Already a soulful wonder even in his teenage years, with Alex Chilton in place as lead singer The Box Tops were set up for success. But because Chilton was still developing as a songwriter, they needed material in the early days to make success happen.
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Thanks to songwriters Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham, Chilton was able to sink his teeth into a winner in “Cry Like a Baby,” a 1968 smash that just missed the top of the charts. And it was a moment of utter frustration from the two writers that helped the song come into existence.
Tops of the Charts
The Box Tops formed as a five-man outfit in Memphis, Tennessee, circa 1967. Their organizing member was drummer Danny Smythe. But it was Alex Chilton who sang lead. Even though he wasn’t even out of his teens when the band formed, he already proved capable of gritty, beyond-his-years vocals.
Those vocals came into play right off the bat, as the band scored that rarest of feats: a debut U.S. No. 1 single. That came courtesy of “The Letter,” a tale of separation and reunion written by Wayne Carson Thompson that was sung by Chilton with the intensity of someone who’d been through that scenario a million times over.
While “The Letter” put The Box Tops on the map, it also meant expectations were high for more of the same. Their follow-up song, “Neon Rainbow,” did pretty well (No. 24), but it obviously didn’t reach the heights of its predecessor. That’s why Box Tops producer Dan Penn called up his buddy Spooner Oldham to see if they could do a little better the next time around.
Having a Good “Cry“
Penn and Oldham sequestered themselves in the studio one evening in the hopes of coming up with something special. But nothing materialized. After working into the wee hours, they finally decided to give it a break. They headed to a nearby restaurant to order some breakfast and lick their wounds.
An exhausted and frustrated Oldham told his friend how sorry he was that he wasn’t of any help, and that he felt so bad that he could “cry like a baby.” Penn suddenly shot up and asked Oldham to repeat what he’d just said. Inspired, the two headed back to the studio and created “Cry Like a Baby” on the spot.
The final recording was spiced up with an electric sitar part played by Reggie Young, who wasn’t a member of the band but had proven himself in the session musician realm. With Chilton giving a typically animated vocal, “Cry Like a Baby” achieved what Penn and Oldham had hoped, as it shot all the way to No. 2 on the Billboard charts.
Behind the Lyrics of “Cry Like a Baby”
Getting a title is just part of the equation. Penn and Oldham still had to fill in the blanks with the rest of the lyrics, and they accomplished that feat swimmingly. They set up a scenario where the narrator realizes the magnitude of the love he’s squandered, and it overwhelms him: When I think about the good love you gave me / I cry like a baby.
He hints at how he mistreated her in the past: I know now that you’re not a play thing / Not a toy or a puppet on a string. His existence without her is desolate: Every road is a lonely street. A chance encounter with her only makes things worse: Today we passed on the street / And you just walked on by / My heart just fell to my feet.
Were it not for the Bobby Goldsboro tearjerker “Honey,” “Cry Like a Baby” would have given The Box Tops their second No. 1. No big deal, because this short-lived band made quite an impact in its time together, thanks to a one-of-a-kind vocalist in Chilton giving life to the words of ace songwriters like Penn and Oldham.
Photo by Don Paulsen/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
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