Don't Cry Daddy

"Don't Cry Daddy" is a 1969 song recorded by Elvis Presley written by Mac Davis. The song was paired with "Rubberneckin'" and both peaked at number six in the United States Billboard Hot 100 chart in January 1970.^[1]

"Don't Cry Daddy"
Single by Elvis Presley
B-side	"Rubberneckin'"
Released	November 11, 1969 (1969-11-11)
Recorded	January 15, 1969
Studio	American Sound, Memphis
Genre	Country
Length	2:43
Label	RCA Victor
Songwriter(s)	Mac Davis
Producer(s)	Chips Moman
Elvis Presley singles chronology
"Suspicious Minds" / "You'll Think of Me" (1969) "Don't Cry Daddy" (1969) "Kentucky Rain" (1970)

Concept

The song takes place in the mind of the husband of the wife and mother who is no longer present (it is not stated in the lyrics whether her absence is due to death, marital separation, divorce or abandonment). The characters are the father, one of his unnamed children, and a young child named Tommy. The unnamed child begs the father not to cry, saying they will find a new "mommy", and urges the father to play with the children as they did in happier times.

Background

The song was written by Scott Davis (also known as Mac Davis) and recorded by Elvis Presley on January 15 and 21, 1969 and released as a single. The rhythm track was laid down on 15 January and Elvis' vocal overdub on the 21 January. The song reached number 6 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100^[2] and number 8 in the UK Singles Chart.^[3] "Don't Cry Daddy" was Presley's first entry in the top 40 of Billboard's Country chart in nine years.

Live recordings were made during his second season in Las Vegas during February 1970 and several of these have been released. However, during the dinner show at the International Hotel on August 13, 1970, he recorded a version that led seamlessly into "In the Ghetto".^[4]

Chart performance

Chart (1969-70)	Peak position
UK Singles (The Official Charts Company)	8
U.S. Billboard Easy Listening[5]	3
U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles[6]	13
US Billboard Hot 100	6

Duet

In 1997, Lisa Marie Presley recorded a duet of "Don't Cry Daddy" and made a video of it, where she sings it with her father. This video was presented on August 16, 1997, at the tribute concert that marked the 20th anniversary of Elvis' death. The recording has Elvis' original vocal, to which new instrumentation and Lisa Marie's vocals were added. The studio version of this duet, however, was unreleased at that time.