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Please Don't Drag that String Around

Rating:
3.7 / 5

Words & Music: Winfield Scott Otis Blackwell

You like to keep me dangling on a string
'Cause you know without you my life don't mean a thing

So I beg you
Please don't drag that string around, oh no
Well, what if it should break
Oh, tell me, what would I do then
Keep that string up off the ground
Oh, yeah, remember my heart is tied to the other end

Yes, I’m your puppet, my heart is in your hand
One twist of the wrist and I jump to your command

So I beg you
Please don't drag that string around, oh no
Well, what if it should break
What would I do then
Baby, keep that string up off the ground
Oh, yeah, remember my heart is tied to the other end

I feel inside me, as sure as anything
One day I’ll mean more to you than a puppet on a string

So I beg you
Please don't drag that string around, oh no
Well, what if it should break
Oh, tell me, what would I do then
Keep that string up off the ground
Oh, yeah, remember my heart is tied to the other end

Recordingdate: 1963/05/26, first released on: single (album)

Musicians

Musicians who contributed to the first recording of Please Don't Drag that String Around:

(guitar)
(guitar)
(guitar)
(bass)
(drums)
(drums)
(piano)
(vocals)
(vocals)
(vocals)
(vocals)
(vocals)
(shakers)
(vibes)
(sax)

Availability

Find available albums with Please Don't Drag that String Around.

Cher wrote on October 02, 2008
Great song. Okay in all honesty, there are not many Elvis songs that I don't like. He could sing the telephone book to me and I'd be completely and utterly mesmerized. So even if the songs that were recorded during these sessions were not some of Elvis' greatest works according to popular opinion, as always, he gave each song 100% when recording it and they sound mighty good to me now some 45 years later. Amazing.
Deano1 wrote on March 18, 2010
Another of the "Return To Sender" type songs recorded by Elvis in '62 and '63. This one was recorded in May of '63 and released that Summer as the flipside of "Devil In Disguise". This is a pretty good track, but it wasn't really strong enough to get airplay. That seemed to be what RCA wanted, a plesant song that wouldn't get in the way of the A-side's chart success. 3 1/2 stars.
shoesuedeblues wrote on July 26, 2010
A good bubbly number which was very typical of Elvis' non soundtrack material around this time.
TBG wrote on July 26, 2010
I love this song! Too bad it's so short, which is probably why it didn't do that well on the charts. Elvis recorded a lot of great songs during the session that cut "Please Don't.." It's ironic that many of these songs where wasted and used as bonus songs on soundtracks. After all they where far superior to most of the soundtrack material.
JLpResLey wrote on July 26, 2010
Not as strong as some of the other songs recorded around the same time, like Devil In Disguise. I´ve always liked it though, Elvis sings it well and it always seems to put me in a good mood.
JerryNodak wrote on July 26, 2010
It's nothing special, but it's a catchy tune and I've always liked it since I bought the original single back in '63. Oh, how I miss those days when there was actually decent music on the radio.
old shep wrote on July 26, 2010
A bouncy rockaballad as they were known in the far distant sixties, a song I quite like.
derekd wrote on July 26, 2010
Just the right song for a 'b' side to a single. Good enough to keep the Elvis fans happy without taking away from the great 'A' side of the single. It would never have been a big hit, but boy it was better than others used on the movie soundtracks around '63 & '64.
Biffx wrote on August 24, 2011
I think this is a marvellous song. Have never played this song without going straight back and playing it over again. There is something about the way Elvis performed this song making it very infectious.
freedom101 wrote on February 20, 2012
Great pop song!
ElvisSacramento wrote on October 26, 2012
This is such a tremendous, catchy, exciting and electrifying song and it should definitely be way better known than it actually is. It's such a fun song to dance along to as well.
Gorse wrote on January 01, 2013
Never got into this one completely as I don't think it is great material. Fitted well as a B side as it allowed more airplay to Devil In Disguise, which was sound business at the time.
sugartummy wrote on April 21, 2013
A nice rolling little number, that's extremely pleasent to the ear. Sometimes that's all I need.
jwedwards835 wrote on November 25, 2014
A classic!I give it the same amount of stars that are in the heavens.
atomic powered poste wrote on March 06, 2018
Not catchy or remarkable enough to be a hit, but a decent, charming filler. Nive, three stars.
Steve V wrote on March 06, 2018
Good B side to a great A side , but nothing more than that. It fits perfectly into the time frame of 1963, but this sound would already seem dated by the next year. To be honest, its a bit of a let down considering the great writing team behind it. But decent enough for 3 stars.
Cruiser621 wrote on March 06, 2018
A flip side, period; nothing more, nothing less. Similar to "Follow That Dream" rhythm wise.
Miknik7077 wrote on September 10, 2020
Really fun catchy tune that gets overlooked. Maybe it being a little short time wise is the cause. Good song.
Milky White Way wrote on January 24, 2023
Decent catchy tune with a great rhythm but not a classic. I like it and never skip 3.5 stars
DerekH wrote on January 24, 2023
Not one of Elvis' better recordings to be released on a single in the early 60's 3 stars
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