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A Big Hunk o' Love

Rating:
4.5 / 5

Words & Music: Aaron Schroeder Sid Wyche

Hey baby, I ain't askin' much of you
No no no no no no no no baby, I ain't askin' much of you
Just a big-a big-a hunk o' love will do

Don't be a stingy little mama
You're 'bout to starve me half to death
Well you can spare a kiss or two and
Still have plenty left, no no no
Baby, I ain't askin' much of you
Just a big-a big-a hunk o' love will do

You're just a natural born beehive
Filled with honey to the top
Well I ain't greedy baby
All I want is all you got, no no no
Baby, I ain't askin' much of you
Just a big-a big-a hunk o' love will do

I got wishbone in my pocket
I got a rabbit's foot 'round my wrist
You know I'd have all the things these lucky charms could bring
If you'd give me just one sweet kiss, no no no no no no no
Baby, I ain't askin' much of you
Just a big-a big-a hunk o' love will do

Recordingdate: 1958/06/10, first released on: single (album)

Musicians

Musicians who contributed to the first recording of A Big Hunk o' Love:

(guitar)
(guitar)
(guitar)
(bass)
(drums)
(piano)
(vocals)
(vocals)
(vocals)
(vocals)
(bongos)

Availability

Find available albums with A Big Hunk o' Love.

bluesboy wrote on March 23, 2008
Although I prefer the sound as I heard it on the jukeboxes and the fairgrounds in the late fifties to the so-called remastered versions which loose a lot of their orignal power, this is still an absolute favorite of mine and probably the wildest thing Elvis ever did. When played loud enough it can still bring shivers down my spine.
ElvisDayByDay wrote on April 15, 2008
Classic Rock And Roll, just the way I like it!
Ton Bruins wrote on April 15, 2008
Love the Live versions of this song ! He always treated this song the way it should.
OtisBlue22 wrote on April 15, 2008
It seems that by '72, his voice no longer had the rough edge that was so integral to his early work. Instead it was more of a smooth shout. But those June '58 sessions spawned Presley's most-exciting all-out rock 'n' roll cuts. The sound is so ghostly that, in my mind, it rivals the Sun sessions, and Elvis sounds so strange that my Dad -- whose used to hearing me play Elvis by now -- didn't know who it was. It was definitely a harbinger of the surf scene to come (just listen to Hank Garland's hot & blue guitar licks) but ultimately served as Elvis' final salute to the fabulous 50's.
old shep wrote on April 15, 2008
One of the few rock 'n' roll songs that Elvis recorded in the 1950s, that he still seemed to have some affection for in the 1970s. He appeared to enjoy doing this song which usually resulted in a splendid performance.
Steve V wrote on April 15, 2008
My favorite Elvis rock & roll song from my favorite Elvis recording session.
Andy_Fish wrote on April 15, 2008
Along with i got stung and Hard Headed Woman, this has to be the wildest rock n roll Elvis recorded. Classic rock n roll.
Lex wrote on April 15, 2008
Ultimate Rock'n'Roll, with all capitals!
JerryNodak wrote on April 18, 2008
My favorite Elvis rock 'n' roll song from the '50s.
Tony D. wrote on May 10, 2008
Great song, but why oh why does it not get rated along with tracks such as "Great balls of fire", "Johnny B.Goode" and "Rock around the clock". Maybe it is just TOO wild and radio unfriendly?
Natha wrote on May 11, 2008
This is what Elvis is all about. Rough, tough, wild, pure Rock 'n' Roll. Top notch RnR. Even the later versions are conveying that message, though he (and we) got older. A great song to reminisce or for newcomers to get the essence of the fifties revolution!
Matthias Kuenzer wrote on May 11, 2008
My favourite Elvis song when I was six, I remember dancing around to it. Still my favourite 50s Elvis rock song along with Jailhouse Rock.
OtisBlue22 wrote on May 11, 2008
Easily one of Elvis' best songs. In my top 10. His best rock 'n' roll song?
Elvisonmymind wrote on July 23, 2008
I prefer the 1972 version. Smoothly and fast and nice performances of Glenn D. and James Burton too.
Bob W. wrote on March 06, 2009
One of the best rock song ever recorded by Elvis. Love all the versions by him.
ttwiise wrote on March 21, 2009
An all time classic! raunchy vocals, thumping bass, great guitar and piano breaks. Sounds best played on the original 45 mix. I'm all for DSD and the like but for me the recent releases of this track lack punch
Deano1 wrote on March 05, 2010
A+ rock and roll delivered the way it was supposed to be...a little mean, a little raunchy, a little risque' and with a hard punch. Elvis always took care of it in concert too and gave slightly softer, but still enjoyable performances. When you look back at the #1 hits in 1959, it is amazing that this is the only true rock and roll song among them. 5 stars without a doubt!
1 BILLION SOLD wrote on June 08, 2010
LOVE IT! Plain n simple, just love it!! Even though the 70's versions were a bit "softer" around the edges, you've got to understand that when you have a song like this or Jailhouse Rock, you can do it much more "coarse" in the studio than on stage because if you're on tour, and doin as many shows as Elvis did ALWAYS, you would ABSOLUTELY lose your voice for future shows if he was to do them like the sudio versions. Remember, Elvis averaged around 150 concerts a year for 7 years in a row!! I still really like the 70's versions.
Pedro Nuno wrote on June 08, 2010
This is Elvis the Pelvis! Can't get enough of it (50's version)! Some outtakes are even more powerful that the single release, like Take 4, with a brutal drums work form DJ, and a crazy guitar licks from the outstanding Hank Garland, Elvis best guitar player ever! My feelings about this song are reflected in its lyrics "I ain't greedy baby... All I want is all you got."
shoesuedeblues wrote on June 08, 2010
Among the last of Elvis' 1950s true rock 'n' roll greats. Clearly ignored by the rock pundits as to it's merits as a classic along side of Eddie Cochran's Summertime Blues, Buddy Holly's That'll Be the Day and Jerry Lee's Great Ball's of Fire.
Marty_TCE wrote on June 08, 2010
'You know I'd have all the things these lucky charms could bring. If you'd give me just one sweet kiss, no no no no no no no'. Absolute gold...5 stars all the way
bajo wrote on June 08, 2010
Heavy rock before it was even invented! Simply one of his greatest! And he even did a decent live rendition of it also in the 70's! One of the few!
JLpResLey wrote on July 21, 2010
A fantastic rocker and an outstanding performance by Elvis. It seems to be on everyone´s top ten list and it´s on mine too, for sure. The original is perfect, but I also like the outtakes and the live versions in the seventies as well, they were never throwaways.
Great Dane wrote on July 21, 2010
Also a favorite of mine,i like the original mono recording on vinyl(45) the most,not the "Electronically Reprocessed Stereo" or some CD's i heard. 5 stars all the way,i like the 70's versions also.
Jim Hoff wrote on July 21, 2010
This was THE Elvis song, that got me hooked on The King. In 1963 me and my family had to stay for 3 months with my grand parents in their house. I had to share a room with my uncle, he was 18, and he and my other 2 uncles were playing Elvis songs al the time. One day, when the guys were playing 'Big Hunk', my eldest uncle was dancing on the chairs. Unfortunately he lost balance, fell over and stumbled down the stairs. He broke his arm and his collar bone, and that impressed me so much, that I just had to hear more of Elvis.
Lpool kid wrote on October 07, 2011
without doubt one of elvis's greatest recordings and should be in every elvis fans top 10. 5 stars doesn't seem enough it's that good.
derekd wrote on November 09, 2011
Great R'n R recording. Indeed, IMO the last great one by Elvis. Yes, we did get Elvis doing R'nR with songs such as Little Sister, Rock a hulu Baby, Burning Love etc, but Elvis the rocker never came back froim the army, he'd moved on and for a few years he kept pace with the new trends before getting lost in movie contracts. That said, he returned to his roots in the '68 Tv special and proved once again that he could still do R 'n R. Then onto Vegas, and when he wanted a good 'rock' number sometimes he'd choose guess what. 'A big hunk 'o Love', & it still sounded great.
freedom101 wrote on November 09, 2011
One of the countless reasons why Elvis is "The King".
TCB1974 wrote on November 09, 2011
One of my all time favorites. Absolutely fantastic, one of the few 50s songs that even live in the 70s was great. Long live rock and roll! Five stars.
Gorse wrote on September 16, 2012
How this song is not given 5 stars by all is baffling as I see it as one of the greatest rock songs recorded by Elvis. Totally wild and uninhibited and the last of its kind before the start of a new era 2 years later.
ElvisSacramento wrote on October 28, 2012
This is such a sensational, exciting, energetic, groovy, electrifying and catchy song and Elvis easily has the very best renditions of it. It rightfully was a #1 hit for Elvis here in the United States. It's one of seventeen songs that Elvis recorded that was written by Aaron Schroeder.
sugartummy wrote on February 22, 2013
an exciting song, almost as good in the seventies, as it was in '59!
Cruiser621 wrote on April 07, 2013
When this was released as a single back in 1959, I loved it. Now I can't stand it. It's much better during his concert appearances during the 1970's.
cookingfat wrote on July 29, 2013
The 1950s were special to me, I grew up in that period of musical history and like many other kids eagerly looked forward to the latest Elvis record. This is a great song from an equally excellent session.
jwedwards835 wrote on October 06, 2014
I give it the same number of stars that are in the universe.
TheMemphisFan wrote on July 13, 2015
How the 1959 single of this rocker is still certified only as "Gold" is baffling. Surely it sold enough copies over the years to be certified "Platinum" or "Multi-Platinum". Many of Elvis' singles are no doubt under-certified because of the careless and/or dishonest bookkeeping done by RCA Records. SONY should continue to look at these issues and give full credit to Elvis' recording career that it so deserves. A Big Hunk o' Love = 5 stars!
ElvisSacramento wrote on February 18, 2016
This uptempo Rock 'N' Roll song is a true masterpiece and Elvis' renditions of it have always been such a joy to listen to. The other sixteen songs that Elvis recorded that were co-written by Aaron Schroeder were "Any Way You Want Me (That's How I Will Be)", "Apron Strings", "Dixieland Rock", "Don't Leave Me Now", "First In Line", "Good Luck Charm", "Got A Lot O' Livin' To Do", "I Got Stung", "I Was The One", "In Your Arms", "It's Now Or Never", "Santa, Bring My Baby Back (To Me)", "Shoppin' Around", "Stuck On You", "Young And Beautiful" and "Young Dreams".
atomic powered poste wrote on February 19, 2018
This song kicks a×s. Dynamic performance of elvis and the band, the song itself is pure rock'n'roll, but more sophisticated than earlier recordings in the same genre. A true classic.
TheMemphisFan wrote on June 07, 2020
Originally recorded in the studio by Elvis in June 1958... revived by Elvis live in 1972, and by RCA in 1973...
FM wrote on June 08, 2020
a lot of Elvis' recordings are way under certified like this one, he should be the leaders in all certification including MANY Diamond certification.
jaques marcello wrote on June 08, 2020
I like the aloha version (14.01.73)
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