Poppy Family

The Poppy Family was a late 1960s and early 1970s Canadian pop music group, based in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Managed and produced by Terry Jacks, with featured vocalist Susan Jacks (tambourine/bean pod) and musicians Craig McCaw (guitar/sitar) and Satwant Singh (tablas/drums), the group recorded two albums, 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); and their other Canadian hits including «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), all written by Terry Jacks. 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. Other charted songs in Canada include «Beyond the Clouds» (#75 in 1968), «What Can The Matter Be?» (#53 in 1969), «I Was Wondering» (#10 in 1971, also US #100) and «No Good To Cry» (#8 in 1972).

At their career peak, Terry and Susan Jacks performed «Which Way You Goin’ Billy?» on Bobby Darin’s 1970 television variety special, The Darin Invasion. The special also featured a young Linda Ronstadt performing an early hit, «Long Long Time». They also appeared on numerous other variety shows including Rollin’ On The River with Kenny Rogers, the Bobby Vinton Show and The George Kirby Special.

The «Which Way You Goin’ Billy?» single earned the group a combined total of four 1970 Gold Leaf (Juno) Awards for best performance, best production, most popular song and most sales for a single. 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.

The Poppy Family disbanded in 1973 when Susan Jacks ended their five and a half year marriage, the same year their solo albums were released - Terry Jacks’s Seasons in the Sun and Susan Jacks’s I Thought of You Again.