Royal continues to make his mark in country music with aВ self-proclaimed вЂњhodge-podgeвЂќ ofВ influences andВ over a dozen singles including, вЂњIвЂ™ll Pin A Note On Your Pillow,вЂќ вЂњTell It Like It IsвЂќ and вЂњTill I CanвЂ™t Take It Anymore.вЂќ It became a Top Ten country single and started a whole new career for me.вЂќ It struggled for about half a year on an independent label until Atlantic Records picked it up. So I moved back to Georgia, started coming to Nashville and eventually cut the country single, Burned Like A Rocket. вЂњI was working and still doing okay financially after the pop career slowed down,вЂќ Royal says. Royal released nine pop singles from 1965вЂ“1978 including, вЂњI Knew You When,вЂќ вЂњIвЂ™ve Got To Be SomebodyвЂќ and вЂњCherry Hill Park.вЂќ Here I was touring with all these wonderful people that IвЂ™d heard on the radio and all of a sudden we were becoming friends.

вЂњWe did a show every night for 3 months straight with stars like Tom Jones, Neil Diamond and The Shirelles. вЂќThe first thing I did of any consequence after Boondocks hit is tour with вЂThe Dick ClarkCavalcade of Stars,вЂ™вЂќ Royal says. It was just a great place to learn and develop your voice.вЂќДЄfter releasing a few local singles that failed to take off, Royal became a hot national commodity with the Joe South penned tune, вЂњDown In The Boondocks.вЂќ We had some big name R&B and country acts play there like Roy Orbison, Fats Domino, The Isley Brothers, Sam Cooke, Ray Price, Marty Robbins and George Jones. вЂњWe played six nights a week, five hours a night. When the Georgia Jubilee broke up, Royal landed a job at the Bamboo Ranch in Savannah, Ga. Royal appeared on his uncleвЂ™s radio show in his hometown of Valdosta, Ga., at the age of eleven.Д«y fourteen, Royal became a regular on the Friday night Atlanta-based radio show, вЂњGeorgia Jubilee,вЂќ with the likes of Ray Stevens, Jerry Reed, Joe South, Freddy Weller and various Grand Ole Opry stars. YouвЂ™d get a country thing during the afternoon, then black gospel until sundown and at night youвЂ™d get rhythm and blues. And the local radio stations would play three or four different formats a day. вЂњMy uncle had a band, my grandmother played, my whole family played. вЂќI was really lucky to always be around music as a kid,вЂќ Royal says. Royal grew up in a musical family and listened to a variety of styles on the Georgia radio stations. вЂќI never thought I was going to have another hit record,вЂќ says Royal, who will perform at the Little Nashville Opry in Nashville, Indiana, onВ Saturday, March 20 at 8 p.m. Billy Joe Royal at Little Nashville Opry March 20Д«y Tamela Meredith Partridge When Billy Joe Royal recorded the 1965 debut pop hit, вЂњDown In The Boondocks,вЂќ the Georgia singer/songwriter had no idea heвЂ™d top the country charts twenty years later with the 1985 smash, вЂњBurn Like A Rocket.вЂќ

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