<h2>RIP Box Tops' Alex Chilton</h2>

A short post to note the passing of Alex Chilton, raspy lead vocalist of of the 1960s pop group the Box Tops, which scored hits with "The Letter," "Soul Deep" and "Cry Like a Baby." He was 59.

Those years probably were Chilton's best in the profession; he went on to perform with Big Star, which brought him less mainstream success but made him a cult hero to other rock musicians, as evidenced by the title of the 1987 Replacements song "Alex Chilton." Big Star's three 1970s albums all earned spots on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest.

"The Letter" undoubtedly was the Box Tops' biggest score. The song, composed by Nashville songwriter Wayne Carson Thompson, reached No. 1 on the Billboard charts in July 1967 and stayed there for four weeks. "The Letter" went on to be recorded by countless musical artists, including the Jefferson Airplane, Joe Cocker (a fabulous rendition) and even a somewhat psychedelic version, in 1969, by the Arbors that charted modestly on Billboard.

"Cry Like a Baby" reached No. 2 in 1968, and the Thompson composition "Soul Deep," in summer 1969, became the Box Tops' last single to hit the Top 40.

Chilton died at a New Orleans hospital after experiencing what appeared to be heart problems.

AOL has more on Chilton and some video and music clips. Click on the link on Chilton's name here.

LYRICS of "The Letter" by Wayne Carson Thompson:

Give me a ticket for an aeroplane
I ain't got time to take a fast train
Lonely days are gone
I'm a-goin' home, because my baby just wrote me a letter

I don't care how much money I’ve got to spend
I’ve got to get back to my baby again
Lonely days are gone
I'm a-goin' home, my baby just wrote me a letter

Well she wrote me a letter, said she couldn't live without me no more
Listen mister, can't you see
I’ve got to get back to my baby once more?
Anyway, yeah, give me a ticket for an aeroplane
I ain't got time to take a fast train
Lonely days are gone
I'm going home, because my baby just wrote me a letter

My baby just wrote me a letter