Early years
Gentry spent her childhood living with her father in Greenwood, Mississippi, where she attended elementary school and began teaching herself to play the guitar, the bass guitar, and the banjo. In her early teens, she moved to Palm Springs, California, to live with her mother, Ruby Bullington Streeter, graduating from Palm Springs High School in 1962. It was during this time that the teenage Roberta settled on the stage name "Bobbie Gentry," and began performing at local country clubs, encouraged by no less a Palm Springs celebrity than Bob Hope.
After a short career as a Las Vegas showgirl, Gentry moved to Los Angeles, attended UCLA (where she was a philosophy major) and worked clerical jobs while occasionally performing in local nightclubs. She later transferred to the Los Angeles Conservatory of Music to hone her composition and performing skills.
Rise to fame
In 1967, Gentry recorded a demo and submitted it to Capitol Records executive Kelly Gordon, who quickly signed her to a recording contract and produced her first album. A 45 rpm "single" of two of her songs—"Mississippi Delta" and "Ode to Billie Joe"—was the first issue from this first effort, and even though "Mississippi Delta" was chosen for the "A" side, radio stations were quickly enamored with the quirky tale of Billie Joe McAllister and the mystery of his fate, as hauntingly performed and recorded on the "B" side. Bobbie Gentry had a monster hit on her hands, and Capitol Records had its newest superstar. Gentry went on to win three Grammy Awards that year, including "Best Vocal Performance by a Female", and "Best New Artist."
Gentry's follow-up albums, The Delta Sweete and Local Gentry, both produced by Gordon, were issued in 1968. Though critically acclaimed, neither album garnered the kinds of sales figures that were realized with Gentry's debut effort. The year 1968 also saw the release of an album of duets that paired Gentry with fellow Capitol alumnus Glen Campbell. Gentry and Campbell's harmonies resulted in a gold record and three hit singles, including a cover of the Everly Brothers hit "All I Have to Do Is Dream", which rose to No. 6 on the country charts in the winter of 1969.
Gentry toured briefly with Campbell and performed on a number of U.S. television programs and specials in the late 1960s. Her other notable singles include Doug Kershaw's composition "Louisiana Man" as well as a mellow version of a Burt Bacharach-Hal David song, "I'll Never Fall in Love Again". The latter went to No. 1 in Great Britain in 1970, a year after Dionne Warwick had a hit with it in the United States. 1970 also saw the release of another U.S. hit with the self-penned "Fancy," which rose to No. 26 on the Country chart and 31 on the Pop chart. (This enduring tale would later be covered with major success by Reba McEntire in 1991.)
Gentry would go on to record three more albums, while having earlier albums reissued under different titles. These last three albums, Touch 'Em with Love, Fancy, and the ambitious and highly regarded Patchwork, which consisted of all original material, were greeted enthusiastically by critics but, with the exception of the aforementioned title track to Fancy, failed to resonate with the public (though Gentry did generate a significant fan base in the United Kingdom).
Undaunted by declining record sales, Gentry sought other outlets for her creativity. She continued to write and perform, touring Europe and headlining a Las Vegas review in which she produced, choreographed, and wrote and arranged the music. In 1974, Gentry hosted a short-lived summer replacement variety show, The Bobbie Gentry Happiness Hour on CBS. The show, which served as her own version of Campbell's hit series The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour, also on CBS, was not picked up for a full season. That same year, Gentry wrote and performed "Another Place, Another Time" for writer-director (and Beverly Hillbillies actor) Max Baer, Jr.'s film, Macon County Line. Baer would go on to direct a feature film take on Ode To Billy Joe, starring Robbie Benson, in which the mystery of Billie Joe's suicide is revealed as a part of the conflict between his love for Bobbie Lee Hartley and his emerging homosexuality.
By the middle 1970s, Gentry's sellability had waned significantly, and Capitol did not renew her contract. After some behind-the-scenes work in television production failed to hold her interests, Gentry decided to retire from show business. Her last public appearance as a performer was on Christmas night 1978, as a guest on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. She has deliberately remained out of the limelight ever since.
Personal life
She was married twice. The first, to casino magnate William F. Harrah in 1969, when she was 27 and he was 58, lasted only three months, a victim of her fame. The second, to novelty singer-songwriter Jim Stafford, ended in 1979, after only eleven months of marriage and the birth of a son, Tyler. The details of Gentry's personal life after her retirement are little known, but it is generally believed that she has settled into a happy life, and enjoys being a private citizen, unhindered by the scrutiny that fame brings. As of January 2003, she was living in Los Angeles County, California.
Benjamin
Bobbie Gentry Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
On a Palomino pony
He told me he was all alone
He lost his family in forty-nine
Benjamin took me to San Diego
Guess we caused quite a commotion
Selling Pacific ocean water
[Chorus]
Oh, I never had as good a friend as Benjamin
He loved to travel
He'd been ever' place I'd been and back again
That boy could unravel
Stories that would make your eyes
Big as blackberry pies, I'm tellin' you
Life could be fun for anyone
Who had a good friend like Benjamin
Had a good friend like Benjamin
Well, me and Ben thumbed a ride to Alabama
Spent the summer pickin' cotton
Now it was so doggone hot
We bought us a three-speed electric fan
Then at night we'd drink a Coca-Cola
Listen to the rain a'fallin'
Hearin' the bob white callin'
As though he'd know we'd understand
[Chorus]
Well, Ben and me spent some time in Oklahoma
Livin' on a reservation
Workin' at the service station
Pumpin' gas and passin' time
We caught a train down to Harlan County
Thinkin' we were awful lucky
Just to walk along a Kentucky back road
Without no reason nor rhyme
[Chorus]
Had a good friend like Benjamin
The song Benjamin by Bobbie Gentry narrates the story of a young man who travels around the country with his closest companion, Benjamin. In the opening stanza, we learn that Benjamin had lost his family in 1949, which pushes him to roam around the country. The song takes us through their journey from Montana, where they started, to San Diego, Alabama, Oklahoma, and Kentucky.
Throughout their endeavours, Benjamin and the singer sold Pacific ocean water and claimed it was seaweed wine, picked cotton to survive, listened to bob white calling in the rain at night, worked at a service station in Oklahoma, and walked along a Kentucky back road. However, through all their travels, the singer expresses that she never had a better friend than Benjamin, who could tell her stories that made her eyes go big as blackberry pies.
The song depicts the joys and adventures of traveling across the country with a best friend, experiencing new things, and living life through all its ups and downs. It also sheds light on the impact a true friend can have on one's life, making it more exciting and enjoyable.
Line by Line Meaning
Benjamin rode out of Montana
Benjamin departed from Montana on a Palomino horse.
On a Palomino pony
He was riding a horse with a golden coat.
He told me he was all alone
He communicated to me that he had no family or companionship of any kind.
He lost his family in forty-nine
In 1849, he faced a tragic separation from his relatives.
Benjamin took me to San Diego
He brought me to San Diego.
Guess we caused quite a commotion
Perhaps we stirred up a bit of attention or controversy.
Selling Pacific ocean water
We marketed water from the Pacific Ocean.
And callin' it seaweed wine
We dubbed it seaweed wine to make it more appealing to customers.
Oh, I never had as good a friend as Benjamin
I have never enjoyed companionship like that which I had with Benjamin.
He loved to travel
He had a strong passion for journeying to new places.
He'd been ever' place I'd been and back again
Benjamin had visited all of the locations that I had and returned from them.
That boy could unravel
He was skilled at untangling and explaining intricate stories.
Stories that would make your eyes
Narratives that would astound and captivate the listener.
Big as blackberry pies, I'm tellin' you
Tales that were as significant as blackberry pies or the size of one's astonishment.
Life could be fun for anyone
Life had the potential to be enjoyable for all.
Who had a good friend like Benjamin
Anyone who possessed a valuable friend like Benjamin.
Well, me and Ben thumbed a ride to Alabama
Benjamin and I hitchhiked to Alabama.
Spent the summer pickin' cotton
During the summer season, we harvested cotton crops.
Now it was so doggone hot
It was incredibly sweltering outside.
We bought us a three-speed electric fan
We purchased an electric fan that had three different speeds.
Then at night we'd drink a Coca-Cola
At nighttime, we indulged in Coca-Cola drinks.
Listen to the rain a'fallin'
We would listen to the sound of the raindrops hitting the ground.
Hearin' the bob white callin'
We could hear the sound of the whistle-like bird known as the bobwhite quail.
As though he'd know we'd understand
It was as if the bird knew we would appreciate the natural beauty of the environment.
[Chorus]
The refrain of the song that repeats between each verse or stanza.
Well, Ben and me spent some time in Oklahoma
Benjamin and I stayed for a while in Oklahoma.
Livin' on a reservation
We resided on a Native American reservation.
Workin' at the service station
We worked at the gasoline station, providing fuel and other services to customers.
Pumpin' gas and passin' time
We spent time attending to the needs of our patrons while also finding ways to entertain ourselves.
We caught a train down to Harlan County
We boarded a train headed for Harlan County.
Thinkin' we were awful lucky
We believed we were incredibly fortunate.
Just to walk along a Kentucky back road
Simply strolling along a back road in Kentucky was enough to satisfy us.
Without no reason nor rhyme
Without any particular purpose or direction.
[Chorus]
The refrain of the song that concludes the lyrics.
Had a good friend like Benjamin
A reminder of the importance of having a friend like Benjamin.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: BOBBIE GENTRY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind