Go to main content

Lawdy Miss Clawdy

Rating:
4.6 / 5

Words & Music: Lloyd Price

Well lawdy, lawdy, lawdy miss clawdy
Girl you sure look good to me
But please don't excite me baby
I know it can't be me

Well as a girl you want my money
Yeah but you just won't treat me right
You like to ball every morning
Don't come home till late at night

Oh gonna tell, tell my mama
Lord, I swear girl what you been to me
I'm gonna tell everybody that I'm down in misery

So bye, bye, bye, baby
Girl, I won't be comin' no more
Goodbye little darlin' down the road I'll go
So, bye, bye, bye baby
Girl, I won't be comin' no more
Goodbye little darlin' down the road I'll go

Recordingdate: 1956/02/03, first released on: Elvis Presley (EP)

Musicians

Musicians who contributed to the first recording of Lawdy Miss Clawdy:

(guitar)
(guitar)
(bass)
(drums)
(piano)

Availability

Find available albums with Lawdy Miss Clawdy.

old shep wrote on April 09, 2008
A fantastic Elvis track originally written and recorded by Lloyd Price.This is a true rock 'n' roll gem, I love the 1956 release and the various out takes that have appeared over the years.
FLASHBOY wrote on May 23, 2008
One of my favorite Elvis song live or in studio i just love it!
My boy, my boy wrote on May 23, 2008
Unlike some other 50's hits, Elvis never seemed to give it the "bored" treatment even when he was doing it later on in the 70's concerts, neither do I get tired of hearing the different versions he made of that song through the years !
sitdown68 wrote on May 23, 2008
I remember the day I first heard its raw and unpolished version while watching the NBC-TV Special sometime in the late 70's. The best, rawest, most honest and greatest version ever, I still "do it" sitting around with friends the way he played it back then. It was the essential session, the original unplugged session of all those about to come in times of MTV. Presley also pioneered this genre. When it comes to a long car ride I have a CD-R with me, traveling back in time Burbank, June 1968...A real gem of a song.
Steve V wrote on May 23, 2008
The best ever version of this song by anyone including the original. One of my favorites from the fabulous 50's. The 1968 sit-down is a very close second!
secondrichard wrote on May 23, 2008
Excellent song, excellent 50's version, excellent 1968 version and I like the Spring Tours '77 version also !
JerryNodak wrote on June 21, 2008
I love this song. Whether it be '56, '68, '74 or '77.
marty wrote on June 21, 2008
A great song and a great performance As close as Elvis ever got to singing R&B! But he turned it to Rock 'n' Roll. The fact that he performed it live throughout his career even though it wasn't a big hit suggests that he also liked it a lot...
Natha wrote on September 14, 2008
Another great recording of RnR with a special touch. Apart from the outstanding studio recording there are a number of live recordings. The latter are full of spunk. In the fifties a great version and what to think of the unplugged version taped at the Burbank Studio Sessions! These sessions were unique for that time. Indeed even from the seventies live versions eminates the joy Elvis derived from making music from the heart!
JLpResLey wrote on September 14, 2008
One of the best songs ever recorded by Elvis Presley. It´s impossible to dislike it. Both the studio version and the comeback special versions are great, but my favorite are really the one from Elvis On Tour, and from the magnificent Hampton Roads show
ta2k wrote on September 14, 2008
Legendary. TCB.
2kisses&3scarfs wrote on September 14, 2008
Strictly Elvis! Fantastic!
Marty_TCE wrote on March 19, 2009
The '56 version is probably one of my all time favourite Elvis songs. Absolutely awesome.
Deano1 wrote on December 23, 2009
His 1956 recording of this song was first rate, his 1968 recording was legendary and his live versions in the 70's were always a highlight of the show. Fun, full of energy and fantastic.
Great Dane wrote on December 23, 2009
Awesome!!I like the On Tour version also alot.
Monster wrote on December 23, 2009
Brilliant song, LOVE the seventies version especially. Sang it right up to the end so you know he liked it, or at least found it easy to belt out. One thing about it though is I've never been able to work out what Elvis actually sings in the last line during the post 68 versions. Sounds a bit like "Goodbye Tony old darlin. down the road I go". I iknow that's not it but I wish someone could decipher it for me.
Deke Rivers 6 wrote on December 24, 2009
Doesn't get much better than this ! His voice on this is superb & the backing is awesome. The 68 version is ok but lacks the sound of the 50s.."Goodbye Tony old darling" I don't know what he's saying either ! lol. 10 stars for the 50s version.
Jim Hoff wrote on December 24, 2009
The very essence of the early Elvis! Doesn't get any better, no way!
GEORGE (GK) wrote on November 19, 2011
He always did this song great. He seemed to really enjoy singing this one !
TCB1974 wrote on November 19, 2011
This song is more than fantastic! Even the 70s live versions of this song were energetic. Five stars.
bajo wrote on November 19, 2011
A fantastic recording! I've alwyas felt that this song c/w Shake, Rattle & Roll is one of the most ignored singles ever. Maybe because it was released on album, EP's and part of a bunch of singles released at the same time. To me it's a stand out double sided classic. Lawdy, Miss Clawdy is one of those classics I never tire of!
freedom101 wrote on November 19, 2011
Fantastic! You can hear the magic on the recording. The same goes for the live versions.
hounddawgs6499 wrote on November 26, 2011
Monster, The words sang on the live versions was "Goodbye Tarnell darling ...". I listened to the original by Lloyd Price. If my ears are not deceiving me, it sounded like he used the same words too (after the 2:00 minute mark).
SuziB wrote on February 10, 2012
With Blue Suede Shoes and My Baby Left Me from the same sessions, the very best of the seminal recordings of 1956. Genius!
Gorse wrote on October 30, 2012
Someone has not given this 5 stars !! Definitely one of the best recordings of his whole career - magnificent.
Cruiser621 wrote on December 19, 2012
Classic Elvis! 5-Stars, no ifs, ands or buts.
sugartummy wrote on March 30, 2013
But if and why do I love this so much. The 1968 version is also mindblowing.
sugartummy wrote on May 05, 2013
The Belgian author Marc Hendrickx claims Elvis is playing the piano on this one.
ElvisSacramento wrote on October 13, 2013
This is such a fabulous, electrifying and fun song and I love all of Elvis' renditions of it. I also love the "Goodbye Tornell Darling, Down The Road I'll Go" line that Elvis sang in all of his renditions of it from 1968 onwards.
shawnrw wrote on January 04, 2014
Great rendition of one of the all-time great rock/blues classics. I would rarely refer to an Elvis recording as getting funky, but this is one of the few that I would qualify that way. There are also some great live versions of this song.
sugartummy wrote on January 08, 2015
Who is Tornell Darling?
Jim Davidson wrote on October 12, 2015
Elvis' delivery is great. The lyrics seem inconsistent at first glance: "But please don't excite me baby" vs. "Yeah but you just won't treat me right".
2kisses&3scarfs wrote on October 23, 2015
This is one of my favorites. Elvis at his best! I especially love the '68 Comeback version. Just dynamite!
Brian Chatters wrote on January 29, 2017
Elvis at his best. According to the LLoyd Price site, the last line is "Goodbye, Clawdy, oh darling, down the road I go".
TheMemphisFan wrote on January 29, 2017
I've always preferred the flip side of the 1956 single, "Shake, Rattle and Roll". I never fully understood why this single didn't do better for Elvis on the charts in '56. Perhaps it wasn't promoted on radio as much as his other releases.
atomic powered poste wrote on March 31, 2018
A true highlight. Elvis sounds so focused, he really kicks ass here. The version from 68 is also great, rough and full of passion. The concert versions from the 70's aren't that great, but with they're big, gospel flavored arrangements at least a nice addition. I voted for the original recording, five stars.
hounddawgs6499 wrote on June 01, 2020
I like the song, no matter what era Elvis did it in. I like the fact that Elvis included Lloyd Price's original lyric "Goodbye Tarnell darling ..." on the versions he did from 1968 (and afterwards).
Milky White Way wrote on February 17, 2022
Sublime, 5 stars. What more can I say?
DerekH wrote on September 19, 2022
Top of his game was Elvis every time he sung this masterpiece. 5 stars every time
Back to List