Quickly following this dramatic change in his life, Thomas wrote his autobiography, Home Where I Belong, and released his first Christian album of the same name. Then in 1976, Thomas had a miraculous born again experience which resulted in a miraculous deliverance from drug addiction as well as giving Thomas life eternal. “I was at the bottom with my addictions and my problems,” he said in 2020 on “The Debby Campbell Goodtime Show.” He cited a “spiritual awakening,” shared with his wife, Gloria Richardson, with helping him to get clean.Īlthough very successful, like many such stories, Thomas fell into the pit of substance abuse and drug addiction. By 1976, while ?(Hey Won’t You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song” was hitting No. He was touring and recording constantly and taking dozens of pills a day. Thomas would later say the phenomenon of “Raindrops” exacerbated an addiction to pills and alcohol which dated back to his teens, when a record producer in Houston suggested he take amphetamines to keep his energy up. “At the time, it seemed like a dumb idea. “When the film was released, I was highly critical - how did the song fit with the film? There was no rain,” Redford told USA Today in 2019. Redford, meanwhile, doubted the song even belonged in “Butch Cassidy.” Thomas was recovering from laryngitis while recording the soundtrack version and his vocals are raspier than for the track released on its own. But, at first, not everyone was satisfied. “Raindrops” has since been heard everywhere from “The Simpsons” to “Forrest Gump” and was voted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2013. But his warm, soulful tenor fit the song’s easygoing mood, immortalized on film during the scene when Butch (Paul Newman) shows off his new bicycle to Etta Place (Katharine Ross), the girlfriend of the Sundance Kid (Robert Redford). 1 pop hit and an Oscar winner for best original song as part of the soundtrack to one of the biggest movies of 1969, the irreverent Western “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.” Thomas wasn’t the first choice to perform the whimsical ballad composed by Burt Bacharach and Hal David Ray Stevens turned the songwriters down.
Thomas' signature recording was “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ On My Head,” a No.
Had my 4 month old daughter in my lap for the concert.42 years ago!" Susan adds a time-passing reference to Amy Grant's 1994 song, "Oh, How The Years Go By." "I saw him in concert 42 years ago in Greenville, SC and a 17 year old young girl with her guitar opened for him in her first big gig.kicked off her shoes after her first song and stole the hearts of every single person in that room.her name was Amy Grant. Thomas perform, with a lesser-known opening act: Our reporter Susan Miller shares about the time she saw B.J. I will miss him as I know so many others will as well. “My sincere condolences to the family of one of my favorite duet partners, BJ Thomas. 1 with pop, adult contemporary and country listeners in 1976 with ?(Hey Won’t You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song.” The same year, his “Home Where I Belong” became one of the first gospel albums to be certified platinum for selling more than 1 million copies.ĭionne Warwick, who duetted with Thomas, sent out a tweet Saturday with her condolences. Thomas, who announced in March that he had been diagnosed with lung cancer, died from complications of the disease Saturday at his home in Arlington, Texas, his publicist Jeremy Westby said in a statement.Ī Hugo, Oklahoma-native who grew up in Houston, Billy Joe Thomas broke through in 1966 with a gospel-styled cover of Hank Williams’ “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry” and went on to sell millions of records and have dozens of hits across genres. Thomas, the Grammy-winning singer who enjoyed success on the pop, country and gospel charts with such hits as “I Just Can’t Help Believing,” “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ On My Head” and “Hooked on a Feeling,” has died.
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