BOBBIE GENTRY ~ ODE to BILLIE JOE ~ 1967 CAPITOL

Updated September 24, 2026

This auction ended on October 1, 2026. See upcoming auctions from Bell Remnants.

Lot number	167
Auction	Round #2 ~ CENTREVILLE, MISSISSIPPI Van Cleave Family ESTATE
Date	October 1, 2026 at 6:00 PM CDT
Auction house	Bell Remnants
Location	McComb, Mississippi

AVAILABLE FOR SHIPPING or LOCAL PICKUP ~ SEE MEDIA DISCLAIMER BELOW > Original 1967 U.S. stereo LP Ode to Billie Joe by Mississippi-born singer-songwriter Bobbie Gentry, issued by Capitol Records as ST 2830. This was Gentry’s debut album and contains the landmark title song Ode to Billie Joe, along with Mississippi Delta, I Saw an Angel Die, Chickasaw County Child, Sunday Best, Niki Hoeky, Papa Woncha Let Me Go to Town With You?, Bugs, Hurry Tuesday Child and Lazy Willie. The album was produced by Kelly Gordon and runs just under 30 minutes. The record is especially significant for Ode to Billie Joe, Gentry’s haunting Southern narrative ballad set around the Tallahatchie River and Choctaw Ridge. The song became the defining recording of her career and helped establish her distinctive blend of Southern Gothic storytelling, country, folk, soul and pop. Gentry wrote both the title song and much of the material on the album herself, an important distinction at a time when female country-pop performers were far less commonly presented as singer-songwriters. This copy carries the classic black Capitol rainbow/colorband label used on original 1967 pressings, with catalog number ST-2830 to the label and ST 2830 to the jacket. Period U.S. stereo issues are documented with this same black rainbow label configuration and were pressed at multiple Capitol plants, so exact pressing-plant attribution should be based on the runout markings rather than the label alone. Front cover features Bobbie Gentry seated outdoors with acoustic guitar, with bold white and orange title lettering and Capitol Records branding. The album remains one of the key Southern singer-songwriter records of the late 1960s and has particular regional interest because Gentry was born in Chickasaw County, Mississippi, with Mississippi imagery and place references running throughout her early work. MEDIA DISCLAIMER > Record has not been professionally cleaned or play-tested. Visual inspection alone cannot determine playback quality, and no guarantee is made regarding skips, surface noise, distortion, warping, groove wear or other issues affecting play. Buyer should assume the record may require cleaning and should evaluate suitability for playback based on the photographs and description.

BOBBIE GENTRY ~ ODE to BILLIE JOE ~ 1967 CAPITOL

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