Mississippi-born singer-songwriter Bobbie Gentry reached the pinnacle of success - earning hit singles, winning Grammy Awards, headlining a BBC series of her own, selling out engagements in Las Vegas, and appearing with Johnny Carson - before pulling off music's ultimate disappearing act. Gentry last performed in public on a television special in 1981 and last appeared in public at the 1982 Academy of Country Music Awards presentation. She was 39. But the music of Bobbie Gentry has never really disappeared, with her debut, self-penned single "Ode to Billie Joe" remaining a radio fixture and inspiring countless younger musicians over the years. The Grammy-nominated 2018 box set The Girl from Chickasaw County: The Complete Capitol Masters pulled back the curtain to reveal just how much more there was to Gentry than "Ode to Billie Joe" and her chart-topping U.K. cover of Burt Bacharach and Hal David's "I'll Never Fall in Love Again." It also beautifully illustrated the arc of Gentry's groundbreaking and self-driven career, powerfully arguing that her retreat from public view shouldn't be the main focus of her story. Now, that expansive 8-CD collection is being trimmed down to 2 CDs or 2 LPs in a new highlights edition.
The Girl from Chickasaw County: Highlights from the Capitol Masters arrives in stores from UMC on August 5. Again produced and compiled by Andrew Batt, both iterations naturally open with "Ode to Billie Joe." The 1967 single - recorded far from Chickasaw County, Mississippi, in Hollywood, California - went to No. 1 on the U.S. Hot 100 while also charting on the Easy Listening, Country, and R&B surveys. It topped the charts in Canada and made an impressive No. 13 showing in the United Kingdom, too. "Billie Joe" ignited a career that found Gentry often difficult to pigeonhole. Her music encompassed the strains of country, pop, soul, folk, jazz, and psychedelia, sometimes in the same song. The highlights edition of the box set doesn't track her career by the songs which were most popular - "I'll Never Fall in Love Again" is missing - but rather by painting a vivid portrait of her musical artistry in all its many colors, with a special emphasis on her evocative and incisive songwriting. As such, demos, live tracks, alternate takes, outtakes, and remixes are part of the collection alongside original versions.
Highlights includes selections from all seven of Gentry's Capitol albums (her final studio album for the label, Patchwork, was released in 1971) including the stunning title track of 1970's Fancy which has since become a staple of country superstar Reba McEntire's repertoire. McEntire, of course, is one of the many artists who looked to Gentry as a key source of inspiration. Though she was a remarkable songwriter, Gentry was an equally gifted interpreter as can be heard on her recordings of such diverse compositions as Richard M. and Robert B. Sherman's "Hushabye Mountain," John Lennon and Paul McCartney's "Eleanor Rigby," Irving Berlin's "Supper Time," and Bacharach and David's "This Girl's in Love with You." Her duet with fellow Capitol star Glen Campbell on "Let It Be Me" is heard here in the box set's strikingly intimate mix sans the original recording's lush strings. Three songs ("Casket Vignette," "Recollection," and "Hushabye Mountain") have been especially remixed by Andrew Batt for this release.
Haunting, moving, joyful, sensual, and always deeply soulful, the music of Bobbie Gentry remains timeless. The Girl from Chickasaw County: Highlights from the Capitol Masters is due from UMC on August 5, adorned with David Downton's cover artwork from the box set. You'll find the track listings and pre-order links for both formats below.
Bobbie Gentry, The Girl from Chickasaw County: Highlights from the Capitol Masters (UMC, 2022)
2CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
CD 1
- Ode to Billie Joe
- I Saw an Angel Die
- Chickasaw County Child
- Sunday Best [Alternate Take]
- Hurry, Tuesday Child [Demo]
- Niki Hokey / Barefootin' [Live on the BBC]
- Mississippi Delta [Alternate Version]
- The Seventh Son [Band Version]
- Okolona River Bottom Band
- Mornin' Glory
- Jessye' Lisabeth
- Refractions
- Courtyard
- Feelin' Good [Demo]
- Sweete Peony [Alternate Version]
- Casket Vignette
- Recollection
- Eleanor Rigby
- Sittin' Pretty
- Hushabye Mountain
- The Conspiracy of Homer Jones
- Sunday Mornin' [Alternate Version]
- Let It Be Me (duet with Glen Campbell) [without strings]
CD 2
- Supper Time
- God Bless The Child
- This Girl's In Love With You
- Touch 'Em with Love [Stereo Version]
- Greyhound Goin' Somewhere
- Seasons Come, Seasons Go [Demo]
- Glory Hallelujah, How They'll Sing [Alternate Take]
- Fancy
- Find 'Em, Fool 'Em and Forget 'Em
- He Made A Woman Out of Me
- Rainmaker
- Circle 'Round the Sun
- Apartment 21 [Stereo 7" Version]
- Billy the Kid [Live on the BBC]
- Benjamin
- But I Can't Get Back
- Belinda [Acoustic Version]
- Mean Stepmama Blues
- Lookin' In
- Smoke
- Joanne
- You And Me Together
- The Girl from Cincinnati
Vinyl:
Side A
- Ode To Billie Joe
- Chickasaw County Child
- Hurry, Tuesday Child [Demo]
- Sunday Best [Alternate Take]
- Mississippi Delta [Alternate Version]
- Okolona River Bottom Band
- Refractions
- Courtyard
Tracks 3-4 first time on vinyl
Side B
- Mornin' Glory
- Sweete Peony [Alternate Version]
- Casket Vignette
- Recollection
- Sittin' Pretty
- Hushabye Mountain
- The Conspiracy of Homer Jones
- Sunday Mornin' [Alternate Version]
- Let It Be Me (Duet with Glen Campbell) [without strings]
Tracks 2, 7-9 first time on vinyl
Tracks 3,4,6 remixed for this release
Side C
- God Bless The Child
- This Girl's In Love With You
- Touch 'Em With Love [Stereo Version]
- Seasons Come, Seasons Go [Demo]
- Glory Hallelujah, How They'll Sing [Alternate Take]
- Fancy
- He Made A Woman Out Of Me
- Circle 'Round The Sun
Tracks 3-5, 8 first time on vinyl
Side D
- Apartment 21 [Stereo Version]
- Benjamin
- But I Can't Get Back
- Lookin' In
- Smoke
- Joanne
- The Girl from Cincinnati
Tracks 1,5,6 first time on vinyl
Harry N Cohen says
Summer is never complete without some Bobbie Gentry. While I already have much of this material, I will be adding this to my Bobbie Gentry collection.
Kenny says
The Bobbie Gentry box set is simply one of the best ever released. A wonderful and underrated talent.
David says
The boxed set is a delight, a lot of thought has gone into the music, book and packaging and is one of the best boxed sets to add to a collection..but if your budget doesn’t go that far the latest issue would be a fine addition to anyone who is a fan of Bobbie Gentry.
Justin Cole says
Will be getting the 2 LP but wish they would just release the entire box on vinyl (including mono mixes, and some additional tracks that have only been on reissues since then). I know that would be a huge chunk of change, and it would be a pretty limited audience, but if they can issue the entire Stooges' Funhouse Sessions as a mammoth vinyl box...
That said, thrilled to soon have the alt mix of Sweet Peony on wax. Actually prefer it to the original. Those swells of strings in the chorus are literally breathtaking to me.
Daniel Drown says
I am thrilled that Bobbie Gentry is again selling millions of dollars worth of recordings and has reached a new generation and audience. The box set is sublime ( should have won a grammy) and I will be adding this best of set to my collection too. I have first hand knowledge that Bobbie Gentry actively recorded during her retirement and was still writing songs. She had a state of the art recording studio built into her L.A mansion and I am told stacks of high quality recorded demos of new material that have never seen the light of day exist . . P.B.S needs to do an in depth master series on Bobbie Gentry who's art is an important fabric in the tapestry of American music.