"Big Girls Don't Cry" is a song written by Bob Crewe and Bob Gaudio and originally recorded by the Four Seasons. It hit number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 on November 17, 1962, and, like its predecessor "

Sherry Sherry ( es, jerez ) is a fortified wine made from white grapes that are grown near the city of Jerez de la Frontera in Andalusia, Spain. Sherry is produced in a variety of styles made primarily from the Palomino grape, ranging from light versi ...

", spent five weeks in the top position but never ranked in the ''Billboard'' year-end charts of 1962 or 1963. The song also made it to number one, for three weeks, on '' Billboard'''s

Rhythm and Blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

survey. It was also the quartet's second single to make it to number one on the US R&B charts.

Background

According to Gaudio, he was dozing off while watching the John Payne/

Rhonda Fleming Rhonda Fleming (born Marilyn Louis; August 10, 1923 – October 14, 2020) was an American film and television actress and singer. She acted in more than 40 films, mostly in the 1940s and 1950s, and became renowned as one of the most glamoro ...

/ Ronald Reagan movie ''

Tennessee's Partner ''Tennessee's Partner'' is a 1955 American Western film directed by Allan Dwan, written by Graham Baker, D. D. Beauchamp, Milton Krims, and Teddi Sherman, with uncredited rewrites by Dwan, and starring John Payne, Ronald Reagan, Rhonda Fl ...

'' when he heard Payne's character slap Fleming in the face. After the slap, Fleming's character replied, "Big girls don't cry." Gaudio wrote the line on a scrap of paper, fell asleep, and wrote the song the next morning. However, the line does not appear in that film. According to Bob Crewe, he was dozing off in his Manhattan home with the television on when he awoke to see Payne manhandling Fleming in '' Slightly Scarlet,'' a 1956 film noir based on a James M. Cain story. The line is heard in that film. Like "Sherry", the lead in "Big Girls Don't Cry" is sung mostly in falsetto. With this song, the Four Seasons became the first rock-era act to hit the number one spot on the Hot 100 with their first two chart entries (their first single, "Bermuda"/"Spanish Lace", did not appear on any '' Billboard'' chart in 1961).

Personnel

Partial credits. ;The Four Seasons * Frankie Valli – lead vocals, handclaps *

Tommy DeVito Tommy DeVito may refer to: * Tommy DeVito (American football), American football quarterback * Tommy DeVito (musician) (1928–2020), American musician and singer, member of The Four Seasons * Tommy DeVito, a character in the film ''Goodfellas'' pl ...

– harmony and backing vocals, guitar, handclaps *

Nick Massi Nick Massi (born Nicholas E. Macioci, September 19, 1927 – December 24, 2000) was an American bass singer, songwriter, and bass guitarist for The Four Seasons. Biography Born in Newark, New Jersey, Nicholas "Massi" Macioci was first taught to ...

– harmony and backing vocals, bass, handclaps * Bob Gaudio – harmony and backing vocals, piano, handclaps ;Additional musician and production staff *

Panama Francis David Albert "Panama" Francis (December 21, 1918 – November 13, 2001) was an American swing jazz drummer who played on numerous hit recordings in the 1950s. Early life Francis was born in Miami, Florida, on December 21, 1918. His father was ...

– drums * Bob Crewe – producer *

Bruce Swedien Bruce Swedien (; April 19, 1934 – November 16, 2020) was an American recording engineer, mixing engineer and record producer. He was widely known for his work with Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, Paul McCartney and Barbra Streisand. Swedien fi ...

– engineer

Charts

Weekly charts

All-time charts

References

External links

Lyrics of this song
{{authority control 1962 songs 1962 singles Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles The Four Seasons (band) songs Songs written by Bob Crewe Songs written by Bob Gaudio Vee-Jay Records singles Song recordings produced by Bob Crewe