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Hound Dog

Rating:

Words & Music: Jerry Leiber/ Mike Stoller

You ain't nothin' but a hound dog
cryin' all the time.
You ain't nothin' but a hound dog
cryin' all the time.
Well, you ain't never caught a rabbit
and you ain't no friend of mine.

When they said you was high classed,
well, that was just a lie.
When they said you was high classed,
well, that was just a lie.
You ain't never caught a rabbit
and you ain't no friend of mine.

Recorded: 1956/07/02, first released on single

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derekd (profile/ contact) wrote on Dec 24, 2009report abuse

Elvis at his r'n r peak. He never sounded so wild on record again. This along with 'Don't be Cruel' must be the greatest double sided hit in history. Yes, it really is that good. So, that's the way it was?

Deano1 (profile/ contact) wrote on Dec 24, 2009report abuse

What can you say about this one? The lyrics are silly, down right insulting and if a man sings it to a woman, it could be taken as him calling her something really bad...HOWEVER! This song is everything rock n' roll was ever meant to be. It is dynamite on vinyl. Someone said that with this song, Elvis truly arrived and I could not agree more. With a flipside of "Don't Be Cruel", this was Elvis' most successful single and one could argue his best in the terms of quality as well. Two classics that I never get tired of and they still sound as fresh as the first time I heard them. "Rock Around The Clock" was the first rock and roll smash single, "Hound Dog" made rock and roll explode onto the scene.

JerryNodak (profile/ contact) wrote on Dec 24, 2009report abuse

Back in the day when I was a kid gowing up I loved this song. But now if I never heard this song again it wouldn't bother me at all. As a song I rate it 5 stars. It is amazing. But every time I hear it on the radio or it comes up on a hits comp I change the station or hit the skip button. I am sik of this song (and the flip side, too.)

Dixieland Rock (profile/ contact) wrote on May 31, 2009report abuse

My very first Elvis 45 rpm. Wow, what a rocker that still packs a punch. I would love to hear all of the alternate takes of this gem IF they still existed. The 1961 Concert in Hawaii version of "Hound Dog" is one of my favorite "live" versions of this track. The Milton Show version is probably the best live version though.

Ruthie (profile/ contact) wrote on May 31, 2009report abuse

In defense of the middle class of America, at the Hound Dog time I was a very young middle class person in love with rock & roll, especially Elvis. I still love rock & roll (true rock & roll) to this day & of course, still very much love Elvis & his music. However, if I never heard Hound Dog again I would never miss it. Surprising to me, I am not the only one who feels this way. But, it will forever be identified as his greatest song and I can understand that.

KingKreole (profile/ contact) wrote on May 30, 2009report abuse

It is a killer. An amazing vocal, like Jailhouse Rock. If you ever come across those folks who like to make the claim that Elvis "stole" his music from African-Americans (a ridiculous claim) this song may come up. They will say, that's a Big Mama Thornton song! To which you can respond: and it was written by two white Jewish guys. This song, like everything he did, he made it his own and imbued it with a power and soul all his own! This is a classic! And the version from the Milton Berle Show might be even better than the RCA version.

dgirl (profile/ contact) wrote on May 30, 2009report abuse

Heartbreak Hotel introduced Elvis but Hound Dog made him 'arrive' and made him a household name. Great Scotty Moore solo & DJ drumming. Probably the best 2 sided single in music history. Thank goodness we have some footage of him performing this in 1956.

sitdown68 (profile/ contact) wrote on May 30, 2009report abuse

the milton berle version is awesome. shaky legs and...Forrest Gumps Ma...;-)

Danny_F (profile/ contact) wrote on May 30, 2009report abuse

One of the greatest rock songs ever and probably Elvis's greatest. Also has my favourite solo by Scotty. Nobody seems to mention this performance on the 2nd Milton Berle show which in my opinion is better than the one on any Ed sullivan show and the best performance of any 50's tv show. This performance for me defined Rock n Roll and made everyone else realise they were fighting for 2nd place.

OtisBlue22 (profile/ contact) wrote on May 6, 2008report abuse

Those few seconds of 'Hound Dog' on Tupelo's Own Elvis Presley are perhaps the most riveting and tantalizing of Elvis' life as recorded on tape. Between 1956-61, for this song as his finale, he pulled out all the stops.

old shep (profile/ contact) wrote on May 6, 2008report abuse

Elvis' anthem,the raw Presley vocal,Scotty's guitar and the machine gun speed of DJ's drum sticks, really shook the 50s"music establishment" to it's foundations. After this who could be bothered listening to How Much Is That Doggie In The Window, and the plethora of slush dished out by middle aged singers to a middle aged and middle class audience.

Steve V (profile/ contact) wrote on May 6, 2008report abuse

What can you say? Its Hound Dog, an explosion of rock & roll in under 3 minutes. To see it performed on the Ed Sullivan show in 1956 was one of the moments in life you never forget.

My boy, my boy (profile/ contact) wrote on May 6, 2008report abuse

I was born in 1967 and I can only imagine what impact such a song could have made back in 1956. For the listeners of that era, it must have sounded like a ton of bricks compared to the tunes played on the radio back then. A definitive classic !

Natha (profile/ contact) wrote on Apr 8, 2008report abuse

This was the first song I consciously heard of Elvis. Growing up in the early sixties of last century that was quite something as my peers in those days never listened to 'those old songs'. Nevertheless it happened and that experience struck my mind to such an extend that I became an ardent fan. It has thrilled me throughout my life (as does the whole fifties repertoir). Listening to the late seventies versions of it always makes me relive that very first experience.