Top 10 Bobbie Gentry Songs

Photo: Public Domain

Our Top 10 Bobbie Gentry songs list looks back at the music of one of classic rock’s most treasured voices. Most fans will remember Bobbie Gentry for her massive hit “Ode to Billie Joe.” The song that would become a rock classic while cementing Bobbie Gentry’s name in rock history forever. However, Bobby Gentry’s musical contributions went way beyond just her mega hit. She had one of the most beautiful and genuine voices we have ever heard. She effortlessly crossed the genres of rock, pop, and country because the songs she released were timeless, so well written that any musical fan could appreciate and enjoy them.

Throughout her career, she released seven studio albums between 1967 and 1971. She continued to release singles throughout the 70s and made some performances. However, at 40, she retired from the music business in the 1980s and has since pretty much disappeared from public life. Our list will celebrate that magical period in the late 1960s and early 1970s when Bobbie Gentry released some fantastic music.

# 10 – Louisiana Man

We open up our top 10 Bobbie Gentry songs list with the down-home sweet old tune entitled Louisiana Man. Listen to Bobbie Gentry’s vocals up close on that microphone. She sounds like she’s sitting right next to you on the couch. This is one of those great story songs that truly defined this period of music. No one sang a story like Bobbie Gentry. She was one of the greats, like a Harry Chapin or a Jim Croce, in the way she delivered the storyline. She was probably very much inspired by those two as she came just before them. “Louisiana Man” was released on Bobbie Gentry’s album The Delta Sweete. The album was released in 1968.

#9 – Less of Me (with Glen Campbell)

We continue our Top 10 Bobbie Gentry songs list with the excellent track “Less Of Me.” This is the first Bobbie Gentry song on this list to also feature the legendary Glen Campbell. These two sound great together, and we will make sure to include some of the treasures Bobbie Gentry and Glen Campbell recorded on this list, as they are just too good to leave out. The song “Less of Me” peaked at 44 on the Hot Country Songs chart in the United States.

#8 – Mornin’ Glory (with Glen Campbell)

One of many duets by Glen Campbell and Bobbie Gentry featured “Mornin’ Glory,” released in 1968. Listen to the sound of those guitars set up this beautiful mid-tempo tune. It opens with Glen Campbell’s golden vocals, then gives way to Bobbie’s silk voice as they both say good morning to each other and to life itself.

# 7 – Apartment 21

In 1970, Bobbie Gentry released the fabulous single “Apartment 21.” The song was released as a single only and did not appear on any studio album release. It would later appear on various Bobbie Gentry compilations. This is a happy tune with its assortment of la’s, beautiful string lines, and just a good old early 70s spirit and vibe. Love this one.

#6 – Fancy

Continuing with our Top 10 Bobbie Gentry songs list, we present the fabulous song entitled “Fancy.” This one is all killer. It’s a song of women’s liberation by a powerful woman in the music business in the 1960s and 70s. You don’t mess with Bobbie as she proves it in this song. The song was released as the title track of her sensational 1969 album, Fancy. The song “Fancy” was a top 40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100.

#5 – I’ll Never Fall in Love Again

Released in 1969 with the album Touch ‘Em With Love, ” I’ll Never Fall in Love Again ” is one of Bobbie Gentry’s more commercially successful songs, at least among the European nations, as they charted “I’ll Never Fall in Love Again” as high as number one in Ireland and the UK. In Australia, New Zealand, and Norway, it peaked at fifth place. While it may not have charted within Canada or the USA, over time, country fans did warm up to Gentry’s version of what was initially written for the 1968 musical Promises, Promises. Gentry’s version came out in July 1969, just before Dionne Warwick’s version in December 1969.

# 4 – Let It Be Me (with Glen Campbell)

Glen Campbell and Bobbie Gentry make the duet song “Let It Be Me” among hers and his best. It reached number one on RPM Canada’s Country Chart, while peaking at 14th on the USA’s Hot Country Songs. The song was released as a single in 1968, along with its vinyl album Bobbie Gentry and Glenn Campbell. Since its release, “Let It Be Me” has been certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

#2 – All I Have to Do Is Dream (with Glen Campbell)

This duet featured Bobbie Gentry and Glen Campbell, who paired up to cover “All I Have to Do Is Dream,” originally recorded by The Everly Brothers in 1958. What served as one of many duets the two music artists performed together, this one has proven to be the most successful globally. In Canada and Ireland, their version of the song peaked in second place, while in Australia, South Africa, and the UK, it ranked third.

#1 – Ode to Billie Joe

The first official single as a solo was released by Bobbie Gentry from her debut album of the same name. Not only was it the ultimate breakout song for the songstress, but it has also remained an all-time classic for country music fans of all ages. On the music charts, “Ode to Billie Joe” quickly rose to the very top spot within five weeks on the US Billboard’s Pop Singles Chart. It also reached number one in Canada. Not only did Bobbie Gentry become something of an overnight sensation with North American music fans, but all over the world, thanks to this song, plus the album it belonged to. In the UK, where it’s seldom for music from the country genre to rank in the UK Singles Chart, Ode to Billie Joe reached 13th place at its peak. Both the song and the album have since received Gold Certification from the RIAA.