Ode to Billie Joe: Bobbie Gentry's True Crime/Philosophy Masterpiece

In this video we break down Bobbie Gentry's 1967 number-one hit "Ode to Billie Joe," with some background on the artist, some musical and lyrical analysis, and a look at the song's broader context.

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It's fun to interpret it as a tale of true crime, but in fact "Ode to Billie Joe" is a study in unconscious cruelty — so said former philosophy major Bobbie Gentry, anyway. We're so wrapped up in our own lives and problems that we can't be bothered with the needs of anyone else, not even our loved ones. That's the true crime and the true message of this great song.

There's a lot about Bobbie Gentry I reluctantly had to omit for the sake of time: important stuff like the egregious sexism she faced in the music business; sort of boring stuff like the long, complicated lawsuits over who really wrote and produced "Ode to Billie Joe" (she did, no matter what Jim Ford and Kelly Gordon say); the speculation about why she retreated to seclusion more than 40 years ago. If I want to say anything at all about a song, I have to say less about its artist, unfortunately. For a deeper look, start with Tara Murtha's book Ode to Billie Joe (https://tinyurl.com/39cjmaba). There's a handful of shorter but interesting articles online too.

And although I used still images from the movie Ode to Billy Joe, I chose not to discuss it in any detail. The movie (which was made with Bobbie Gentry's participation) offers an explanation for Billie/Billy Joe's suicide and specifies what was thrown from the bridge. But in these videos, I want to hew as closely as possible to the original texts.

CHAPTERS
0:00 — Introduction
1:53 — Background
4:59 — The Music
5:26 — Origins
7:03 — Release and Chart Performance
7:53 — The Chord Progression
10:38 — The Strings
11:59 — The Vocal
13:15 — The Message
15:22 — Conclusion

LINKS
"Ode to Billie Joe"
   • Ode To Billie Joe  

Other Songs by Bobbie Gentry
   • Chickasaw County Child  
   • Fancy  
   • Mississippi Delta  
   • Mornin' Glory  
   • Jody And Bobbie - Requiem For Love (Titan ...  
   • Jody And Bobbie - Stranger In The Mirror (...  

Covers of "Ode to Billie Joe"
   • Lucinda Williams - ODE TO BILLIE JOE (Bobb...  

Blues Theory
   • What Are Dominant 7th Chords? Guitar Theor...  
   • What's a Back Door Dominant? (Lady Bird An...  
   • The World's Most Important Chord Progression  

Of Interest
   • Ask Adam Savage: On Tackling Overwhelming ...  
Ode to Billie Joe (Tara Murtha): https://tinyurl.com/39cjmaba
Ode to Billy Joe (the movie): https://tinyurl.com/2dtw4u72
The Secret Life of Bobbie Gentry, Pioneering Artist Behind "Ode to Billie Joe" (Tara Murtha): https://tinyurl.com/3sc5ku8c

DISCLAIMER
"Ode to Billie Joe" was written by Bobbie Gentry and is published by Universal Music Group. This video has been produced and published solely for educational purposes. Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976 (https://law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/1..., allowance is made for fair use for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, scholarship, and research.

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