My 100 Favorite Charted Pop Songs: If You Leave Me Tonight I’ll Cry

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This will cause controversy (for those of you who haven’t fallen asleep a third of the way into this countdown ). This was a #1 country song…so what’s it doing on the POP list? I shall explain as I introduce today’s song. If You Leave Me Tonight I’ll Cry - Jerry Wallace To call Jerry Wallace a “country” singer is a stretch. Yes, this song did hit #1 on the country chart in 1972 (while barely cracking the top 40 pop chart). However, this was not my first introduction to Jerry Wallace. His songs like “Primrose Lane,” “In the Misty Moonlight,” and “Shutters and Boards” were definitely NOT country. In fact, he didn’t even have any song of his make the country charts until 13 years AFTER his first single (in 1952). If Linda gets a migraine from listening to this, then I’ll know I was wrong. This song came from Rod Serling’s anthology series Night Gallery, the episode titled “The Tune in Dan’s Cafe.” In the episode, the song is playing on the jukebox and the record repeatedly gets stuck on the line “‘til death.” It was a lot like The Twilight Zone, but in color. I didn’t see the show when the song was a hit (it was on at 10 PM, past my bedtime), but I did have the 45. Needless to say, this song has stuck with me like the needle sticking on the record in the show. If You Leave Me Tonight I’ll Cry Written by Hal Mooney and Gerald Sanford Recorded by Jerry Wallace From To Get to You, 1972 Peak chart position: #38 (also charted #1 country) Today’s country song: “Hang Your Head in Shame” Words from a poet’s pen: