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.
RAINDROPS KEEP FALLIN' ON MY HEAD
Bobbie Gentry Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And just like the guy whose feet are too big for his bed
Nothin' seems to fit
Those raindrops are fallin' on my head, they keep fallin'
So I just did me some talkin' to the sun
And I said I didn't like the way he got things done
Sleepin' on the job
But there's one thing I know
The blues they send to meet me
Won't defeat me
It won't be long 'til happiness steps up to greet me
Raindrops keep fallin' on my head
But that doesn't mean my eyes will soon be turnin' red
Cryin's not for me
'Cause
I'm never gonna stop the rain by complainin'
Because I'm free
Nothin's worryin' me
It won't be long
'Til happiness steps up to greet me
Raindrops keep fallin' on my head
But that doesn't mean my eyes will soon be turnin' red
Cryin's not for me
'Cause
I'm never gonna stop the rain by complainin'
Because I'm free
Nothin's worryin'
Meeeeee
In Bobbie Gentry's song "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head", the singer uses the metaphor of raindrops consistently falling on her head to represent the struggles and setbacks she encounters in life. She compares herself to a man whose feet are too big for his bed, indicating that she feels out of place and uncomfortable with her circumstances. Despite her frustrations, the singer does not dwell on the negative but instead tries to find a solution. She talks to the sun and expresses her dissatisfaction with how things are being handled, acknowledging that sometimes things do not go her way, but she remains undeterred. She decides to embrace her freedom and refuses to let her problems bring her down, knowing that eventually, happiness will come her way.
The message behind the song is one of resilience and optimism, encouraging listeners to stay positive, even when faced with challenges. The raindrops falling on the singer's head are a metaphor for obstacles in life that we cannot control, but it is how we respond to them that will ultimately shape our destiny. The song suggests that if we maintain a positive attitude, we can overcome anything and achieve happiness.
Line by Line Meaning
Raindrops keep fallin' on my head
I am constantly reminded of my problems, like raindrops that keep falling on my head.
And just like the guy whose feet are too big for his bed
I am uncomfortable with my situation, just like a person who has to fit oversized feet into a small bed.
Nothin' seems to fit
Everything in my life feels off and out of place.
Those raindrops are fallin' on my head, they keep fallin'
The problems I face keep coming at me, just like the rain that keeps falling.
So I just did me some talkin' to the sun
I spoke to the sun as a way of expressing my frustration with my situation.
And I said I didn't like the way he got things done
I criticized the way things are going in my life, much as I might blame the sun for the rain.
Sleepin' on the job
I feel like things are not happening as they should, just as if the sun was not doing its job properly.
Those raindrops are fallin' on my head they keep fallin'
Despite my complaints, my problems continue to persist.
But there's one thing I know
Despite all of this, I do have one certainty.
The blues they send to meet me
I face many challenges and struggles that bring sadness and depression.
Won't defeat me
However, I am strong enough to overcome these challenges and not let them destroy me completely.
It won't be long 'til happiness steps up to greet me
I am optimistic that my situation will improve soon and I will find happiness once again.
But that doesn't mean my eyes will soon be turnin' red
Even though I'm struggling, I'm not going to let it make me cry or feel helpless.
Cryin's not for me
I am a strong enough person to not let my problems make me cry or feel defeated.
'Cause I'm never gonna stop the rain by complainin'
I know that complaining won't help me solve my problems, so I'm not going to dwell on them excessively.
Because I'm free
I am a free person, able to choose my attitude and reactions to the problems I face.
Nothin's worryin' meeeee
I'm not going to worry too much about my problems because I know that they will eventually be resolved, and I can always find happiness within myself.
Lyrics © Roba Music Verlag GMBH, Kanjian Music, BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Songtrust Ave, CTM Publishing, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., WARNER CHAPPELL MUSIC FRANCE
Written by: Burt F. Bacharach, Hal David
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind