I'll Cry If I Want To is the debut album of Lesley Gore. The album included her hit singles "It's My Party" and its follow-up, "Judy's Turn to Cry". The album was rushed out after "It's My Party" became a big hit, and the songs are mostly about crying, linking to the hit single's first line "It's my party and I'll cry if I want to", incorporating songs with titles such as "Cry", "Just Let Me Cry" and "Cry and You Cry Alone".[2][3] Besides the hit singles, the album included pop standards such as "Misty", "Cry Me a River" and "What Kind of Fool Am I?".[2] The album reached number 24 on the US Billboard 200.[4][5] Edsel Records released the album on Compact Disc in 2000 in combination with Gore's second album, Lesley Gore Sings of Mixed-Up Hearts.[6] The album was named the 181st best album of the 1960s by Pitchfork.[7]
| I'll Cry If I Want To | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | June 1963 | |||
| Recorded | March 30 – May 21, 1963 | |||
| Studio | Bell Sound Studios, A&R Recording, New York City | |||
| Genre | Pop[1] | |||
| Length | 26:04 | |||
| Label | Mercury | |||
| Producer | Quincy Jones | |||
| Lesley Gore chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from I'll Cry if I Want to | ||||
| ||||
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "It's My Party" | Walter Gold, John Gluck Jr., Herb Weiner, Seymour Gottlieb | 2:20 |
| 2. | "Cry Me a River" | Arthur Hamilton | 2:14 |
| 3. | "Cry" | Churchill Kohlman | 2:05 |
| 4. | "Just Let Me Cry" | Ben Raleigh, Mark Barkan | 2:18 |
| 5. | "Cry and You Cry Alone" | Hilda H. Earnhart | 2:02 |
| 6. | "No More Tears (Left to Cry)" | Mark Barkan, Sandy Baron | 2:23 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7. | "Judy's Turn to Cry" | Beverly Ross, Edna Lewis | 2:23 |
| 8. | "I Understand" | Kim Gannon, Mabel Wayne | 1:53 |
| 9. | "I Would" | Kurt Feltz, Edna Lewis, Werner Scharfenberger | 2:24 |
| 10. | "Misty" | Erroll Garner, Johnny Burke | 2:19 |
| 11. | "What Kind of Fool Am I?" | Leslie Bricusse, Anthony Newley | 1:43 |
| 12. | "The Party's Over" | Jule Styne, Betty Comden, Adolph Green | 2:00 |
Charts
edit| Chart (1963) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200[8] | 24 |
- Singles
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | "It's My Party" | US Billboard Hot 100 | 1 |
| US R&B Singles | 1 | ||
| "Judy's Turn to Cry" | US Billboard Hot 100 | 5 | |
| US R&B Singles | 10 | ||
References
edit- ↑ Pitchfork Staff (August 22, 2017). "The 200 Best Albums of the 1960s". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
...the album epitomizes the sound of early-1960s girl-group pop...
- 1 2 Unterberger, R. "I'll Cry If I Want To". allmusic. Retrieved June 21, 2011.
- ↑ "Album Reviews". Billboard. June 22, 1963. p. 10.
- ↑ "Charts and Awards". allmusic. Retrieved June 21, 2011.
- ↑ Whitburn, J. (2007). The Billboard Albums. Record Research Inc. p. 418. ISBN 978-0-89820-166-6.
- ↑ Westergaard, S. "I'll Cry If I Want To/Sings of Mixed-Up Hearts". allmusic. Retrieved June 21, 2011.
- ↑ "The 200 Best Albums of the 1960s | Pitchfork". pitchfork.com. August 22, 2017. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
- ↑ "Lesley Gore Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 22, 2026.