Laura Pursell Covers Bobby Gentry Classic 'Ode To Billy Joe'

(SRO) Nashville singer/songwriter Laura Pursell releases the video and single of her interpretation of the classic Bobby Gentry song "Ode To Billy Joe." This marks the second single from her current album SHOOTING STAR on Netcom Music (September 2023).

On July 10, "Ode to Billy Joe" will celebrate the 57-year anniversary of the song's release in 1967. It was written and recorded by BOBBIE GENTRY, and five weeks after its release, topped Billboard's Pop Singles chart and appeared in the top 10 charts of the Adult Contemporary and Hot R&B singles charts, as well as in the top 20 of the Hot Country Songs list. The song was the title track on Gentry's 1967 Capitol Records debut album and nominated for eight Grammy Awards and appeared on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time and Greatest Country Songs lists. In 2023, the song was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry.

"Ode To Billy Joe" was one of the songs recorded on what LAURA refers to as the "LA Sessions." On the evening of March 16, 2020, when she and her band (consisting of drummer Chris Ross, bassist Jeff Takaguchi, and pianist Rick Hils) were told to fold up and leave the stage of a Burbank, CA venue they had a performing residence at, the city of Los Angeles was shutting down at midnight due to a Covid-19 pandemic mandate. Laura shares, "Not being able to perform live or leave LA and to keep myself and the band from going bonkers, we created our own little creative bubble and started looking for hidden gems to cover and possibly record. 'Ode To Billy Joe' has always been one of my favorite songs. So, I'm really excited to celebrate the anniversary of its release and am thrilled to have added this song to my latest album 'Shooting Star."

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