"The Fool" is a song written by Naomi Ford and Lee Hazlewood and performed by Sanford Clark. It reached #5 on the U.S. R&B chart, #7 on the U.S. pop chart, and #14 on the U.S. country chart in 1956.^[1]

Al Casey played guitar on the record ^[2] and it was ranked #42 on Billboard magazine's Top 50 singles of 1956.^[3]

Other charting versions

• The Gallahads, reaching #62 on the U.S. pop chart in 1956.^[4]
• Don Gibson, hitting #22 on the U.S. country chart in 1978.^[5]

Other versions

• Edna McGriff in 1956; her single did not chart.^[6]
• Joe Seneca on his 1956 EP.^[7]
• Mac Wiseman on his 1960 album Mac Wiseman Sings 12 Great Hits.^[8]
• Johnny Burnette on his 1961 album Johnny Burnette Sings.^[9]
• Bob Luman put out a single in 1962; it did not make the charts.^[10]
• Bonnie Guitar's single in 1963 did not chart.^[11]
• Johnny Kidd & The Pirates' recorded two versions - the first was in the beat group style in 1964, for an album that was subsequently aborted. This track has been issued on various compilations since the 1980s.
• Chris Farlowe in 1965; this did not make singles charts ^[12]
• Johnny Kidd & the Pirates as the B-side to their 1966 single "Send for That Girl".^[13]
• Bobby Bare on his 1970 album This is Bare Country.^[14]
• Roger Miller on his 1970 album 1970.^[15]
• Elvis Presley on his 1971 album Elvis Country (I'm 10,000 Years Old).^[16]
• The Animals (credited as The Original Animals) released a version on their 1977 reunion album Before We Were So Rudely Interrupted.^[17]
• Robert Gordon as the B-side to his 1977 single "Endless Sleep".^[18]
• Mano Negra on their 1991 album King of Bongo.^[19]
• Bedlam on their 1999 compilation album Anthology.^[20]
• The Iveys on their 2017 live album Badfinger Origins: The Iveys Anthology, Volume 1 – Live at The Empire, June 7, 1966, Neath, South Wales.^[21]

In popular culture

• Clark's version was featured in the 1990 film Book of Love.