   "'ode to billie joe" is a 1967 ode song written and recorded by bobbie gentry, a singer-songwriter from chickasaw county, mississippi. the single, released in late july, was a number-one hit in the united states, and became a big international seller. billboard ranked the record as the no. 3 song for 1967.http://www.bobborst.com/popculture/songoftheyear/ the song is ranked #412 on rolling stones list of "the 500 greatest songs of all time". the recording of "ode to billie joe" generated eight grammy nominations, resulting in three wins for gentry and one win for arranger jimmie haskell. == plot == the song is a first-person narrative that reveals a southern gothic tale in its verses by including the dialog of the narrator's family at dinnertime on the day that "billie joe mcallister jumped off the tallahatchie bridge." throughout the song, the suicide and other tragedies are contrasted against the banality of everyday routine and polite conversation. the song begins with the narrator and her brother returning, after morning chores, to the family house for dinner (on june 3). after cautioning them about tracking in dirt, "mama" says that she "got some news this mornin' from choctaw ridge" that "billie joe mcallister jumped off the tallahatchie bridge," apparently to his death. [[file:bobbiegentrybridge1967.jpg|left|300px|thumb|in this photograph from the november 10, 1967 issue of life magazine, bobbie gentry strolls across the tallahatchie bridge in money, mississippi. the bridge collapsed in june 1972.{{cite book| first= john| last= tobler| year= 1992| title= nme rock 'n' roll years| edition= 1st| publisher= reed international books ltd | location= london| pages= 239| id= cn 558
1967_singles 1967_songs Billboard_Hot_100_number-one_singles Bobbie_Gentry_songs Capitol_Records_singles Debut_singles Grammy_Award_for_Best_Instrumental_Arrangement_Accompanying_Vocalist(s) Grammy_Hall_of_Fame_Award_recipients Margie_Singleton_songs Nancy_Wilson_(jazz_singer)_songs Songs_about_suicide