Bobbie herself said if there was any message to the song, it was the casual way the family sat at the dinner table talking about his death, not realizing that his girlfriend was sitting right there
@@roymerritt348 That's one interpretation, but far from obvious. So many possibilities. The movie had him have a night of gay sex and him not being able to live with it.
She was a philosophy major in college. And when she wrote this song it's about the cruelties the subtle cruelties of life. And how we sit at the table talking about someone who died and he passed the potatoes. And we don't even feel the loss. We're more into our own problems. Pretty deep
There is a brilliant but very little known singer named Betty Elders who put out a masterpiece of an album called Peaceful Existence in the 90s. It has 2 epic Southern Gothic tales, The Ballad of Marley Rose Payton and Crack In the Mirror. That album is just a gem.
She studied Philosophy in California. Such a soft southern accent, great story telling. I love celtic music which is common in the Maritime provinces of Canada. Folk music was a way to pass news and stories so that is a favorite style of mine. I loved this song from the first time I heard it. Young man commits suicide and the clocks did not even pause No horns or bells for his leaving.. The banality of black dyed peas, biscuits and pie set against Billy Joe's death. Its top notch.
@@lightatthecape2009 I was spurred to track it down when I read a review that compared her writing prowess to Lucinda Williams and Warren Zevon. Not far-fetched at all.
@@abracadabra3033 me too...my crazy mind went to a baby (miscarriage) I love the way you analyze music bro...great job as usual...could you please react to GHOST IN THIS HOUSE by Alison Krauss..I'm curious as to how your analysis would go...it's a very interesting song.
Bobbie Gentry wrote this song. I had seen the movie about this song in the mid 70's. From what I can recollect it's about suicide, shame, and town rumours spreading like wild fire. Bobby's voice is perfect for this ballad. Thanks for reacting to this!💚
There is a saying that is advice for writers - "show, don't tell". This song is a masterful example of that. You understand that she is Billy Joe's girlfriend and is stunned with grief, and her family doesn't really see her because they are caught up in their own thoughts and concerns. And she never actually says it. She shows it in what they say and do. It's a three minute literary novel set to music.
I love your comment about "painting pictures on the walls of your mind." Plus, you're the only person i've heard mention the string arrangememt. Bobby orcheatrated this. She was pretty much a self taught genius.
You nailed it with " this story sounds so everyday " . She never really elaborated on the song other than to say it's mostly about the way people who were supposed to have known him reacted ( or the lack of ) to his death.
@@abracadabra3033 The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald is a song based on a real event from the mid 1970's on Lake Superior. I highly recommend it as well since you like ballads.
Great reaction! Love your reaction! Gordon Lightfoot is a fantastic song writer for sure.....love The Wreck of Edmund Fitzgerald. You should also listen to his song ‘Beautiful’........it will warm your heart!
@@abracadabra3033 I was born in 1957 and was fortunate enough to have experienced many genras of heart felt music by extraordinary artists for the first time. The music stimulated your imagination before MTV and videos came out. To this day hearing songs from that era still conjures up memories and emotions. Watching yours and younger generations reactions to these videos for the first time puts a smile on my face, I can see you are just as moved by the music now, its messages and meaning, its pure essence, as I was and still am. Thank you kindly Brother
You’re like the mailman lol!!! Awesome but eerie song. A lot of people say it was a baby. I don’t think Bobbi ever revealed what it was. What a voice!! Great storyteller! Great reaction! Thx. ❤️ Keep dry. 😂
Bobby Gentry was upset that people thought it was a baby. She also said it wasnt important what was thrown off the bridge. It was how casual everyone was talking about Billy Joe not even realizing that the daughter was dating him.
I have fished the Tallahatchie River many times in my life. I have one of the decorative cast iron spheres from the top of the original bridge. Bobbie was a class act and a HUGE tallent. Proud to call her a Mississippian. 😊💜💚💛✌️
Love that sweet accent from the deep South. My ma and pa had the same accents. Being from the South I love and appreciate this song. Thank you for playing Ode To Billy Joe.
Bobbie Gentry once said that what they threw could have been anything. Bobbie Gentry explained: "The message of the song revolves around the nonchalant way the family talks about the suicide. The song is a study in unconscious cruelty." I grew up listening to her music. My favorites are this one, Niki Hoeky (my dog's named for that one), Papa Won't You Let Me Go to Town, Fancy, Son of a Preacher Man (Dusty Springfield's version is better but I still love Bobbie's too), Mississippi Delta and just about any duet she did with Glenn Campbell
Bobbie Gentry's song would come on the radio when i was a kid back in the 1970's on AM not FM so i am going back, It would always play 2 or 3 in the morning it was a little scary laying there and listening to this beautiful voice and down home music, Ms.Gentry was ahead of her time
Hey Abra! I'm so glad you did this song! I wore out the VHS tape of the 1976 movie "Ode to Billy Joe" when I was younger. It is one of my favorite movies. You stay safe buddy...and thanks again.
She captured the South so well in this song. The conversation is just what you would hear at the dinner table. I love story teller songs. Not many write like this anymore. Some other good story teller singers are Jim Croce, Harry Chapin and Gordon Lightfoot all from about the same era as this song.
Wow, when this SONG came out I never thought that I would witness a time and environment dealing with a Virus. That this song talks about her Father catching and dying from . How damn eerie that is, and has become reality. From the 60's too the present. ABRACADABRA nicely done. Bobbie Gentry's, "ODE TO BILLY JOE".... ANOTHER STORY TELLING SONG GORDON LIGHTFOOT, "THE WRECK OF THE EDMUND FITZGERALD"... HARRY CHAPIN, "TAXI"....
@@abracadabra3033 you are very welcome. I really enjoy your channel and how you look at life and this world/universe we live in, so thank you. You work very hard, but in a Zen kind of way for your channel and I know how much you care about people., because you have always treated me with respect , love and peace. It’s rare to find that in this world we live in. Much love and peace to you and your family. Keep up the great Reaction Videos you do. 🙏✨✨💫
Thank you. Speculation over the years about what was thrown off the bridge has been varied, but mostly it is thought that it was a stillborn baby, a miscarriage or something along those lines.
If you like storytellers then I suggest Gordon Lightfoot The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. He is a master Canadian storyteller and this is actually a true story. Another is Wheat Kings by The Tragedy Hip which is also based on a true story. The Hip ad we call them are also from Canada 🇨🇦 ✌
The movie made off this song in the later 70s, I think 77 or 78, I was in High School..Robbie Benson was Billy Joe in the movie..he was a teenage heart throb back then..
Great reaction. There are so many great story telling singers to check out. Here's a list of a few great ones. Enjoy! Gordon Lightfoot--The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald Simon & Garfunkel--The Boxer Harry Chapin--Cat's in the Cradle Jim Croce--Bad, Bad Leroy Brown Chris Stapleton--Either Way Tyler Childers--Nose to the Grindstone Jamey Johnson--In Color
Bobby Gentry wrote _and produced_ her own songs, as well as her TV show. Her music sparked a genre called “Southern Gothic,” but I just love her voice and what she chooses to sing about. She grew up without indoor plumbing or electricity. One day, she just quit and walked away from everything, which was a real shock at the time. She’s real private and has never said a word about her decision. Crazy stuff!
Her beautiful husky voice. She dropped out of the scene after a few years; I heard tell she couldn't take the bullshit of the music industry. Too bad for us. You're an excellent reactor. I love that you showcase female singer/songwriters , Peace
Great reaction. And, the only thing I would add might be that at the time she was doing all of the other amazing things you were talking about, she was always so pulling off a cool finger-picking thing on the acoustic guitar. And she was doing that reliably and relentlessly. It just added to the tension of the story.
Thanks.... A really nice song you may want to check out some day is " City of New Orleans" by Arlo Guthrie.... It's a song about the passing era of trains and riding them.
I like that you reacted to the part at the beginning as well. People jump over that but if you don't know about the bottom in Mississippi you need to know to appreciate this song and the way she tells it helps.
Beautiful song that captured my attention when I heard it on my Dad's truck radio while he was taking me to kindergarten one day, of course I didn't have a clue what it meant at the time but I figured it out later.... more than 50 years later I still love this beautiful song...♡
This was one of the songs my mom taught me to play on the guitar. We would sing it together and harmonize while we sang. This has been one of my favorite and most loved songs since I was a kid. Thank you for this!
There has always been great speculation about why he killed himself, just no evidence to reveal the truth. In the movie they were wrestling over a doll that she had, and it went into the water. His shame was, he laid with a man. No one will ever know what really happened. Great reaction to a great song.
@@abracadabra3033 The movie was a made up piece of garbage. Bobbi Gentry hated that they brought homosexuality into it. It was nothing but pandering to a political cause.
I am SO proud someone other than me remembered the doll. No one ever mentioned it in their comments and replies. I keep telling people that even though they brought in the homosexuality into the movie that I always wondered if the doll was a metaphor harking back to the song and people wondering if they have known the baby off the bridge. No one will ever know but her attachment to the baby doll in the movie was always a little odd to me even though I'm from the south and that time. And how we were attached to our dolls.
@@princessoffire1107 Yes, it was her childhood doll, Benjamin, in the movie. They were young and Billie Joe was on fire for Bobbie Lee, but she was not ready to cross that line. Billie Joe got drunk and lay with an older man. He couldn't live with the guilt. Bobbie Lee left town after Billie Joe's suicide. She left so people would think she was pregnant and hopefully that would satisfy them enough to not to speculate any further, therefore saving Billie Joe's reputation, somewhat, other than discovering the truth. I have always wondered that after she left town presumably pregnant, what did the townspeople think they threw off the bridge?
