The song was the B-side of the 45 rpm record, with "Mississippi Delta" on the A-side, but radio disc jockeys frequently played "Ode to Billie Joe". The song started as #71 on the "Billboard" Hot 100 on August 5, 1967, and reached the #1 spot on August 26. Total sales over the years have been approximately three million copies. "Billboard" rated the record as #3 for the year 1967 and years later, "Rolling Stone" magazine rated it among the top 500 songs of all time.