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.
The Windows Of The World
Bobbie Gentry Lyrics
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Where is the sunshine we once knew
Everybody knows when little children play
They need a sunny day to grow straight and tall
Let the sun shine through
The windows of the world are covered with rain
When will those black skies turn to blue
They start to wonder when their country will call
Let the sun shine through
The windows of the world are covered with rain
What is the whole world coming to
Everybody knows when men can not be friends
Their quarrel often ends where some have to die
Let the sun shine through
The windows of the world are covered with rain
There must be something we can do
Everybody knows whenever rain appears
It's really angel tears
How long must they cry
Let the sun shine through
Bobbie Gentry's song, "The Windows of the World," is an introspective look at the struggles of the world and a plea for things to get better. The first verse begins with the observation that the "windows of the world are covered with rain," a metaphor for the gloom and sadness that has overtaken society. The singer then asks where the sunshine has gone, referring to the hope and optimism that used to exist.
In the second verse, the song expresses a longing for the world to become a better place, one in which boys can grow into men without having to worry about going to war. The lyrics acknowledge that, historically speaking, many men have died as a result of fighting in wars, and they accentuate the need for peace.
In the final verse, the song addresses the issue of conflict and discord among people. The lyrics suggest that while there may be differences between individuals, these should not be significant enough to warrant violence or hatred toward one another. The singer concludes with a call to action, urging people to find a way to bring about positive change in the world and to let the sun shine through.
Line by Line Meaning
The windows of the world are covered with rain
Our view of the world is distorted by the negativity and sadness around us
Where is the sunshine we once knew
We yearn for the happiness and positivity that we experienced in the past
Everybody knows when little children play
It's widely accepted that children need a nurturing and joyful environment to grow properly
They need a sunny day to grow straight and tall
Children require a positive environment to develop and grow into strong, healthy individuals
Let the sun shine through
We must strive to create a positive environment for ourselves and those around us
When will those black skies turn to blue
We yearn for a change from the current negative and hopeless state of the world
Everybody knows when boys grow into men
It's a common knowledge that young boys will eventually become men
They start to wonder when their country will call
Men often wonder when they will be called upon to serve their country
What is the whole world coming to
We question what the future holds for humanity
Everybody knows when men can not be friends
It's common knowledge that disputes between men often escalate into violence and death
Their quarrel often ends where some have to die
Disagreements and conflicts often result in tragic outcomes
There must be something we can do
We must take action to improve the current state of the world
Everybody knows whenever rain appears
It's widely accepted that rain is often associated with sadness and melancholy
It's really angel tears
The rain represents the pain and sadness felt by the angels above
How long must they cry
We question how long the sadness and despair will continue
Let the sun shine through
We must strive to bring positivity and happiness into our lives and the world around us
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: BURT F BACHARACH, HAL DAVID
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind