BJ THOMAS (1942 - 2021)

BJ Thomas, a pop and country singer most famous for the Oscar-winning song, "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head", has passed away today at the age of seventy-eight. Thomas had been diagnosed with stage-four lung cancer earlier this year in March.

Born Billy Joe Thomas in Hugo, OK, he grew up in and around Houston, TX. He began singing in his church choir as a teen before joining a country group, The Triumphs. In 1966, the band signed with Pacemaker Records and had a big hit with a cover of Hank Williams' song "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry".

Thomas later signed with Scepter Records as a solo artist and released his debut, "On My Way" in 1968. The album was a moderate success, featuring the singles, "The Eyes of a New York Woman" and "Hooked On a Feeling" which reached number five on the pop charts (although the Swedish band, Blue Swede's 1974 version would become better known).

The following year, Thomas was approached by Burt Bacharach and Hal David to record a song they had written for the film, "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid". "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" would stay at number one on the US pop charts for four weeks, seven weeks atop the adult contemporary chart and Billboard ranked it the number four song of 1970. Thomas would have another number one hit in 1975 with "(Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song". 

After this hit, the singer turned to recording contemporary Christian music with the 1976 album, "Home Where I Belong" which went on to sell over a million copies. During the 1980's, Thomas began to perform country music, releasing several albums and had two number one singles on the country charts with "Whatever Happened to Old-Fashioned Love" and "New Looks from an Old Lover". And you might recognize his voice on the theme song for the television sitcom, "Growing Pains" with the song, "As Long as We Got Each Other" which was done solo and as duets with Jennifer Warnes and Dusty Springfield (!).