The 7: Classic songs for foolin’ around on April 1

The time for trickery is upon us.

April Fool’s Day – when mischievous practical jokers pull pranks on poor, unsuspecting victims – is Saturday.

Sure, you could take the time to orchestrate an intricate hoax. Or, you could relax with a playlist of songs with “fool” in the title.

These classic songs, from 1940 through the ’60s, describe the follies of the heart – from falling in love to losing or being mistreated by a love.

Note: If you want to listen to more modern “fool”-ish tunes, check out the accompanying breakout box.

“Fools Rush In (Where Angels Fear to Tread)” (1940) – Written by composer Rube Bloom and lyricist Johnny Mercer, this song was especially popular in the 1960s with R&B and pop singers. Ricky Nelson’s rendition was an enormous hit. But it’s also been recorded by Frank Sinatra, Tommy Dorsey, Rosemary Clooney, Glenn Miller, Doris Day, Peggy Lee, Elvis Presley, Lesley Gore, Etta James and, later, Bow Wow Wow, famous for their 1982 remake of the Strangeloves’ 1965 single “I Want Candy.” More recently, She & Him, or Zooey Deschanel and Matt Ward, covered the song, which includes the lines: “Fools rush in where angels fear to tread/And so I come to you, my love, my heart above my head.”

“I’m a Fool to Want You” (1951) – Frank Sinatra wrote and made famous this Rat Pack standard, but it’s been covered by many of America’s greatest voices, including Billie Holiday and, in 2015, Bob Dylan. It begins: “I’m a fool to want you/I’m a fool to want you/To want a love that can’t be true/A love that’s there for others, too.”

“Just Your Fool” (1954) – Recorded in 1953 by Buddy Johnson and His Orchestra and released a year later, this R&B anthem has truly stood the test of time. A popular blues version by Little Walter was released in 1962. More recently, Cyndi Lauper included the song on her 2010 album “Memphis Blues.” And, the Rolling Stones released a version last year.

“Why Do Fools Fall in Love” (1956) – Frankie Lymon of the Teenagers was just 13 when this song was recorded and released. One of early rock ’n’ roll’s wunderkinds, he died at 25 of a heroin overdose. Twenty years later, Halle Berry and Vivica A. Fox starred in a movie with the same name as the song. Today, it remains at No. 314 on Rolling Stone’s “500 Greatest Songs of All Time” list. The Beach Boys, Joni Mitchell and Diana Ross are among those who covered it. It ends: “Why does my heart skip a crazy beat?/For I know it will reach defeat!/Tell me why, tell me why?/Why do fools fall in love?”

“Poor Little Fool” (1958) – “She told me how she cared for me and that we’d never part/And so for the very first time I gave away my heart/Poor little fool, oh yeah, I was a fool, uh huh.” Written by Sharon Sheeley while she was still in high school and made famous by singer Ricky Nelson, this catchy number hit No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100.

“Runnin’ Out of Fools” (1964) – Velvet-voiced Aretha Franklin confronts a philandering lover in this song, repeating “Is that why you got in touch with me? I guess you must be runnin’ out of fools” in the third track on the second side of an album by the same name. Elvis Costello recorded a cover in 1995. And Neko Case covers the song on her 2002 album “Blacklisted,” too.

“Fools Fall in Love” (1966) – Elvis Presley recorded this song in the mid-’60s, but it originated with the Drifters, who first sang it in 1957. Written by the prolific song-writing duo of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, the song is included in the Grammy Award-winning musical revue “Smokey Joe’s Café.” It begins: “Fools fall in love in a hurry/Fools give their hearts much too soon/Just put in two bars of stardust/Just hang out one silly moon.”