finetune artist: Billie Jo Spears

b. 14 January 1937, Beaumont, Texas, USA. Discovered by songwriter Jack Rhodes, Spears' first record, as Billie Jo Moore, "Too Old For Toys, Too Young For Boys", earned her $4,200 at the age of 15. Despite appearances on The Louisiana Hayride, she did not record regularly until she signed with United Artists in 1964. Following her producer, Kelso Herston, to Capitol Records, she had country hits with "He's Got More Love In His Little Finger" and "Mr. Walker, It's All Over". After time off following the removal of a nodule on her vocal cords, she recorded briefly for Brite Star and Cutlass. In 1974, Spears returned to United Artists Records where producer Larry Butler was developing a successful country roster. Her transatlantic smash, "Blanket On The Ground", was controversial in America. "It sounded like a cheating song," says Spears, "and the public don't think girls should sing cheating songs!" In actuality, it was about adding romance to a marriage and its success prompted other records with a similar theme and tempo - "What I've Got In Mind" (which had originally been a rhumba) and "'57 Chevrolet". The traditional "Sing Me An Old-Fashioned Song" sold well in the UK, while her cover version of Dorothy Moore's ballad "Misty Blue" was successful in the USA. She is also known for her cover version of Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive". She maintains, "It is still a country record. I am country. I could never go pop with my mouthful of firecrackers."

Listen to Billie Jo Spears at Finetune.

gsagona on 2008-03-21 16:31:04.610:
i'm looking for the song she and: on the blanket on the ground.