Ode to Billie Joe

by Bobbie Gentry

Ode to Billie Joe cover art
  • Type: Album
  • Released: 21 August 1967
  • Label: Capitol
  • Country: United States
  • Length: 30:17
  • Community rating: 3.94/5 from 4 ratings

Album Notes & Community Reviews

Driven by its enigmatic, culturally inescapable title track, the Mississippi songwriter's debut album is a sultry, gothic masterpiece of Southern storytelling. Jimmie Haskell's sweeping, cinematic string arrangements perfectly complement Gentry's smoky vocals and bluesy acoustic guitar picking. It broke massive commercial records and established a sophisticated, narrative-driven template for country-soul crossovers.

Genres

Descriptors: melodic, folk, acoustic, storytelling, female-vocals, narrative, orchestral, vocal

Tracklist

  1. Mississippi Delta (3:10)
  2. I Saw An Angel Die (3:00)
  3. Chickasaw County Child (2:49)
  4. Sunday Best (2:46)
  5. Niki Hoeky (2:48)
  6. Papa, Won't You Let Me Go To Town With You (2:36)
  7. Bugs (2:11)
  8. Hurry, Tuesday Child (3:55)
  9. Lazy Willie (2:43)
  10. Ode To Billie Joe (4:15)

Credits

More from Bobbie Gentry: full discography