The Box Tops

The Box Tops are an American rock band formed in Memphis, Tennessee in 1967. They are best known for the hits "The Letter", "Cry Like a Baby", and "Soul Deep" and are considered a major blue-eyed soul group of the period. They performed a mixture of current soul music songs by artists such as James & Bobby Purify and Clifford Curry; pop tunes like "A Whiter Shade of Pale" by Procol Harum; and songs written by their producers, Dan Penn, Spooner Oldham, and Chips Moman. Vocalist Alex Chilton later fronted the power pop band Big Star and performed as a solo artist.The Box Tops' music combined elements of soul music and light pop. Their records are prime examples of the styles made popular by Moman and Penn at American Sound Studio in Memphis. Many of their lesser known Top 40 hits, including "Neon Rainbow", "I Met Her in Church", and "Sweet Cream Ladies, Forward March", are considered minor classics. As rock critic Lester Bangs wrote in a review of the group's Super Hits album, "A song like 'Soul Deep' is obvious enough, a patented commercial sound, yet within these strictures it communicates with a depth and sincerity of feeling that holds the attention and brings you back often."The Box Tops began as The Devilles, playing in Memphis. By January 1967 the group was composed of founding member Danny Smythe (drums, background vocal) along with newer arrivals John Evans (guitar, keyboards, background vocal), Alex Chilton (lead vocal, guitar), Bill Cunningham (bass guitar, keyboards, background vocal; son of Sun Records artist Buddy Blake Cunningham and brother of B.B. Cunningham Jr., lead vocalist for 1960s Memphis group The Hombres); and Gary Talley (lead guitar, electric sitar, bass, background vocal). They soon changed their name to The Box Tops to prevent confusion with another band who was recording at the time, The DeVilles of New York.As the Box Tops, they entered the studio under the guidance of producer Dan Penn to record Wayne Carson Thompson's song "The Letter". Though under two minutes in length, the record was an international hit by September 1967, reaching the Hot 100's number-one position for four weeks, selling over four million copies, earning a gold disc, and receiving two Grammy Award nominations. During October 20–27, 1967, "The Letter" and The Hombres' "Let It Out (Let It All Hang Out)" were 1-2 on the WLS (AM) Silver Dollar Survey, marking a rare quinella involving two brothers of the same family (the Cunningham brothers), each in a different top 40 act.After "The Letter" the band released "Neon Rainbow", another tune written by Thompson and produced by Penn. An album called The Letter/Neon Rainbow appeared in November 1967. The Box Tops released three albums over a nine-month period from late 1967 to mid 1968. Some of the group's instrumental tracks were performed by session musicians like Reggie Young, Tommy Cogbill, Gene Chrisman, and Bobby Womack at American Sound Studio. However, the actual group members performed on a number of their recordings, including "The Letter", and on all live performances.

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.