Cry Baby Cry
Encyclopedia
"Cry Baby Cry" is a song by The Beatles
, written by John Lennon
, from their 1968 album The Beatles
.
how he got the words from an advertisement.
quit during the recording of "Cry Baby Cry", though his departure was precipitated by Lennon and McCartney's obsessions over the recording of both "Revolution
" and "Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da", respectively, and the overall tensions of the White Album sessions. Emerick would not work with the Beatles again until the session for "The Ballad of John and Yoko" nine months later.
:
which features lead vocals by Paul McCartney
. Though the song has no official name, it is popularly known as "Can You Take Me Back" (after the primary lyric of the song). The hidden track is an improvised jam recorded by the band during a 16 September 1968 session for "I Will".
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
, written by John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
, from their 1968 album The Beatles
The Beatles (album)
The Beatles is the ninth official album by the English rock group The Beatles, a double album released in 1968. It is also commonly known as "The White Album" as it has no graphics or text other than the band's name embossed on its plain white sleeve.The album was written and recorded during a...
.
Composition
Demos of the song indicate that Lennon wrote the song in late 1967. The original lyrics were "Cry baby cry, make your mother buy." Lennon described to biographer Hunter DaviesHunter Davies
Edward Hunter Davies is a prolific British author, journalist and broadcaster, perhaps best known for writing the only authorised biography of The Beatles.- Early life :...
how he got the words from an advertisement.
Recording
Engineer Geoff EmerickGeoff Emerick
Geoffrey Emerick is an English recording studio audio engineer, who is best known for his work with The Beatles' albums Revolver, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, The Beatles and Abbey Road...
quit during the recording of "Cry Baby Cry", though his departure was precipitated by Lennon and McCartney's obsessions over the recording of both "Revolution
Revolution (song)
"Revolution" is a song by The Beatles written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. The Beatles released two distinct arrangements of the song in 1968: a hard rock version as the B-side of the single "Hey Jude", and a slower version titled "Revolution 1" on the eponymous album The Beatles...
" and "Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da", respectively, and the overall tensions of the White Album sessions. Emerick would not work with the Beatles again until the session for "The Ballad of John and Yoko" nine months later.
Personnel
Per Ian MacDonaldIan MacDonald
Ian MacCormick was a British music critic and author, best known for Revolution in the Head, his forensic history of The Beatles which borrowed techniques from art historians, and The New Shostakovich, a controversial study of the Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich...
:
- John LennonJohn LennonJohn Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
– lead vocal, acoustic guitarAcoustic guitarAn acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
, pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, organOrgan (music)The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with... - Paul McCartneyPaul McCartneySir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
– bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - George HarrisonGeorge HarrisonGeorge Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...
– lead guitarLead guitarLead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure... - Ringo StarrRingo StarrRichard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
– drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, tambourineTambourineThe tambourine or marine is a musical instrument of the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zils". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, though some variants may not have a head at all.... - George MartinGeorge MartinSir George Henry Martin CBE is an English record producer, arranger, composer and musician. He is sometimes referred to as "the Fifth Beatle"— a title that he often describes as "nonsense," but the fact remains that he served as producer on all but one of The Beatles' original albums...
– harmoniumHarmoniumA harmonium is a free-standing keyboard instrument similar to a reed organ. Sound is produced by air being blown through sets of free reeds, resulting in a sound similar to that of an accordion...
Cover versions
- Ramsey LewisRamsey LewisRamsey Emmanuel Lewis, Jr. is an American jazz composer, pianist and radio personality. Ramsey Lewis has recorded over 80 albums and has received seven gold records and three Grammy Awards so far in his career.-Biography:...
recorded an instrumental version of this song on his 1968 album Mother Nature's SonMother Nature's Son (album)Mother Nature’s Son is a studio album recorded by Ramsey Lewis which was released on Cadet Records. The album was produced by Charles Stepney and consisted of ten instrumental songs which were originally recorded on the album The Beatles, also known as The White Album.-Cover Art:The album cover was...
. - Fool's Garden covered the song on their 1991 debut album Fool's GardenFool's Garden (album)Fool's Garden is the first album by German pop rock band Fool's Garden, released in 1991. It is the one of two albums where singer Peter Freudenthaler and guitarist Volker Hinkel share lead vocals equally...
. - Punk rock band SamiamSamiam-Biography:Samiam was formed in late 1988 after the breakup of the Gilman club mainstay Isocracy. Their first show was in January 1989 with Christ on Parade. They released records through New Red Archives and Hopeless Records in the US and Burning Heart Records in Europe. In the mid-'90s, the band...
from Berkeley, California recorded a version of this song on their 1997 album You Are Freaking Me OutYou Are Freaking Me OutYou are freaking me out is the fifth album from the American band, Samiam. Released in 1997 on Burning Heart Records and Ignition Records.-Track listing:-Personnel:*Aaron Rubin *James Brogan...
. - Bardo PondBardo PondBardo Pond are an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1991, and who are currently signed to London based label Fire Records. The current members are Michael Gibbons , John Gibbons , Isobel Sollenberger , Clint Takeda , Jason Kourkonis , and Aaron Igler...
recorded a space rockSpace rockSpace rock is a subgenre of rock music; the term originally referred to a group of early, mostly British, 1970s progressive and psychedelic rock bands such as Hawkwind and Pink Floyd, characterised by slow, lengthy instrumental passages dominated by electric organs, synthesizers, experimental...
-influenced version on their 2006 album Ticket CrystalsTicket CrystalsTicket Crystals was the seventh album by Bardo Pond. It was released on June 6, 2006. The album features a cover of The Beatles' song "Cry Baby Cry".-Track listing:#"Destroying Angel" - 9:38#"Isle" - 11:13#"Lost Word" - 6:29...
. - Katie MeluaKatie MeluaKetevan "Katie" Melua is a British-Georgian singer, songwriter and musician. She moved to Northern Ireland at the age of eight and then to England at fourteen. Melua is signed to the small Dramatico record label, under the management of composer Mike Batt, and made her musical debut in 2003...
covered this song in 2006 and released it on her maxi-single "Spider's WebSpider's Web (song)"Spider's Web" is the sixth single of Georgian born songstress Katie Melua and is the third single from her album Piece by Piece. The title song was written during the lead up to the Iraq War and is said to be about finding the difference between right and wrong.In the video for this single, there...
". - Throwing MusesThrowing MusesThrowing Muses is an alternative rock band formed in 1981 in Newport, Rhode Island, that toured and recorded extensively until 1997, when its members began concentrating more on other projects. The group was originally fronted by two lead singers, Kristin Hersh and Tanya Donelly, who both wrote the...
covered this song on the B-side of their "Not Too Soon" single. - The jam bandJam band-Ambiguity:By the late 1990s use of the term jam band also became ambiguous. An editorial at jamband.com suggested that any band of which a primary band such as Phish has done a cover of be included as jam band. The example was including New York post-punk band Talking Heads after Phish performed...
PhishPhishPhish is an American rock band noted for its musical improvisation, extended jams, and exploration of music across genres. Formed at the University of Vermont in 1983 , the band's four members – Trey Anastasio , Mike Gordon , Jon Fishman , and Page McConnell Phish is an American rock band...
covered this song first on Hampton Comes AliveHampton Comes AliveHampton Comes Alive is a six-disc live album by the American rock band Phish, released on November 23, 1999, by Elektra Records. It is the band's third live album and the first time complete live Phish concerts were released in their entirety...
, and later (with most of the songs on the White Album) on Live Phish Volume 13Live Phish Volume 13Live Phish Vol. 13 was recorded live at the Glens Falls Civic Center in Glens Falls, New York on Halloween night, 1994. It was released on October 29, 2002, along with Volume 14, Volume 15, and Volume 16....
.
"Can You Take Me Back"
The song is followed on the album by an unrelated and unlisted trackHidden track
In the field of recorded music, a hidden track is a piece of music that has been placed on a CD, audio cassette, vinyl record or other recorded medium in such a way as to avoid detection by the casual listener...
which features lead vocals by Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
. Though the song has no official name, it is popularly known as "Can You Take Me Back" (after the primary lyric of the song). The hidden track is an improvised jam recorded by the band during a 16 September 1968 session for "I Will".