Fool to Cry

"Fool to Cry"
Single by The Rolling Stones
from the album Black and Blue
B-side
Released16 April 1976
StudioMusicland, Munich, Germany
GenreSoul
Length4:08 (single edit)
5:04 (album version)
LabelRolling Stones
SongwriterJagger/Richards
ProducerThe Glimmer Twins
The Rolling Stones singles chronology
"Out of Time"
(1975)		 "Fool to Cry"
(1976)		 "Hot Stuff"
(1976)
Official video
"Fool to Cry" on YouTube

"Fool to Cry" is a ballad by English rock band the Rolling Stones from their 1976 album Black and Blue.

The song was written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. Mick Taylor had just left the band and the Stones were left without a lead guitarist. The recording of Black and Blue acted as a sort of audition for new guitarists, which led to session man Wayne Perkins playing guitar on this track.[citation needed] Jagger plays electric piano and Nicky Hopkins performs acoustic piano on the track, with Hopkins also playing the string synthesizer.

Released as the lead single off Black and Blue in 1976, "Fool to Cry" reached No. 6 on the UK Singles Chart and No. 10 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The full track lasts just over five minutes, whereas the single (as well as edits, this also fades out at the end) lasts just over four minutes.

Cash Box called this "a departure for the Stones", saying that "the beat is relaxed, vocals are laid over a foundation of Fender Rhodes and guitar, all played with funky style" and also praised Jagger's falsetto vocals and Richards' "searing guitar riffs". Record World said that "this ballad rivals 'Angie' in its soul drenching qualities" and noted that there were "superb performances all around".

"Fool to Cry" was the only track from Black and Blue to appear on the Stones' career-spanning greatest hits albums Forty Licks in 2002 and GRRR! in 2012.

It is currently the most performed track off Black and Blue. The song made its debut on the band's 1976 European tour and was performed often. The song would not be played again until the Voodoo Lounge Tour and was played sporadically on the band's Bridges to Babylon and No Security tours. The song would not be played again until 2018 during the No Filter tour.

Personnel

According to the authors Philippe Margotin and Jean-Michel Guesdon:

The Rolling Stones

Additional personnel

Technical

Chart performance

Covers

Alternative rock band Ween recorded a cover of the song during the sessions for their 1996 album 12 Golden Country Greats which was subsequently submitted for consideration for the soundtrack to the Uma Thurman feature Beautiful Girls. However it was rejected in favour of the band's own "I'll Miss You". The recording is on the 2026 expanded reissue of 12 Golden Country Greats. Lena Dunham, creator and star of HBO's Golden Globe-winning show Girls, commissioned Tegan and Sara to cover the Rolling Stones' "Fool to Cry" for the show's official soundtrack. American singer and songwriter Taylor Dayne covered the song for her 2008 studio album Satisfied.

References

  1. ↑ "Rolling Stones : Fool to Cry". Dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 8 June 2025.
  2. 1 2 Janovitz, Bill. "Fool to Cry – Song Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
  3. ↑ "Singles Reviews > Picks of the Week" (PDF). Cash Box. Vol. XXXVII, no. 48. 17 April 1976. p. 31. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  4. ↑ "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. 17 April 1976. p. 1. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Fool to Cry by The Rolling Stones Song Statistics | setlist.fm". www.setlist.fm. Retrieved 30 July 2026.
  6. ↑ Margotin, Philippe; Guesdon, Jean-Michel (2022). The Rolling Stones All the Songs: The Story Behind Every Track (Expanded ed.). New York City: Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers. p. 468. ISBN 978-0-7624-7908-5.
  7. ↑ "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – CHART POSITIONS PRE 1989". Australian-charts.com. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
  8. ↑ "The Rolling Stones – Fool To Cry" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
  9. ↑ "CKLG TOP 30 JUNE 2, 1976". Vancouvertop40radio.com. Retrieved 5 May 2026.
  10. ↑ "Top Singles. Volume 25, Issue 14 (1976-07-03)". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
  11. ↑ "Fool to Cry | IRMA". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
  12. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 21, 1976" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
  13. ↑ "The Rolling Stones – Fool To Cry" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
  14. ↑ "The Rolling Stones – Fool To Cry". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
  15. ↑ "TOP Hebdo". Top-france.fr.
  16. ↑ "The Rolling Stones – Fool To Cry". VG-lista. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
  17. ↑ Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  18. ↑ "Official Singles Chart on 5/6/1976 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
  19. ↑ "Black and Blue – Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 14 June 2013.
  20. ↑ "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending JUNE 12, 1976". Cash Box. Archived from the original on 2 September 2012.
  21. ↑ "Cash Box" (PDF). Worldradiohistory.com. 1 May 1976. Retrieved 5 May 2026.
  22. ↑ "Cash Box" (PDF). Worldradiohistory.com. 15 May 1976. Retrieved 5 May 2026.
  23. ↑ "The Singles Chart" (PDF). Record World. 12 June 1976. p. 15. ISSN 0034-1622. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  24. ↑ "Image : RPM Weekly". RPM. Vol. 26, no. 14 & 15. 8 January 1977. Retrieved 15 May 2017.
  25. ↑ https://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/down-with-the-brown-a-ween-thread.1057690/page-56#post-38953724
  26. ↑ Khanna, Vish (18 January 2013). "Girls' Lena Dunham asked Tegan and Sara to cover the Rolling Stones". CBC Music. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
  27. ↑ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Taylor Dayne – Satisfied". AllMusic. Retrieved 16 May 2016.