"The Part Where I Cry" is a song written by country music singer

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, actor and activist. He was one of the main figures of the outlaw country subgenre that developed in the late 1960s as a reaction to the conservative restr ...

. After moving to Nashville in 1960, leveraged by the success of his songwriting, and helped by

Harlan Howard Harlan Perry Howard (September 8, 1927 – March 3, 2002) was an American songwriter, principally in country music. In a career spanning six decades, Howard is credited with writing more than 4,000 songs, over 100 of which reached country mus ...

, Nelson was signed by

Joe Allison Joe Marion Allison (October 3, 1924 – August 2, 2002) was an American songwriter, radio and television personality, record producer, and country music business executive. Allison won five BMI performance awards for hit singles he wrote and a ...

Liberty Records Liberty Records was a record label founded in the United States by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Alvin Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous rev ...

. In August 1961, his first session with the label was held at

Bradley Studios Quonset Hut Studio is the nickname given to Bradley Studios, an independent recording studio complex established in 1954 in Nashville, Tennessee by brothers Harold and Owen Bradley. The first commercial recording studio facility in what would la ...

, where he recorded the song. It was later coupled with " Mr. Record Man" on the B-side. While it failed to chart, the single received airplay.

Background

During his time in Houston, Nelson sold his original " Family Bible", that turned into a hit for

Claude Gray Claude Gray Jr. (January 25, 1932 – April 28, 2023), nicknamed "The Tall Texan", was an American country music singer and guitar picker best known for his 1960 hit " Family Bible", which has been covered by many different artists. Gray's other ...

. Despite that he was not credited as the songwriter on the record, he took advantage of the recognition that the song granted him, and moved to Nashville in 1960. While he joined

Ray Price Noble Ray Price (January 12, 1926 – December 16, 2013) was an American country music singer, songwriter, and guitarist. His wide-ranging baritone is regarded as among the best male voices of country music, and his innovations, such as prope ...

's band as a bass player, his songs became hits for other artists, including "

Funny How Time Slips Away "Funny How Time Slips Away" is a song written by Willie Nelson and first recorded by country singer Billy Walker. Walker's version was issued as a single by Columbia Records in June 1961 and peaked at number 23 on the Hot C&W Sides chart befor ...

" ( Billy Walker), " Pretty Paper" (

Roy Orbison Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist known for his distinctive and powerful voice, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. Orbison's most successful periods were ...

), and, most famously, "

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" by

Patsy Cline Patsy Cline (born Virginia Patterson Hensley; September 8, 1932 – March 5, 1963) was an American singer. One of the most influential vocalists of the 20th century, she was known as one of the first country music artists to successfully Cross ...

. Leveraged by his prominence as a songwriter in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

, and after his friend

forwarded his songs to producer

, Nelson was signed to

in 1961.

Recording and release

Nelson entered his first session for Liberty on August 22, 1961, at

in Nashville, Tennessee. Nelson was backed by guitarists Kelso Herston,

Ray Edenton Ray Quarles Edenton (November 3, 1926 – September 21, 2022) was an American guitarist and country music session musician. Early life Ray Edenton was born into a musical family on November 3, 1926, and grew up near Mineral, Virginia. His fi ...

(who also played fiddle),

Harold Bradley Harold Bradley may refer to: Others * Harold Bradley (guitarist) (1926–2019), American country and pop guitarist * Harold Bradley (pianist) (1906–1984), Canadian pianist * Harold Bradley (trade unionist) (1895–1979), British trade union leade ...

and

Grady Martin Thomas Grady Martin (January 17, 1929 – December 3, 2001) was an American session guitarist in country music and rockabilly. A member of The Nashville A-Team, he played guitar on hits such as Marty Robbins' "El Paso", Loretta Lynn's " Coal M ...

; drummer

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, pianist

Hargus "Pig" Robbins Hargus Melvin Robbins (January 18, 1938 – January 30, 2022), known by his nickname "Pig", was an American session keyboard player. He played on records for many artists, including Patsy Cline, Dolly Parton, Connie Smith, Patti Page, Loretta Ly ...

, bassist Joe Zinkan and the

Anita Kerr singers Anita Jean Kerr (''née'' Grilli; October 13, 1927 – October 10, 2022) was an American singer, arranger, composer, conductor, pianist, and music producer. She recorded and performed with her vocal harmony groups in Nashville, Los Angeles, and ...

. During the night, until the early hours of the following day Nelson recorded "The Part Where I Cry", to be the first single release with the label. Allison was not pleased with the results of the session. The single was coupled with the B-side " Mr. Record Man", recorded during a September session in California. Released in November 1961, ''

Billboard's ''Billboard'' (stylized in lowercase since 2013) is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events and styles related to the ...

'' review predicted a "moderate sales potential". Despite it failed to chart, the song received good airplay on radio stations. It was later included on Nelson's debut album '' ...And Then I Wrote''.

Footnotes

References

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Part Where I Cry, The 1961 singles Willie Nelson songs Songs written by Willie Nelson 1961 songs Liberty Records singles Song recordings produced by Joe Allison