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The original recording, with no other musicians backing Gentry's guitar according to some reports, had eleven verses lasting eight minutes, telling more of Billie Joe's story. The record company realized that this song would work best as a single, so they cut the length by almost half and added background music, strings, two cellos and four violins.
The only surviving draft of the seven-minute version of "Ode to Billie Joe", which consists of two handwritten pages, is located in the archive of the University of Mississippi. Gentry donated the draft to the University's Faulkner room in 1973. In addition to the iconic lyrics that made the final cut, the unused lyrics may showcase Bobbie Gentry's mindset and possible answer to mystery of what was thrown from the bridge; as well as the relationship of the narrator to Billie Joe.
From 'Touch ’Em With Love', an album which seemed to re-position Bobbie as a blue eyed soul singer over a selection of songs where only two of the albums 10 tracks were originals.
Whilst critically acclaimed at the time, 'Touch ‘Em With Love' is perhaps her least interesting album, but this was not a barrier to the LP’s success, as it became her highest charting album in the UK, where the single of Bacharach and David’s 'I’ll Never Fall In Love Again' gave her a surprise #1 hit.
In 1968-69, Gentry hosted the aforementioned series on BBC-TV in London which was shown in Germany, the Netherlands, and Australia. She signed a $1 million contract to headline in a nightclub revue in Las Vegas, which she produced and choreographed, and wrote and arranged the music.
Bobby was heading to the place where she was most successful - the stage.
From 'Fancy', another album nominated for a Grammy but failing to sell in significant numbers. Bobby seemed ill-suited to some of the material she chose to record but the results, in part, were ..... interesting.
From 'Patchwork', the final album from Bobbie Gentry, who composed or co-composed all dozen tracks as well as producing the record. There doesn't seem to be a definite thematic concept and is arguably too slick and heavy on the orchestration from the production end. None of the songs really rank among her very best or her earthiest.
The album failed, dismally, to enter the country chart in the US and reached #221 on the Billboard pop chart.
From Patchwork, again. “I write another song, as I go along, to let you know just where I’ve been,” sings Bobbie on the album’s closer. The song reveals her tiredness with phone calls, contracts, airports, hotels and “thinking up new ways to do the same old thing”. It wasn’t quite the final thing she recorded, but its weary sigh indicated her heart couldn’t go on for much longer. “I just can’t bring myself to compromise,” she sings. In her career, she very seldom did.
Las Vegas called ..... and she went, to earn millions of dollars and hang out with Elvis, marry and divorce twice more, have a child the retire in 1981 to a gated community in Memphis, about two hours from the Tallahatchie River bridge that made her famous.