<Tr> <Td_colspan="2"> <Ul> <Li> file </Li> <Li> help </Li> </Ul> </Td> </Tr> <Ul> <Li> file </Li> <Li> help </Li> </Ul> <P> "Ode to Billie Joe" is a 1967 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 (the other two were #2 "The Letter" by the Box Tops and #1 "To Sir With Love" by Lulu). The song is ranked #412 on Rolling Stone's 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 . </P> <P> 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 . </P>

Who sang the original ode to billy joe