#10: Mrs. Bluebird by Eternity’s Children
City: Guelph, ON
Radio Station: CJOY
Peak Month: August 1968
Peak Position in Guelph ~ #8
Peak position in Vancouver ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #69
YouTube: “Mrs. Bluebird”
Lyrics: “Mrs. Bluebird”
Eternity’s Children was a sunshine pop group from Cleveland, Mississippi. They originated as a folk group known as the Phantoms. The Phantoms began in 1965 with two Delta College students, composed of vocalist/keyboardist Bruce Blackman and drummer Roy Whittaker (born in Biloxi, MS, in 1947). Soon, the group added lead guitarist Johnny Walker, rhythm guitarist Jerry Bounds, and bassist Charles Ross III (born in 1948 in Greenville, MS). The band played locally within the college and gained a sizable local following. They released a single titled “Workin’ Tired” on the local Flash label before relocating to Biloxi, Mississippi, in 1966. In Biloxi, the group became a house band in a basement nightclub of the Biloxi Hotel. The band, when they were not the lead performance, would back musicians like Charlie Rich and B.J. Thomas. In the same year, the band added folk singer Linda Lawley (born in Biloxi, MS, in 1949) and changed their name to Eternity’s Children.