BILLY JOE ROYAL - LOVE HAS NO RIGHT

LOVE HAS NO RIGHT

BILLY JOE ROYAL

SONGWRITERS: BILLY J. ROYAL; NELSON LARKIN & RANDY SCRUGGS

COUNTRY: U. S. A.

ALBUM: TELL IT LIKE IT IS

LABEL: ATLANTIC MUSIC

GENRE: COUNTRY

YEAR: 1989

 

            Billy Joe Royal (April 3, 1942 – October 6, 2015) was an American pop and country singer. His most successful record was "Down in the Boondocks" in 1965.

               Born in Valdosta, Georgia to Clarence Royal and Mary Sue Smith, and raised in Marietta, Georgia, Royal performed at the Georgia Jubilee in Atlanta during his teens. He formed his own rock and roll band, and became a local star at the Bamboo Ranch in Savannah in the late 1950s and early 1960s, where his singing style was influenced by African-American performers, including Sam Cooke.

        Royal was a friend of performer and songwriter Joe South, and recorded what was intended as a demo of South's song "Down in the Boondocks". The recording was heard at Columbia Records, who offered Royal a singing contract in 1965 and released his version of the song, produced by South. "Down in the Boondocks" remained his best-known song, reaching number 9 on the Billboard Hot 100, and number 38 in the UK.

            He followed up his initial success with the singles "I Knew You When" (Top 20, 1965) and "Hush" (1967), also written and produced by Joe South. Another South composition, "Yo-Yo," just missed the top 40 in Canada and charted poorly in the U.S. when Royal released it in 1967, but a later remake by The Osmonds was a much greater success. His 1969 single, "Cherry Hill Park", peaked at No. 15 on the Billboard Hot 100. In the 1970s his recording of "Heart's Desire" gained popularity among Northern soul enthusiasts and was regularly played in Northern soul nightclubs.

           By the late 1970s, Royal had become a regular performer in Las Vegas, and also appeared as an actor in movies and on television. His last hit on the US pop charts was in 1978, when his version of "Under the Boardwalk" became a minor hit. However, he reinvented himself in the 1980s as a mainstream country star, and had his first hit on the country music chart in 1984 with "Burned Like a Rocket", released on the Atlantic label. His other country hits included "I'll Pin a Note on Your Pillow" (1987), "Tell It Like It Is", and "Till I Can't Take It Anymore" (both 1989). His successes on the country charts continued until the early 1990s.

               Royal experienced a second comeback during the 2000s due to regular airplay on "oldies" radio stations. His music was further exposed to younger generations through a movement known as The Beat Army, an online music forum based on Facebook which is operated by author and music producer Paul Collins. Royal continued to tour regularly, performing concerts at casinos, music festivals, and clubs in North America, Japan, and throughout Europe. His set lists included a mixture of songs representing multiple genres from the 1960s onwards. He also played Robert Ally in the indie Western film Billy the Kid (2013), co-starring country singer Cody McCarver.

            Royal died in his sleep on October 6, 2015 in Morehead City, North Carolina.

           "Love Has No Right" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Billy Joe Royal. It was released in May 1989 as the second single from the album Tell It Like It Is. The song reached number 4 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart. It was written by Royal, Nelson Larkin and Randy Scruggs.

 

Your hand was shakin', my heart was breakin'

On that lonely night we said goodbye

I knew it was over, but as you touched my shoulder

And I saw that teardrop fall from your eye

 

Love has no right

To let us fall then break our hearts

Love has no right

To push us together then pull us apart

Love has no right

 

I sleep without you but I dream about you

And nothin' could ever take that from me

And though I can't touch you I'll always love you

Now and forever I'll still believe

 

That love has no right

To let us fall then break our hearts

Love has no right

To push us together then pull us apart

Love has no right

 

Love has no right

Love has no right

Love has no right.