The Poppy Family
Encyclopedia
The Poppy Family was a late 1960s and early 1970s Canadian
pop music
group
, based in Vancouver, British Columbia.
met Terry Jacks
in the middle 1960s while she was a regular performer on a national teen TV show called Music Hop as well as many other national TV shows. She later called Jacks to accompany her on rhythm guitar for one of her live performances and eventually, with the addition of Craig McCaw on lead guitar, Susan decided to dedicate all her time to the trio. Craig McCaw introduced Satwant Singh on tablas and they became the Poppy Family. The name was chosen when Susan, Terry and Craig were searching for a new name and came across it in the dictionary
. Susan and Terry were married in 1967 and Susan Pesklevits became Susan Jacks
.
With Susan Jacks on vocals and Terry Jacks on rhythm guitar, along with musician
s Craig McCaw (guitar/sitar
) and Satwant Singh (tablas/drum
s), the group recorded
their first album
, from which came their best known song "Which Way You Goin' Billy?" (No. 1 in Canada and No. 2 on the U.S.
Billboard Hot 100
charts
) which was a worldwide hit. Their second and last album Poppy Seeds
was recorded with studio musicians after Terry Jacks released Craig and Satwant from the group. Later hits included "That's Where I Went Wrong" (#9, also #27 US), 'Where Evil Grows' (#6, also #45 US), and `Good Friends?'(#10, also "Bubbling Under" the US chart). In the United States "Which Way You Goin' Billy?" and "That's Where I Went Wrong" were both Top 10 Adult Contemporary chart hits as well; "Where Evil Grows" and "Good Friends?" both also hit the US AC chart. The Poppy Family's first two Canadian releases were "Beyond the Clouds" (#75 in 1968), "What Can The Matter Be?" (#53 in 1969). Other releases included "I Was Wondering" (#10 in 1971, also US #100) and "No Good To Cry" (#8 in 1972), "I'll See You There" and "Tryin'".
At their career peak, Susan performed "Which Way You Goin' Billy?" on Bobby Darin
's 1970 television variety special, The Darin Invasion. They also appeared on other variety shows including Rollin' On The River with Kenny Rogers
and The George Kirby
Special. Although Susan enjoyed performing live, Terry was not interested and their career ultimately suffered.
The "Which Way You Goin' Billy?" single earned the group two 1970 Gold Leaf (Juno) Awards as well as two Moffatt Awards in 1970. The Juno Award is Canada's equivalent of the Grammy Award
. The single version of "Which Way You Goin' Billy" went on to sell a total of more than 3½ million worldwide, and was awarded a gold disc
.
Terry Jacks decided to drop the Poppy Family name in early 1973 and Susan and Terry recorded two solo albums, Terry Jacks' Seasons in the Sun and Susan Jacks' I Thought of You Again. Susan left the marriage later that same year.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
pop music
Popular music
Popular music belongs to any of a number of musical genres "having wide appeal" and is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. It stands in contrast to both art music and traditional music, which are typically disseminated academically or orally to smaller, local...
group
Musical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...
, based in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Career
Seventeen year old Susan PesklevitsSusan Jacks
Susan Jacks is a Canadian singer–songwriter.-Career:Susan Jacks was born to a family of eight children in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Her family moved to British Columbia when she was 9...
met Terry Jacks
Terry Jacks
Terrence Ross "Terry" Jacks is a Canadian singer, songwriter, record producer and environmentalist.-Early life:...
in the middle 1960s while she was a regular performer on a national teen TV show called Music Hop as well as many other national TV shows. She later called Jacks to accompany her on rhythm guitar for one of her live performances and eventually, with the addition of Craig McCaw on lead guitar, Susan decided to dedicate all her time to the trio. Craig McCaw introduced Satwant Singh on tablas and they became the Poppy Family. The name was chosen when Susan, Terry and Craig were searching for a new name and came across it in the dictionary
Dictionary
A dictionary is a collection of words in one or more specific languages, often listed alphabetically, with usage information, definitions, etymologies, phonetics, pronunciations, and other information; or a book of words in one language with their equivalents in another, also known as a lexicon...
. Susan and Terry were married in 1967 and Susan Pesklevits became Susan Jacks
Susan Jacks
Susan Jacks is a Canadian singer–songwriter.-Career:Susan Jacks was born to a family of eight children in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Her family moved to British Columbia when she was 9...
.
With Susan Jacks on vocals and Terry Jacks on rhythm guitar, along with musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
s Craig McCaw (guitar/sitar
Sitar
The 'Tablaman' is a plucked stringed instrument predominantly used in Hindustani classical music, where it has been ubiquitous since the Middle Ages...
) and Satwant Singh (tablas/drum
Drum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
s), the group recorded
Sound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
their first album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
, from which came their best known song "Which Way You Goin' Billy?" (No. 1 in Canada and No. 2 on the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
charts
Record chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
) which was a worldwide hit. Their second and last album Poppy Seeds
Poppy Seeds
Poppy Seeds, released in 1971, was the second and final studio album from Vancouver, British Columbia band The Poppy Family. The album has yet to be released on modern formats and remains a rare vinyl....
was recorded with studio musicians after Terry Jacks released Craig and Satwant from the group. Later hits included "That's Where I Went Wrong" (#9, also #27 US), 'Where Evil Grows' (#6, also #45 US), and `Good Friends?'(#10, also "Bubbling Under" the US chart). In the United States "Which Way You Goin' Billy?" and "That's Where I Went Wrong" were both Top 10 Adult Contemporary chart hits as well; "Where Evil Grows" and "Good Friends?" both also hit the US AC chart. The Poppy Family's first two Canadian releases were "Beyond the Clouds" (#75 in 1968), "What Can The Matter Be?" (#53 in 1969). Other releases included "I Was Wondering" (#10 in 1971, also US #100) and "No Good To Cry" (#8 in 1972), "I'll See You There" and "Tryin'".
At their career peak, Susan performed "Which Way You Goin' Billy?" on Bobby Darin
Bobby Darin
Bobby Darin , born Walden Robert Cassotto, was an American singer, actor and musician.Darin performed in a range of music genres, including pop, rock, jazz, folk and country...
's 1970 television variety special, The Darin Invasion. They also appeared on other variety shows including Rollin' On The River with Kenny Rogers
Kenny Rogers
Kenneth Donald "Kenny" Rogers is an American singer-songwriter, photographer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur...
and The George Kirby
George Kirby
George Kirby was an American comedian, singer, and actor from Chicago, Illinois.Kirby broke into show business in the 1940s at the Club DeLisa, a South Side establishment that employed a variety-show format and preferred to hire local singers, dancers, and comedians...
Special. Although Susan enjoyed performing live, Terry was not interested and their career ultimately suffered.
The "Which Way You Goin' Billy?" single earned the group two 1970 Gold Leaf (Juno) Awards as well as two Moffatt Awards in 1970. The Juno Award is Canada's equivalent of the Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
. The single version of "Which Way You Goin' Billy" went on to sell a total of more than 3½ million worldwide, and was awarded a gold disc
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
.
Terry Jacks decided to drop the Poppy Family name in early 1973 and Susan and Terry recorded two solo albums, Terry Jacks' Seasons in the Sun and Susan Jacks' I Thought of You Again. Susan left the marriage later that same year.
Studio albums
| Year | Album | Chart Positions | Label | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAN | US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
|||
| 1969 | Which Way You Goin' Billy? Which Way You Goin' Billy? Which Way You Goin' Billy?, released in 1969, was the first album from Vancouver, British Columbia band The Poppy Family. They scored their biggest hit with title track "Which Way You Goin' Billy?" which went to #1 in Canada and #2 on the Billboard charts in the U.S... |
22 | 76 | London |
| 1971 | Poppy Seeds Poppy Seeds Poppy Seeds, released in 1971, was the second and final studio album from Vancouver, British Columbia band The Poppy Family. The album has yet to be released on modern formats and remains a rare vinyl.... |
16 | — |
Compilation albums
| Year | Album | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | A Good Thing Lost A Good Thing Lost A Good Thing Lost was released in 1996 in Canada and later on iTunes in America with a second cover. The compilation was essentially The Poppy Family's greatest hits collection but also included a number of Susan Jacks' solo recordings. The album featured an alternate mix of "There's No Blood In... |
W.A.R. |
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart Positions | Album | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAN | CAN AC | CAN Country | US Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
|||
| 1968 | "Beyond the Clouds" | 75 | — | — | — | Which Way You Goin' Billy? |
| 1969 | "What Can the Matter Be" | 53 | — | — | — | |
| "Which Way You Goin' Billy?" | 9 | 5 | — | 2 | ||
| 1970 | "That's Where I Went Wrong" | 9 | 8 | — | 29 | |
| "Shadows on My Wall" | — | 7 | — | — | ||
| 1971 | "I Was Wondering" | 27 | 3 | — | 100 | Poppy Seeds |
| "Where Evil Grows" | 6 | 2 | — | 45 | ||
| "No Good to Cry" | 8 | 8 | — | 84 | ||
| 1972 | "I'll See You There" | — | 1 | — | — | |
| "Good Friends" | 10 | 1 | — | — | ||
| "Tryin'" | — | — | 12 | — |