The Box Tops is an American rock band formed in Memphis in 1967. They are best known for the hits "The Letter", "Cry Like a Baby", "Choo Choo Train," and "Soul Deep" and are considered a major blue-eyed soul group of the period. They performed a mixture of current soul music songs by artists such as James & Bobby Purify and Clifford Curry; pop tunes such as "A Whiter Shade of Pale" by Procol Harum; and songs written by their producers, Dan Penn, Spooner Oldham, and Chips Moman. Vocalist Alex Chilton went on to front the power pop band Big Star and to launch a career as a solo artist, during which he occasionally performed songs he had sung with the Box Tops.

The Box Tops' music combined elements of soul music and light pop. Their records are prime examples of the styles made popular by Moman and Penn at American Sound Studio in Memphis. Many of their lesser known Top 40 hits, including "Neon Rainbow", "I Met Her in Church", and "Sweet Cream Ladies, Forward March", are considered minor classics. As rock critic Lester Bangs wrote in a review of the group's Super Hits album, "A song like 'Soul Deep' is obvious enough, a patented commercial sound, yet within these strictures it communicates with a depth and sincerity of feeling that holds the attention and brings you back often."
Bill Cunningham
Born January 23, 1950, Memphis Tennessee.
Plays bass (both bass guitar and upright bass), cello, piano, and organ.
Bill’s father was a SUN recording artist and worked with Sam Phillips at SUN studio intermittently from 1953-61. He first recorded under the name Buddy Cunningham and later under the name Buddy Blake. Buddy was inducted into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame as the first percussionist on an Elvis Presley record. That session at SUN took place September 10, 1954 and included the following songs:
‘Tomorrow Night, Blue Moon Of Kentucky, I’ll Never Let You Go (Little Darlin’), Just Because, Satisfied, Good Rockin’ Tonight, I Don’t Care If The Sun Don’t Shine’
Musicians: Elvis Presley, Scotty Moore, and Bill Black; Doug Poindexter – guitar, Buddy Cunningham – drum sounds
Bill’s older brother, B.B. Cunningham Jr., was a member of The Hombres and sang and co-wrote the hit ‘Let It All Hang Out.’ He played bass for Jerry Lee Lewis for almost 15 years.
Bill played various instruments in a number of early 1960s Memphis bands, before joining the group that eventually became The Box Tops. One of these bands, The Jynx, included Chris Bell (who later founded Big Star). Between The Jynx and The Box Tops Bill played with another Memphis group called The Jokers, which included Richard Rosebrough who later would play on a number of Big Star, Alex Chilton, and Chris Bell recordings.
Bill remained a member of the Box Tops until September of 1969, when he decided to return to school to get a music degree in performance (upright bass).
Though Bill virtually vanished from the pop music scene after he left the Box Tops, he rose in the ranks of classical musicians, playing in many symphony orchestras and in ballet and opera companies throughout the Midsouth while attending university. During this period he backed in performance artists as diverse as Eddy Arnold, Van Cliburn, Isaac Hayes, the Romeros (Spanish guitarists), and Dionne Warwick.
For a brief period Bill became a resident of Germany and worked, studied, and traveled in many European countries.
During work on his Masters Degree in music (back in the United States), Bill worked with Chris Bell at Ardent Studio, providing the string arrangement for Chris’ “You And Your Sister. ” Around this period, Bill competed with numerous bassists from across the country for an opening in the White House orchestra in Washington, DC. He won and moved to Washington. In the mid to late 1970s, he played for most White House dinners, receptions, and special quest performances for Presidents Ford and Carter and for many State Department celebrations for Secretaries of State Kissinger and Vance. During this period Bill played for numerous dignitaries, including the Queens of England and Holland, as well as various heads of states from around the world. Also, during this period Bill recorded sound tracks for a number of TV specials, including some with Jim Henson and the Muppets.
Throughout his classical music career he played with many of the world’s best known performers and conductors. For example, Bill’s last classical-music public performance was backing Itzhak Perlman and Pinchas Zukerman in a White House celebration at the signing of the Camp David Accord ( the Middle East peace agreement signed by Sadat, Begin, and Carter).
In 1979, Bill was studying in Philadelphia with Roger Scott, the principal bassist of the Philadelphia Philharmonic, when he decided to change professions. This shift led to a MBA (Master of Business Administration) degree in international business and to a profession that assists with U.S. bilateral and multilateral trade issues.
In 1996, Bill played the principal role in reforming the original Box Tops. He played bass and shared responsibility for keyboard parts with John on the ‘Tear Off’ album. Bill toured with the group from 1997-2010, holding down the bottom end on stage with his bass lines.
In 2015, Bill teamed up with Gary to bring back The Box Tops’ music to audiences, playing bass and sharing vocal responsibilities.