The Poppy Family
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The Poppy Family was a late 1960s-early 1970s Canadian pop musical group based in Vancouver, British Columbia. A product of the "Hippie generation," they brought a cleaner cut image, capitalizing on the vocal talents and good looks of Susan Jacks. Some have described the group as Canada's equivalent of the Carpenters in that both groups featured a female vocalist and specialized in catchy but ultimately melancholy middle-of-the-road pop tunes (although, unlike the Carpenters, which were a brother-sister duo, the Poppy Family was fronted by a husband-wife team).
Managed and produced by Susan's husband Terry Jacks (vocals/guitar), with Craig McCaw (guitar) and Satwan Singh (drums), the group recorded two albums, from which came their best known songs "Which Way You Goin' Billy?" (No. 1 in Canada and No. 2 on the U.S. Billboard charts) and the Top 30 tear-jerker "That's Where I Went Wrong" (both 1970). Both singles were also major Top 10 hits on Billboard's Adult Contemporary (at the time labeled Easy Listening) chart. The Poppy Family placed a few other songs on the U.S. and Canadian charts through 1972, including "Where Evil Grows" (a top five hit on influential Windsor, Ontario Top 40 station CKLW and No. 45 on the U.S. national Billboard chart), "I Was Wondering," and "Good Friends?".
At their career peak, Terry and Susan performed "Which Way You Goin' Billy?" on Bobby Darin's 1970 television variety special, The Darin Invasion. This item features Linda Ronstadt and is The Poppy Family's only appearance available commercially - formerly on VHS and now - on DVD.
The album Which Way You Goin' Billy? earned the group two 1970 Gold Leaf (Juno) Awards, one for best-produced middle-of-the-road album, and the other in the best-produced single category for the album's title track.
The Poppy Family disbanded in 1973. Both Terry and Susan Jacks pursued solo careers; Terry scored an international No. 1 smash with "Seasons In The Sun," and Susan also released several albums but scored only one minor hit in the U.S., "You're A Part Of Me" (No. 90 in 1975).
