"Cry Like a Baby" is a 1968 song written by

Dan Penn Dan Penn (born Wallace Daniel Pennington, November 16, 1941) is an American songwriter, singer, musician, and record producer, who co-wrote many soul hits of the 1960s, including " The Dark End of the Street" and "Do Right Woman, Do Right Man" w ...

and

Spooner Oldham Dewey Lindon "Spooner" Oldham (born June 14, 1943) is an American songwriter and session musician. An organist, he recorded in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, at FAME Studios as part of the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section on such hit R&B songs as Percy S ...

, and performed by

The Box Tops The Box Tops is an American rock band formed in Memphis in 1967. They are best known for the hits " The Letter", " Cry Like a Baby", "Choo Choo Train," and " Soul Deep" and are considered a major blue-eyed soul group of the period. They perfo ...

. The song reached #2 in April 1968 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100

chart A chart (sometimes known as a graph) is a graphical representation for data visualization, in which "the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart". A chart can represent ...

, a position it held for two weeks. It was kept out of the top spot by

Bobby Goldsboro Robert Charles Goldsboro (born January 18, 1941) is an American pop and country singer and songwriter. He had a string of pop and country hits in the 1960s and 1970s, including his signature No. 1 hit "Honey", which sold over 1 million copies in ...

's "

Honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of plants (primar ...

", which stayed at #1 for five weeks. "Cry Like a Baby" also reached #2 on '' Cashbox'' for one week. It stayed on the Hot 100 for 15 weeks and ''Cashbox'' for 14 weeks. It was awarded a

gold disc Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

for selling over one million copies in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

explained in an interview how the song came to be: In contrast with "The Letter", which was played by the band, "Cry Like a Baby" used the Memphis Boys, American Sound Studio's house band, in the instrumental backing, which features session guitarist

Reggie Young Reggie Grimes Young Jr. (December 12, 1936 – January 17, 2019) was an American musician who was lead guitarist in the American Sound Studio house band, The Memphis Boys, and was a leading session musician. He played on various recordings with a ...

playing an

electric sitar An electric sitar is a type of electric guitar designed to mimic the sound of the sitar, a traditional musical instrument of India. Depending on the manufacturer and model, these instruments bear varying degrees of resemblance to the tradition ...

. Author Peter Lavezzoli cites this part as an example of the widespread influence of

Indian classical music Indian classical music is the classical music of the Indian subcontinent. It has two major traditions: the North Indian classical music known as '' Hindustani'' and the South Indian expression known as '' Carnatic''. These traditions were not ...

on rock and pop music in the late 1960s, in the wake of

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

' popularisation of the

sitar The sitar ( or ; ) is a plucked stringed instrument, originating from the Indian subcontinent, used in Hindustani classical music. The instrument was invented in medieval India, flourished in the 18th century, and arrived at its present form ...

in songs such as "

Within You Without You "Within You Without You" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1967 album ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band''. Written by lead guitarist George Harrison, it was his second composition in the Indian classical style, aft ...

", from their 1967 album ''

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' is the eighth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Released on 26May 1967, ''Sgt. Pepper'' is regarded by musicologists as an early concept album that advanced the roles of sound composi ...

''. Oldham played keyboards on "Cry Like a Baby" in addition to co-writing it. Chilton, who sang lead vocals on the song, was only 17 years old at the time of recording. This version of the song also features a female backup chorus, a brass section, a string section, bass guitar, organ, piano, and drums. ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...

'' described the single as an "easy beat rhythm item" that "is loaded with play and sales potential." The original recording is available on numerous compilations, including '' Billboard Top Rock'n'Roll Hits: 1968'', ''Classic Rock'' (Time-Life Music), and ''AM Gold'' (Time-Life Music).

Chart performance

''Billboard'' Hot 100 (15 weeks, entered March 2): Reached #2 (2 weeks) '' Cashbox'' (14 weeks, entered March 2): 62, 44, 35, 23, 15, 7, 5, 4, 4, 2, 3, 11, 35, 42

Kim Carnes Kim Carnes (; born July 20, 1945) is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, she began her career as a songwriter in the 1960s, writing for other artists while performing in local clubs and working as a sess ...

' version of the song spent 8 weeks on

US Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming in ...

in 1980, peaking at #44.

Cover versions

*1968: The Royal Guardsmen, as part of a medley with "The Letter," on the album ''

Snoopy for President ''Snoopy for President'' is an album by The Royal Guardsmen, released by Laurie Records in 1968. Overview A follow-up to ''Snoopy's Christmas'', the song is set in the same year of its release, 1968. Snoopy is tasked by The Great Pumpkin to run ...

'' *1968:

Betty Wright Bessie Regina Norris (December 21, 1953 – May 10, 2020), better known by her stage name Betty Wright, was an American soul and R&B singer, songwriter and background vocalist. Beginning her professional career in the late 1960s as a teen ...

, on the album '' My First Time Around'' (

Atco Atco or ATCO may refer to: Businesses * ATCO, a Canadian diversified company involved in manufacturing, utilities, energy and technologies ** ATCO Electric, a subsidiary of the above company * Atco (British mower company), a mower manufacturing ...

SD-33-260) *1968: Barry St. John, on the album ''According to St. John'' ( Major Minor MMLP43) *1969:

Arthur Alexander Arthur Alexander (May 10, 1940 – June 9, 1993) was an American country soul songwriter and singer. Jason Ankeny, music critic for AllMusic, said Alexander was a "country-soul pioneer" and that, though largely unknown, "his music is the stuff ...

, non-album single *1969:

Cher Cher (; born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Often referred to by the media as the Honorific nicknames in popular music, "Goddess of Pop", she has been described as embodying female ...

, on the album ''

3614 Jackson Highway ''3614 Jackson Highway'' is the sixth album by American singer-actress Cher, released on June 20, 1969 by ATCO. This album was a commercial failure, peaking at 160, although it received praise and positive reviews from the music critics. 3614 Jac ...

'' (Atco SD 33-298) *1969:

Lulu Lulu may refer to: Companies * LuLu, an early automobile manufacturer * Lulu.com, an online e-books and print self-publishing platform, distributor, and retailer * Lulu Hypermarket, a retail chain in Asia * Lululemon Athletica or simply Lulu, ...

, on the album '' Lulu's Album'' (

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region i ...

SCX 6365) *1971:

Petula Clark Petula Sally Olwen Clark, CBE (born 15 November 1932) is an English singer, actress, and composer. She has one of the longest serving careers of a British singer, spanning more than seven decades. Clark's professional career began during the ...

, on the album ''Warm and Tender'' ( Warner WS 1885) *1980:

, on the albums ''

Romance Dance ''Romance Dance'' is the fifth studio album by American singer-songwriter Kim Carnes. It was released on June 2, 1980 by EMI America. It became Carnes' first charting album, peaking at no. 57 on the ''Billboard'' 200. Nine tracks were produced by ...

'' and '' Live at Savoy, 1981'' *2006: Hacienda Brothers *2008:

Kiki Dee Pauline Matthews (born 6 March 1947), better known by her stage name Kiki Dee, is an English singer. Known for her blue-eyed soul vocals, she was the first female singer from the UK to sign with Motown's Tamla Records. Dee is best known for h ...

, on the album ''Cage the Songbird''

References

{{authority control 1968 singles The Box Tops songs Kim Carnes songs Cher songs Lulu (singer) songs Betty Wright songs Songs written by Dan Penn Song recordings produced by Chips Moman Songs written by Spooner Oldham 1968 songs