Shannon followed up with "Hats Off to Larry", another big hit, and the less popular "So Long, Baby", another song of breakup bitterness. "Little Town Flirt", released in 1962 reached #12 in 1963 as did the album of the same name. After these hits, Shannon was unable to keep his momentum in the US, but became a sensation in England. In 1963, he became the first American artist to record a cover version of a Beatles song with "From Me to You".
Shannon returned to the charts in 1964 with "Handy Man", "Do You Wanna Dance", "Keep Searchin'", and "Stranger in Town" (1965), with the latter two songs themed about flight from pursuit in a dangerous world. A 1966 chart offering was Shannon's cover of the Rolling Stones' "Under My Thumb". In the late 1960s after a dry spell of hits, he turned to production. In 1969 he discovered a group called Smith and arranged their hit "Baby It's You". He then produced his friend Brian Hyland's million seller "Gypsy Woman" in 1970.
In the 1970s, Shannon's career slowed down greatly; the hates and fears he had turned into art in his earlier songs were turning into full-blown mental illness, and he was self-medicating with alcohol. He finally put the bottle down in 1978, and he was able to return to mainstream audiences with "Sea of Love" in the early 1980s from the album "Drop Down And Get Me" produced by Tom Petty.
In December, 1983, Shannon served as Grand Marshal of the Coopersville, Michigan Christmas parade and also performed a benefit concert at Coopersville High School.
Shannon enjoyed a resurgence in audience interest after re-recording a portion of his song "Runaway" (with new lyrics) as the theme for the television program Crime Story. Producer Michael Mann felt that this was one of the definitive songs of the era in which the program was set. Some fans of the show prefer the sharper lyrics ("Some live, and others die") as an alternate to the original words.
On 8 February 1990, while working on a comeback album with Jeff Lynne of Electric Light Orchestra, Shannon fatally shot himself in the head with a .22 calibre rifle. His wife thought his death might have been related to his recent use of the prescription drug Prozac. The album was released after his death and titled "Rock On!".
Shannon is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and his pioneering contribution to the genre has been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame.
She Cried
Del Shannon Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I didn't love her anymore
She cried (she cried)And when I told her
Her kisses were not like before
She cried (she cried)I thought that our romance was over and done
But to her it had just begun And when I told her
Another girl had caught my eye
She cried (she cried)And when I kissed her
She cried (she cried) (sha-la-la-la sha-la-la) And when I told her
I didn't love her anymore
She cried (she cried)
The lyrics to Del Shannon's song She Cried speaks about a heartbroken lover who is telling his significant other that he doesn't love her anymore. The lyrics continue to explain how the girl reacts to his statements and how she cries at every point. The lines further describe how he attempted to move on and date another girl, but this didn't stop his former lover from crying. The lyrics attribute the female's tears to her romantic intentions not being over yet.
The lyrics appear to be about a breakup with an emotional aftermath. The girl being spoken to doesn't want the relationship to end, and the guy's declaration that he doesn't love her any longer is heartbreaking. She knows that he is moving on and even trying to date other girls, as it was evident in the lyrics, but she still cannot help breaking down in tears. It appears that the girl is not ready to let go of the relationship and she is taking the news of the end of their romance badly.
The lyrics of She Cried give insights into the emotional turmoil of a breakup, specifically on the woman's side. The lyrics suggest that the girl is not over the relationship and might want to rekindle the love with the man despite the fact that he does not seem to be interested in continuing the relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
And when I told her
I didn't love her anymore
She cried (she cried)
When I broke up with her and told her that I no longer had romantic feelings for her, she cried uncontrollably
And when I told her
Her kisses were not like before
She cried (she cried)
When I told her that her affection had changed and was lacking something from before, she also cried
I thought that our romance was over and done
But to her it had just begun
I believed that our relationship had run its course and that it was time to move on, but she saw it as the start of something new
And when I told her
Another girl had caught my eye
She cried (she cried)
When I admitted to looking at other options for love, she became emotional and cried
And when I kissed her
A kiss that only meant goodbye
She cried (she cried) (sha-la-la-la sha-la-la)
When I kissed her and said goodbye with it, she cried out and mourned the end of our relationship
And when I told her
I didn't love her anymore
She cried (she cried)
When I confirmed once again that my love for her was now over, she cried even harder
Contributed by Gabriel C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Juampi
The lyrics... I think I won't ever do that (Telling someone I don't love her anymore) I can't imagine the situation I mean:
1- I don't believe in love but I believe in trust and abetting and people who feel that between them getting together even marrying and well...everything.
2-I can undestand that cohabitation can damage relationships but ... I mean when other person cries because of you it is an evidence that you are important for her ad I'd do whatever to save the relationship in that case. I definitely would not kiss her and dissapear lol.
...idk what do you think about that?
PD: I post this because I've seen comments saying what a song, so true and I wonder if that tragic scene is a normal thing of your everyday life XD.
William Oxendine
God what talent , He needs to be in the top ten of all times.
tvtoyman
Del sings it extremely well. I saw Del at an Oldies concert in Georgia.He sang all his hits including another artists song "Black is Black". He was great!
When the concert ended we were driving away, and a man asked if he could cut in front of our car as he had to catch a plane. It was Del. I said he could if he shook my hand. He did.
Linda Kearney
Beautiful song
coyotesong
Never knew Del covered this song. As usual, he's incomparable. One of the original huge talents of early 60s rock (after the music died according to some).
MillionDollarRedhead®
He absolutely did this song better than others who tried it! I completely agree!
Linda Kearney
How can anyone let alone19 people say this is not a beautiful song sung beautifully.?
Roger Gowland
Del, we hope you know now just how great you were and how loved you are by those you left behind. And the music plays on ...
JimmyPagesSoloLover
Pure Perfection! Del is THE MAN.
englishsinger
I love this song and the versions I've heard by the male singers are all good. Nevertheless, I have to say the Shangri-Las version (renamed 'He Cried') still stands way out as the best for me.
William Oxendine
Del had a talent I don't think he knew how much talent he had