That is the opening line of one of music’s most discussed, examined and appreciated songs — “Ode to Billie Joe,” written and performed by Bobbie Gentry, who was born in Mississippi’s Chickasaw County.

A series devised by and featuring the Music and Friends of Bobbie Gentry with special guests Marmalade, Sue and Sunny, Pan's People.

Though her birth name was Roberta Lee Streeter, she was known around the world as Bobbie Gentry. Born in Chickasaw County, Mississippi, and raised in the town of Greenwood, Gentry is most known for ...

The snippets above draw from the liner notes of The Girl From Chickasaw County, an exhaustive box set dedicated to Gentry’s years with Capitol Records. Evidently, she has had nothing to do with its ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Editor's Note: The following column by former Clarion Ledger columnist Billy Watkins originally appeared in the May 31, 2016, ...

“Fancy” was also one of Gentry’s most political songs, describing it in the mid-1970s as her “strongest statement for women’s lib, if you really listen to it. I agree wholeheartedly with that movement ...

This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in ...

Music fans know the importance of Friday. “It was the 3rd of June, another sleepy, dusty Delta day.” That is the opening line of one of music’s most discussed, examined and appreciated songs — Ode to ...

Editor's Note: The following column by former Clarion Ledger columnist Billy Watkins originally appeared in the May 31, 2016, edition of the Clarion-Ledger. Music fans know the importance of Friday.

Editor's note: This article originally appeared online May 31, 2016, in the (Jackson, Mississippi) Clarion Ledger. Music fans know the importance of Friday. “It was the 3rd of June, another sleepy, ...