, reporter Neely Tucker wrote of efforts to find Gentry.  The reporter tracked down Gentry to a gated community about a two-hour drive from the location of the Tallahatchie Bridge, which had collapsed in 1972.

The reporter called the number of the house and asked for Gentry.  The person who answered said that Gentry did not live there and hung up, although the reporter believed the person speaking was Gentry.

So we do not know much about Bobbie Gentry during the last several decades.  But she is entitled to her privacy, just as we can be thankful she entertained us and gave us some great recordings, including one of the most mysterious songs of all time.

Singer-songwriter Jill Sobule (“I Kissed a Girl”) even took the mystery about Bobbie Gentry and turned it into a song.  Her song “Where is Bobbie Gentry?” is, of course, in the style of “Ode to Billie Joe.”

Wherever Bobbie Gentry is now, we wish her a happy and peaceful birthday.

Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Why Is “Unchained” In the Title of “Unchained Melody”?

    unchained melody origins

    One of the great songs of the 1960s is The Righteous Brothers recording of “Unchained Melody,” a song that has been covered by many great stars, including Elvis Presley. But The Righteous Brothers were not the first to record the song. And why is the song called “Unchained Melody” when the word “unchained” occurs nowhere in the song?

    Although The Righteous Brother version was released on July 17, 1965, “Unchained Melody” had its origins decades earlier. Songwriter Alex North worked on the music in the 1930s, and at one time Bing Crosby turned down the opportunity to record an unfinished version of the song.

    The Movie That Gave the Song Its Name

    But North did not give up on the music. In the 1950s he and Hy Zaret were contracted to write a song for a prison movie. With Zaret adding lyrics to the music, the two came up with the completed song for the 1955 film, which was called Unchained. Hence, the song from the movie became known as “Unchained Melody.”

    The movie Unchained was about an inmate who struggles with the decision of whether or not to try to escape.  Todd Duncan recorded the song on the soundtrack and he appeared in the film as a prisoner singing part of the song.

    Duncan had the chops for the song.  He was the first black singer to join the New York City Opera when he performed there in 1945. Below is the clip from Unchained with Duncan singing “Unchained Melody.”

    The Righteous Brothers Hit

    Others recorded versions of the song before The Righteous Brothers. Performers who recorded “Unchained Melody” included bandleader Les Baxter, Al Hibler, and Jimmy Young.

    Of course, the version we know best is by The Righteous Brothers.  But the original recording did not include both brothers.  It featured only Bobby Hatfield and did not include the other “brother” Bill Medley.

    After the song was a hit in 1965, it once again climbed the charts in the early 1990s after it was featured in another movie, Ghost (1990). We should be glad that the song was first featured in Unchained. Otherwise, we would be calling it “Ghost Melody.”

    And that’s the story behind the song.

    What is your favorite version of “Unchained Melody”? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Buddy Miller’s Touchstone: “That’s How I Got to Memphis”

    How I Got to Memphis

    The first time I fell for Buddy Miller‘s music is when I heard his cover of Tom T. Hall’s “That’s How I Got to Memphis.” At the time, I’d borrowed Miller’s 1995 CD Your Love and Other Lies from my friend. Although I eventually came to love the entire album, it was “That’s How I Got to Memphis” that grabbed me on the first listen and never let me go.

    I have followed Miller’s career since then, buying and enjoying all of his albums. If asked to name my favorite Buddy Miller album, it would be Cruel Moon (1999).

    But asked me to name my favorite Buddy Miller recording, though, I would have to go past all of the wonderful original songs of his. And I’d name his cover of “That’s How I Got to Memphis.”

    Buddy Miller’s Relationship With the Song

    Considering how that song has remained a standout in Miller’s catalog for me, I was fascinated that the Tom T. Hall song means so much to him. In this video recorded at Tom T. Hall night at Music City Roots on November 16, 20111, Miller explains how the song is his favorite and how it has become his “touchstone.”

    Miller has been playing the song since it came out.  And he has played it at every gig. Additionally, he played it the first time he met his wife, the singer-songwriter Julie Miller.

    What Is the Meaning of the Song?

    The title of “That’s How I Got to Memphis” gives you and idea about the question of the song (how did the singer get to Memphis?). But it is Tom T. Hall’s great storytelling ability that tells you just enough to answer the question and leaves just enough unclear, so that everyone may hear something different in the song.

    In “That’s How I Got to Memphis,” the singer explains how he is seeking a lost love and how that journey brought him to Memphis. The song does not answer all of the questions, like why the woman went to Memphis, what kind of “trouble she’s in,” or the exact reason she left the singer. But the singer’s quest to find the answers to these questions allows the listener to fill in the blanks, even as the story breaks your heart.

    The song is about life and loss. If the song were from the woman’s point of view, one might be tempted to categorize it as a song about a stalker, even as we wonder why she left and why she always threatened to go to Memphis. But because the song is in the voice of the broken-hearted man speaking to another person who may be a stranger or a friend, a great singer can remind you of the pain of losing something you once loved.

    Or you may see the song as more about the journey of getting to another place. The beauty of Hall’s song is in the ambiguity, which leaves a lot to be revealed in the connection between the singer and the listener.

    Other Versions of “That’s How I Got to Memphis”

    Several other artists have covered the song, sometimes shortening the title to “How I Got to Memphis.” The song has been recorded and/or performed by artists such as Bobby Bare, Bill Haley and the Comets, Solomon Burke, Rosanne Cash and the Avett Brothers. More recently, Jeff Daniels sang the song on the series finale of HBO’s The Newsroom.

    “That’s How I Got to Memphis” first appeared on Tom T. Hall’s 1969 album Ballad Of Forty Dollars & His Other Great Songs. Below is his version.

    What is your favorite Buddy Miller song? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Otis Redding: Soul Manifesto (Short Review)

    Otis Redding Box Set There is little reason not to own the Otis Redding box set Soul Manifesto: 1964-1970. The twelve-CD set set features eight studio and live records recorded during Reddings’ lifetime and four posthumous albums. The set features no extras beyond the music. But it comes to Redding, the music is enough.

    Albums in the Set

    Rhino released the set as part of its Original Album Series. The five studio albums released between 1964 and 1967 during Redding’s lifetime are: Pain in My Heart, The Great Otis Redding Sings Soul Ballads, Otis Blue: Otis Redding Sings Soul, The Soul Album, Complete & Unbelievable: The Otis Redding Dictionary of Soul, and King & Queen (a duet album with Carla Thomas). The classic live albums are Live in Europe and In Person at the Whisky a Go Go. And the four studio albums released between 1968 and 1970 after Redding’s death are: The Dock of the Bay, The Immortal Otis Redding, Love Man, and Tell the Truth.

    That is a lot of Otis Redding. Although Soul Manifesto was released in late 2015, it has taken me awhile to savor the music. Of course, the big question for music fans is whether or not they need all of these albums.

    Do Fans Need All of These Albums?

    The answer for most fans is yes. I already owned the outstanding three-CD set The Otis Redding Story (1989). A lot of fans may have the excellent 2-CD collection, Dreams to Remember: The Otis Redding Anthology (1998). A great 4-CD collection is Otis! The Definitive Otis Redding (1993). Unfortunately, the latter set seems to be out of print.

    Of course, there are some good single CD collections. So one may easily find a lot of the big songs, like “Shake,” “Respect,” “Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa (Sad Song),” “I Can’t Turn You Loose,” “Mr. Pitiful,” and “Try a Little Tenderness.”

    But if you really love Otis Redding, there is never enough. Going back through the original albums collected in Soul Manifesto, one hears a special consistency in Redding’s career. There are no bad songs. Yes, you recognize some songs more than others, but each album is excellent in its own right.

    You know a lot of the hits, but the twelve CDs give you the chance to listen to Otis Redding fresh, hearing songs that you never heard before in the order they were released. You get to start with “Pain in My Heart” opening his first album and then go though both hits and lesser-known songs. You get his first posthumous album with “Dock of the Bay,” which still leaves us pondering what more Redding would have accomplished had he not died in a plane crash at the age of 26.

    No Extras In This Set

    Of course, it would be great if the albums featured extras or included special liner notes. Some fans may want to wait and hope for more re-releases of the individual albums with extras.

    For example, Rhino already released a special edition of Redding’s classic third album Otis Blue: Otis Redding Sings Soul (1965). The collector’s edition of Otis Blue not only includes the original album in both mono and stereo. And it also includes rarities, alternate mixes, and live versions of the album tracks. Pitchfork gave a glowing review to that special edition.

    Two Big Reasons to Get Soul Manifesto

    There are two reasons, though, one might still want to buy the bare-bones Soul Manifesto: 1964-1970 and get all the albums in one place as they were released. First, the price is great. You may buy Soul Manifesto and get all twelve Otis Redding CDs for around $50 on places like Amazon (the mp3 version is more expensive, so get the CDs and burn them).

    The second reason to get Soul Manifesto? It is a ton of great music by one of the greatest artists of the twentieth century.

    What is your favorite Otis Redding album or song? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Yankee Doodle George M. Cohan & “Over There”

    “Yankee Doodle Dandy,” starring James Cagney as George M. Cohan, is a fun Fourth of July bio-pic about the famous entertainer and songwriter.

    George M. Cohen Probably the most famous Fourth of July movie is Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942), starring James Cagney as George M. Cohan. It is a spectacular and fun bio-pic about the famous entertainer and songwriter. And Cagney gives one of his greatest performances while also capture much about the sound and dance of the real Cohan.

    Cohan famously sang about being “born on the Fourth of July,” although he actually was born on July 3, 1878 in Providence, Rhode Island. As portrayed in the film Yankee Doodle Dandy, Cohan began with his career in vaudeville with his parents and sister in an act known as “The Four Cohans.”

    In the early 1900s, he was one of the biggest things on Broadway, creating and producing successful musicals. He wrote many of the classic songs we still hear today like “Give My Regards to Broadway,” “Yankee Doddle Boy,” and “You’re a Grand Old Flag.”

    “Over There”

    In Yankee Doodle Dandy, we see Cagney as Cohan creating another one of Cohan’s classic’s, “Over There.” As portrayed in the clip, Cohan wrote the song in 1917 when the United States entered World War I.

    If you wonder what the real George M. Cohan danced and sounded like, Cagney gives a good sense in the film. But a surviving movie clip of Cohan shows him singing and dancing in blackface in The Phantom President (1932).

    Also, one may hear the real George M. Cohan in the clip below. He is introduced at around the one-minute mark.  Then, he sings “Over There.”

    “Yankee Doodle Dandy” and Death

    Yankee Doodle Dandy was released on May 29, 1942, and the film went on to receive several Academy Awards. Among the awards, Cagney won the Oscar for Best Actor.

    Cohan reportedly originally wanted Fred Astaire to play him. But he lived to see Yankee Doodle Dandy released with Cagney in the lead role.

    Cohan died on November 5, 1942 not long after the movie’s release.  He passed away at the age of 64 at his apartment at 993 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan.

    After Cohan died, President Franklin D. Roosevelt sent a telegram to Cohan’s wife Agnes Mary Nolan Cohan.  In it, he concluded, “He will be mourned by millions whose lives were brightened and whose burdens were eased by his genius as a fun maker and as a dispeller of gloom.”

    What better way to be remembered than as a “fun maker” and “dispeller of gloom”?

    Have a safe and happy Fourth of July, and check out our previous post on Fourth of July Songs.

    Photo via public domain. Leave your two cents in the comments.

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