youtube billy joe royal down in the boondocks

Royal hailed from a family of musical entertainers. He was born on Apin Valdosta, Georgia and raised in Marietta, Georgia. He also acted in the 2013 film Billy The Kid. Singer Billy Joe Royal enjoyed a successful musical career which spanned over forty years and encompassed the pop, rock, and country music genres.

He had charting success with “I Knew You When, “Hush,” “Yo-Yo,” and “Cherry Hill Park.” He also had country hits with “Burned Like a Rocket,” “I’ll Pin a Note on Your Pillow,” “Tell It Like It is,” and “Till I Can’t Take it Anymore.” Royal toured and performed for many decades. Billy sang several of his own hits, he sang one due. He sang in both the rock and roll and country genres. On May 10, 2014, Billy Joe Royal appeared as part of the Kool 103 Caravan Of Stars in Jackson, Tennessee. The session musicians for the recording were Reggie Young (electric guitar), Bill Hullett (acoustic guitar) Sam Levin (horns), Clayton Ivey (piano ), Bob Wray (six string bass), and Greg Morrow (drums).īilly Joe Royal was born in Valdosta, Georgia, on April 3, 1942. Although her father is his boss, the singer believes he will overcome the poverty of his background. Royal gives an great performance to this story about a poor boy and rich girl who love each other but can’t yet overcome the strictures society puts on them and have to meet in secret. Billy Joe Royal also has the song on his 1965 album Down in the Boondocks. Billy Joe Royal recorded it, and in 1965, the song went to #9 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was in the top 40 in the U.K. All rights reserved.The song “Down in the Boondocks” was written by Billy Joe Royal’s friend singer-songwriter-guitarist Joe South. Funeral plans will be announced later this week.Ĭopyright © 2015, ABC Radio. Royal is survived by a daughter and two stepsons, and he also maintained a close relationship with his ex-wife, Michelle. The Musicians Hall of Fame & Museum also aquired from Joe South the electric sitar and Gretsch guitar he used on his many sessions for his own records hits like 'Games People Play' and artists he produced and wrote for like Billy Joe Royals 'Down In the Boondocks' but also as a session musican for artists such as Simon and Garfunkel, Bob Dylan and Aretha Franklin. He continued to perform until his death, with his final show taking place last month at Georgia's Gwinnett County Fair. In the 1980s, Royal reemerged as a country star, releasing a string of charting hits, including 'Tell It Like It Is,' 'Love Has No Right' and 'Till I Can't Take It Anymore,' all of which peaked in the top five of Billboard's Hot Country Songs tally.īorn in Valdosta and raised in Marietta, Royal was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame in 1988.

Royal broke into the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 once more, with his 1969 single 'Cherry Top Hill.' 'Down in the Boondocks' peaked at #9 on the Billboard Hot 100, while a follow-up single, 'I Knew You When' - also written by South - went to #14.īilly Joe also recorded a version of the South-penned tune 'Hush' in 1967, a year before Deep Purple scored a hit with the song. The song was penned by Joe South, whom Royal met early in his career while performing on the Georgia Jubilee radio show. The soulful singer came to fame with 'Down in the Boondocks,' his first single and the title track from his debut album. Steve Snowden/Getty Images Billy Joe Royal, the Georgia-born singer best known for his 1965 top 10 hit 'Down in the Boondocks,' died suddenly in his home in North Carolina Tuesday, his publicist tells The Tennessean.

Youtube billy joe royal down in the boondocks