Billy Joe Royal

VALDOSTA — A South Georgia native who recorded “Down in the Boondocks” and other 1960s pop hits died earlier this week.

Billy Joe Royal was 73.

He died Tuesday in his sleep at his North Carolina home.

He was born April 3, 1942, to Clarence Royal and Mary Sue Smith Royal. His father was a self-employed truck driver, according to southerngaragebands.com, a website dedicated to South Georgia musicians.

While most accounts list his birthplace as Valdosta, a past article in The Valdosta Daily Times listed his birth place as nearby Ray City in neighboring Berrien County.

Either way, he spent his early childhood in Valdosta.

His musical inclinations started early. He reportedly made his singing debut as a 5-year-old in a first-grade performance during a Parent-Teacher Association meeting, according to Royal’s website.

He did not stay long in Valdosta.

The Royals moved to Marietta when Billy Joe was 7 years old, according to most accounts. Royal told The Times in 1995 his family left Valdosta when he was 9.

He occasionally returned to South Georgia.

At the time of the 1995 interview, Royal was performing a Labor Day weekend concert at the Flatlanders Fall Frolic in nearby Lakeland.

Twenty years ago, Royal said Lakeland and Ray City hadn’t changed since his childhood. Valdosta had seen many changes, he said.

“Lakeland hasn’t changed much,” Royal said during the hour he spent signing autographs after the 1995 Flatlanders show. “My granddad had a farm I hadn’t seen since I was a kid. Just for the heck of it, I went out there. I crossed the bridge and took the second left, and there it was.

“One thing I didn’t notice as a kid, and there’s a lot you don’t notice as a kid, was how pretty it was out there. I went out to the plantation and the drive out there was just gorgeous.”

As a kid, he reportedly did notice Elvis Presley and the power of popular music.

In a past Times article, South Georgia cousin Barbara Cantrell recalled young Billy Joe impersonating the King of Rock & Roll.

“He used to imitate Elvis,” Cantrell said. “He used to stand in front of the mirror with all that grease in his hair, shaking his head.”

Royal and Presley became friends in the 1970s when they both performed shows at Las Vegas.

Royal rose to fame with pop songs such as “Down in the Boondocks,” “I Knew You When” and “Cherry Hill Park.”

Written by songwriter Joe South and released in 1965, “Down in the Boondocks” was Royal’s biggest hit and his signature tune. “Boondocks” tells the story of “a boy from down in the boondocks,” a poor boy who loves the boss’ daughter and plans to win her hand.

“One fine day I’ll find a way to move from this old shack

I’ll hold my head up like a king and I never, never will look back

Until that morning I’ll work and slave and I’ll save every dime

But tonight she’ll have to steal away to see me one more time.”

Royal switched from the pop of the ’60s and Vegas of the ’70s to country in the 1980s. In recent years, he has continued performing, recording and acting. He played a character in the 2013 indie Western “Billy the Kid.”

The funeral will be held in North Carolina.