Ode to Billy Joe - Buddy Merrill

It was the third of June, another sleepy, dusty Delta day I was out choppin' cotton and my brother was baling hay And at dinner time we stopped and walked back to the house to eat And Mama hollered out the back door "y'all remember to wipe your feet" And then she said "I got some news this morning from Chocktow Ridge Today Billy Joe MacAllister jumped off the Tallahachee Bridge" Papa said to Mama as he passed around the black eyed peas "Well Billy Joe never had a lick of sense, pass the biscuits please There's five more acres in the lower forty I got to plow" And Mama said it was shame about Billy Joe, anyhow Seems like nothing ever comes to no good up on Chocktow Ridge And now Billy Joe MacAllister's jumped off the Tallahachee Bridge Brother said he recollected when he and Tom and Billy Joe, Put a frog down my back at the Carrol County picture show, And wasn't I talkin' to him after church last Sunday night, I'll have another piece of apple pie, you know, it don't seem right I saw him at the sawmill yesterday on Choctow Ridge And now you tell me Billy Joe's jumped off the Tallahatchee Bridge Mama said to me "Child, what's happened to your appetite? I've been cooking all morning and you haven't touched a single bite That nice young preacher, Brother Taylor, dropped by today Said he'd be pleased to have dinner on Sunday, oh, by the way, He said he saw a girl that looked a lot like you up on Chocktow Ridge And she and Billy Joe was throwing something off the Tallahachee Bridge" A year has come and gone since we heard the news 'bout Billy Joe Brother married Becky Thompson, they bought a store in Tupelo There was a virus going 'round, Papa caught it and he died last Spring And now Mama doesn't seem to wanna do much of anything And me, I spend a lot of time picking flowers up on Chocktow Ridge And drop them into the muddy water off the Tallahachee Bridge

I saw her dancin' there by the record machine I knew she must have been about 17, mm The beat was goin' strong, playin' my favorite song And I could tell it wouldn't be long 'Til she was with me, yeah, me And I could tell it wouldn't be long 'Til she was with me, yeah, me, singin' I love rock 'n' roll So put another dime in the jukebox, baby I love rock 'n' roll So come and take your time, and dance with me She smiled, so I got up and asked for her name "That doesn't matter", she said, "'Cause it's all the same", huh I said, "Can I take you home where we can be alone?" And next we were movin' on And she was with me, yeah, me Next we were movin' on And she was with me, yeah, me, singin' I love rock 'n' roll So put another dime in the jukebox, baby I love rock 'n' roll So come and take your time, and dance with me I said, "Can I take you home where we can be alone?" Next we were movin' on And she was with me, yeah, me And we were movin' on And singin' that same old song, yeah, with me, singin' I love rock 'n' roll So put another dime in the jukebox, baby I love rock 'n' roll So come and take your time and dance with me I love rock 'n' roll So put another dime in the jukebox, baby I love rock 'n' roll So come and take your time and dance with- I love rock 'n' roll So put another dime in the jukebox, baby I love rock 'n' roll So come and take your time and dance with me I love rock 'n' roll So put another dime in the jukebox, baby I love rock 'n' roll So come and take your time and dance with me