A quintessential Southern storyteller, Bobbie Gentry was also one of the first female hitmakers who wrote most of her own material. Everybody remembers the lyrical mystery on “Ode To Billie Joe,” but her imagination really blossomed on the follow-up album, The Delta Sweete (recently covered in full by Mercury Rev, which includes some vivid character sketches alongside the frankly sensual “Mornin’ Glory.” She signed off (for good, unfortunately) with 1971’s Patchwork, a still-overlooked orchestral pop gem that was her Odessey And Oracle or Pet Sounds. And, save for one collaboration, she wrote every note.
