R.I.P.: B.J. Thomas

[erik]

Another one departs us: B.J. Thomas, who had two #1 pop hits, with "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head" in 1970 and "Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song" in 1975 (the latter of which also hit #1 on the C&W chart), succumbed to lung cancer today at the age of 79:

www.savingcountrymusic.com/raindrops-are-falling-music-legend-b-j-thomas-has-died/

[rick]

From The Second Disc --


In Memoriam: B.J. Thomas

[sliderocker]

When B.J.'s family announced in March that he had Stage IV lung cancer, I didn't know how long he had left to live, whether it was a few months or hopefully, a few years. What the article didn't disclose was how long he had been dealing with the illness. I got one of those bad vibes reading the story that he only had a few months at best.

Must admit, I never liked "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head" all that much but I liked a lot of songs B.J. had recorded and released: the original recording of "Billy and Sue" (different to the familiar version), "No Love At All," "Mighty Clouds Of Joy," "Rock and Roll Lullabye" (with the Beach Boys on backing vocals!), "It's Only Love (1968, recorded by his friend Elvis in 1970, released as a stand alone single in 1971), "Eyes Of A New York Woman," and his version of "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry." His "Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song" was his last Top 40 hit but it shouldn't have been. There was no reason why B.J. or any other artist from a previous era should've been finding it so hard to get a hit. He always had access to the best songwriters, especially Mark James (another friend) but if the shine was off of those songwriters on their writing capabilities, perhaps he should've sought out newer songwriters. Contrary to a popular misperception, many of the recording artists at the time didn't write their own songs and needed unheard or not often heard songs.

B.J. had a life and family. And he had his troubles, which he survived. He lived a fairly good life and his day is done. Go rest high on that mountain, B.J. You've earned it.

[erik]

Quote by sliderocker:

His "Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song" was his last Top 40 hit but it shouldn't have been.

Not quite his last, actually. He had a Top 30 hit in the late summer of 1977 with a version of the Beach Boys' 1964 classic "Don't Worry Baby".

[Partridge]

I do not know if it is still true but Hey Won’t You Play Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song was the longest song title to reach #1.

[sliderocker]

May 30, 2021 20:28:24 GMT -5 Partridge said:

I do not know if it is still true but Hey Won’t You Play Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song was the longest song title to reach #1.

I never knew it held the title for the longest song title to reach number one. The title was actually written as (Hey Won't You Play Another) Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song.
The part of the title in the parenthesis is considered a sub-title or secondary title. Most sub-titles usually don't make good titles for a song on their own. I only know about B.J.'s song by the fact my brother had the album and I saw how it was written. The sub-titles usually get dropped by most people and DJs, but I'm guessing a majority of the people who bought the song needed the sub-title to find the song in the shelves or kiosks for 45s.

[sliderocker]

May 30, 2021 18:05:49 GMT -5 erik said:

Quote by sliderocker:

His "Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song" was his last Top 40 hit but it shouldn't have been.

Not quite his last, actually. He had a Top 30 hit in the late summer of 1977 with a version of the Beach Boys' 1964 classic "Don't Worry Baby".

I did forget that Don't Worry Baby made the Top 30. My mind is slipping! What's kind of weird about the Beach Boys B.J. Thomas on Don't Worry Baby is they also did the same for country singer Lorrie Morgan and I think she had a hit on the country charts with the song. So, I think that has to qualify the Beach Boys for some kind of title for appearing on three different versions of the same song. I don't believe that has ever happened with any other artist being on three different versions.

[rick]

Burt Bacharach and Hal David-penned follow-up to “Raindrops” for B.J. Thomas —

[sliderocker]

Jun 2, 2021 6:37:10 GMT -5 rick said:

Burt Bacharach and Hal David-penned follow-up to “Raindrops” for B.J. Thomas —

I remember that song but hadn't heard it in so long, I had forgotten about it. Didn't know Burt Bacharach and Hal David had written the song. My memory is the song was a bit of a downer and as a follow up to Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head, not an especially good song to be a follow up. But, record companies were like that back then, someone writes a hit song, they want the artist to go back to the same writer or writers and pick another of their songs as a potential single.

[rick]

Glen Campbell and B.J. Thomas —

[erik]

Quote by sliderocker re. "Everybody's Out Of Town":

My memory is the song was a bit of a downer and as a follow up to Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head, not an especially good song to be a follow up. But, record companies were like that back then, someone writes a hit song, they want the artist to go back to the same writer or writers and pick another of their songs as a potential single.

To be fair, it would have been a tall order for any follow-up to be as successful as a song that spent the first four weeks of the decade at #1, and one that came from one of the great end-of-an-era Western movies. As it is, #26 isn't exactly chopped liver (IMHO).