This song was written by Naomi Ford and Lee Hazlewood (actually written by Hazlewood and credited under Ford, his wife), and then it was a hit as first performed by Sanford Clark with Al Casey on the guitar. 1956: #5 on the United States Rhythm and Blues Chart; #7 on the U. S. Pop Chart; #14 on the U. S. Country Chart. It was later ranked #42 by Billboard Magazine on its 1956 Top 50 Singles! This song was also later recorded and performed by other artists, including Elvis Presley and “The Animals.” According to reports, Elvis tried at first to emulate and imitate Clark, instead of the other way around as was usual at that time, with folks trying to impersonate the Presley sound!
Sanford Clark was a “rockabilly” star and was born in October of 1935 in Tulsa, Oklahoma—but was raised in Phoenix, Arizona, where he began performing early in the 1950s. (He spent time in the U. S. Air Force and formed a band overseas.) After this hit, Clark recorded other songs (“Calling All Hearts,” “The Big Lie,” and “Bad Case of You”—used in various television and film productions) in the ‘50s and ‘60s but never had another “major” success; so, he moved on from the music business to “construction.” As time passed, he did create his own music label—Desert Sun Records— and recorded music for this company. (“The Fool” has been used in movies, such as Win It All and Dallas Buyer’s Club.)
Keith Richards of “The Rolling Stones” cites Clark as one of his chief influences and especially his (Clark’s) song, “Son of a Gun.”
He passed on this month of the “coronavirus” while undergoing treatments for cancer in Joplin, Missouri, at age 85 years, leaving to survive him a wife and several children.
“Gather round me buddies/Hold your glasses high/And drink to a fool/A crazy fool who told his baby goodbye.”
“Too late he found out he loves her/So much he wants to die/But drink to a fool/A crazy fool who told his baby goodbye.”
“He needs her, he needs her so/He wonders why he let her go-oo-oo.”
“She’s found a new love, buddy/He’s a lucky guy/So drink to the fool, ‘cause I’m that fool who told my baby goodbye/My baby goodbye/Who told my baby, who told my baby…..”
To the best of my knowledge, I think I heard this song while playing “pingpong” with my cousin, Doug, while we listened to a stack of “45 r. p. m. records” that belonged to his older brother, Allen, in Okarche, Oklahoma, around 1960-1962. I think that is why this “obituary release” caught my attention!
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