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Elvis-TheKingsCourt _ A Song In The Spotlight _ 1956 + HOUND DOG ~Song in the Spotlight..Record~Sessions/Wertheimer-EyeWitness Memories/TV/+1st time Live!

Posted by: REX Oct 27 2010, 08:02 PM

HOUND DOG was only Two-Thirds written by LEIBER AND STOLLER ! ! !

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16217

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16214

BILLBOARD Issue 27th October 1956

Posted by: REX Oct 27 2010, 08:03 PM

HOUND DOG was only Two-Thirds written by LEIBER AND STOLLER ! ! !

...Continued...
http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16213

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16219

HOUND DOG Pictures from 28th March 1957 just before his "Chicago Show"

Posted by: REX Oct 27 2010, 08:04 PM

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16222

HOUND DOG Pictures from 28th March 1957 just before his "Chicago Show"

"Hound Dog" is a twelve-bar blues written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller and originally recorded by Willie Mae "Big Mama" Thornton in 1952.

Other early versions illustrate the differences among blues, country, and rock and roll in the mid 1950s.

The 1956 remake by Elvis Presley is the best-known version; it is his version that is #19 on Rolling Stone's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

"Hound Dog" was also recorded by 5 country singers in 1953 alone, and over 26 times through 1964.

Posted by: REX Oct 27 2010, 08:04 PM

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16221

HOUND DOG Pictures from 28th March 1957 just before his "Chicago Show"

Big Mama Thornton version

The blues singer Big Mama Thornton's biggest hit was Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller's "Hound Dog," which she recorded at Radio Recorders in Los Angeles on August 13, 1952.

Thornton’s "Hound Dog" was the first record Leiber and Stoller produced themselves. They took over the session because their work had sometimes been misrepresented, and on this one they knew how they wanted the drums to sound;

Johnny Otis was supposed to produce it, but they wanted him on drums. Otis received a writing credit on all 6 of the 1953 pressings.

This 1953 Peacock Records release (#1612) was number one on the Billboard rhythm and blues charts for seven weeks.

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16223

Thornton gave this account of how the original was created to Ralph Gleason.

“They were just a couple of kids, and they had this song written on the back of a paper bag.” She added a few interjections of her own, played around with the rhythm (some of the choruses have thirteen rather than twelve bars), and had the band bark and howl like hound dogs at the end of the song.

In fact, she interacts constantly in a call and response fashion during a one minute long guitar "solo" by Pete Lewis. Her vocals include lines such as: "Aw, listen to that ole hound dog howl…OOOOoooow," "Now wag your tail," and "Aw, get it, get it, get it."

Thornton's delivery has flexible phrasing making use of micro-inflections and syncopations. Over a steady backbeat, she starts out singing each line as one long upbeat.

When the words change from "You ain't nothin' but a HOUND Dog," she begins to shift the downbeat around:

You TOLD me you was high-class / but I can SEE through that, You ain't NOTHIN' but a hound dog.

Each has a focal accent which is never repeated

Posted by: REX Oct 28 2010, 10:54 AM

HOUND DOG - The SHOW is Born !

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16220

HOUND DOG Pictures from 28th March 1957 just before his "Chicago Show"

Elvis Presley's first, appearance in Las Vegas, as an “extra added attraction,” was in the Venus Room of the New Frontier from April 23 through May 6, 1956.

Freddie Bell and the Bellboys were the hot act in town, and Elvis went to the Sands to take in their show.

Elvis not only enjoyed the show, but also loved their reworking of "Hound Dog" and asked Freddie if he had any objections to him recording his own version.

By May 16 Elvis had added “Hound Dog” to his live performances.

The song was done as comic relief, and Presley based the lyrics, which he sometimes changed, and "gyrations" on what he had seen at the Sands.

The song always got a big reaction and became the standard closer.

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16515

..........Continued-------->>>>>>>>>>

Posted by: C.C.Rider Oct 28 2010, 12:41 PM

Excellent reading Rex !

Posted by: Antje Oct 28 2010, 06:29 PM

Again great reading Rex, I also very much like the Big Mama Thornton version, It sound very different indeed, but also very cool

Posted by: REX Oct 29 2010, 10:14 AM

QUOTE (Antje @ Oct 28 2010, 07:29 PM)

Again great reading Rex, I also very much like the Big Mama Thornton version, It sound very different indeed, but also very cool

Thankyou ANTJE and SHAUN... Wouldn't have started this without all these Waggy Tail "HOUND DOGS"

--------

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16216

HOUND DOG Pictures from 28th March 1957 just before his "Chicago Show"

Drummer D.J. Fontana put it this way: "We took that from a band we saw in Vegas, Freddie Bell and the Bellboys.

They were doing the song kinda like that. We went out there every night to watch them. He'd say: 'Let's go watch that band. It's a good band!' That's where he heard 'Hound Dog,' and shortly thereafter he said: 'Let's try that song.'"

Presley first performed "Hound Dog" to a nationwide television audience on The Milton Berle Show on June 5, 1956, his second appearance with Berle.

By this time Scotty Moore had added a guitar solo, and D.J. Fontana had added a hot drum roll between verses of the song.

ELVIS appeared for the first time on national television sans guitar.

Before his death, Berle told an interviewer that he had told Elvis to leave his guitar backstage. "Let 'em see you, son," advised Uncle Miltie

..........Continued-------->>>>>>>>>>

Posted by: REX Oct 29 2010, 12:36 PM

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16243

HOUND DOG Pictures from 28th March 1957 just before his "Chicago Show"

An upbeat version ended abruptly as Presley threw his arm back, then began to vamp at half tempo, "You ain't-a nuthin' but a hound dog, cuh-crying all the time. You ain't never caught a rabbit…"

A final wave signaled the band to stop. Elvis pointed threateningly at the audience, and belted out, "You ain't no friend of mine."

Presley's movements during the performance were energetic and exaggerated.

The reactions of young women in the studio audience were enthusiastic, as shown on the broadcast.

Over 40,000,000 people saw the performance and the next day controversy exploded.

Berle's network received many letters of protest. The various self appointed guardians of public morality attacked Elvis in the press.

TV critics began a merciless campaign against Elvis, making statements that he had a "caterwauling voice and nonsense lyrics" and was an "influence on juvenile delinquency," and began using the nickname, "Elvis the Pelvis."

..........Continued-------->>>>>>>>>>

Posted by: colonel snow Oct 29 2010, 02:18 PM

Great info and some new pictures to me; here some additional info:

Hound dog was performed for the first time live on 15-05-56 in Memphis and became the closing song in concert during 1956/1957.
On the Peacock label the name Leiber is misspelled as Lieber. Otis was mentioned as co-writer but after the suit his name was not mentioned any longer.

Here a scan for the version by Freddie Bell on Teen records (Teen 101) as recorded in 1955.

colonel snow

Posted by: REX Oct 29 2010, 08:09 PM

QUOTE (colonel snow @ Oct 29 2010, 03:18 PM)

Great info and some new pictures to me; here some additional info:

Hound dog was performed for the first time live on 15-05-56 in Memphis and became the closing song in concert during 1956/1957. On the Peacock label the name Leiber is misspelled as Lieber. Otis was mentioned as co-writer but after the suit his name was not mentioned any longer.
Here a scan for the version by Freddie Bell on Teen records (Teen 101) as recorded in 1955. colonel snow

Thats Great... thanks for the info "Colonel Snow"

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16259

Elvis next appeared on national television singing "Hound Dog" on the July 1 Steve Allen Show.

Steve Allen wrote:
"When I booked Elvis, I naturally had no interest in just presenting him vaudeville-style and letting him do his spot as he might in concert.

Instead we worked him into the comedy fabric of our program…

We certainly didn't inhibit Elvis' then-notorious pelvic gyrations, but I think the fact that he had on formal evening attire made him, purely on his own, slightly alter his presentation."

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16258

Posted by: REX Oct 29 2010, 08:17 PM

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16257

As Allen was notoriously contemptuous of rock 'n' roll music and songs such as "Hound Dog," he smirkingly presented Elvis "with a roll that looks exactly like a large roll of toilet paper with, says Allen, the 'signatures of eight thousand fans,'"

The singer had to wear a tuxedo while singing an abbreviated version of Hound Dog to an actual top hat-wearing basset hound.

Although by most accounts ELVIS.. was a good sport about it, according to Scotty Moore, the next morning they were all angry about their treatment the previous night.

Posted by: REX Oct 29 2010, 08:19 PM

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16256

The STEVE ALLEN SHOW, happened at the "Hudson Theater" New York City at 8.00pm

Elvis opened with I WANT YOU, I NEED YOU, I LOVE YOU... then appears a 2nd time in the Tuxedo to sing his yet to be recorded HOUND DOG, singing it to a Basset HOUND, wearing a Top Hat..

Elvis' TV Pay for 2 songs and a comedy skit was $5,000 dollars.

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16255

Posted by: REX Oct 29 2010, 08:20 PM

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16254

The morning after the Steve Allen Show performance, the studio version was recorded for RCA Victor by Elvis' regular band of Scotty Moore on lead guitar (with Elvis usually providing rhythm guitar), Bill Black on bass, D.J. Fontana on drums, and backing vocals from the Jordanaires.

Presley recorded this version along with "Don't Be Cruel" and "Any Way You Want Me" on July 2, 1956 at RCA's New York City studio.

The session started at 2.00pm and lasted 7 hours.

The producing credit was given to RCA's Steve Sholes, however the studio recordings reveal that Elvis produced the songs (as well as most of the RCA recording sessions) himself, which is verified by the band members.

Presley insisted on getting the song exactly the way he wanted it, recording 31 takes of the song.

Posted by: REX Oct 29 2010, 09:30 PM

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16264

While the Recordings are taking place... Elvis FANS are seen outside holding up "THE REAL ELVIS" Signs, in answer to Steve Allen's taming of Elvis in a Stiff Tuxedo.. so they got to voice a fast protest

Don't Be Cruel "had 28 takes" -(G2WW-5936) was the flip side of the "Hound Dog" single (G2WW-5935) released on July 13, 1956.

Both sides of the record topped the charts independently, A Rare Feat !

The single also topped all three of Billboard charts:

POP ~ COUNTRY & WESTERN ~ and RHYTHM & BLUES, the first record in history to do so.

QUOTE

NOTE: THIS is a long Multi Post Topic, with much about the song thru the years,
and a good few HOUND DOGSsssssssss....

Posted by: REX Oct 30 2010, 07:27 PM

ALFRED WERTHEIMER – Remembers the HOUND DOG Rehearsals

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=1032

Rehearsals for I WANT YOU, I NEED YOU, I LOVE YOU

The public-address called Elvis to the stage.
The musicians and the Jordanaires walked onto a set that could have been designed by Aristotle and Liberace.

In the background, Greek columns in perspective pointed to an urn of overflowing vines.

On the sides, plaster nymphs cradled candelabra and overhead, chandeliers provided the final offering to the classics of western civilization.

At the foot of this temple stood Elvis.

Posted by: REX Oct 30 2010, 09:55 PM

ALFRED WERTHEIMER – Remembers the HOUND DOG Rehearsals Continued....

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=14156

Show Version with Bow Tie "I Want You, I need U...."

The voice over the PA announced, "Okay Elvis, any time you're ready." With his arms hanging as loose by his side as the guitar hanging around his neck, Elvis counted the beat with his leg and crooned "I Want You, I Need You, I Love You." He sang without the passion I had seen in Richmond.

He sang like a professional who had his act down pat. He was competent. He didn't move, he didn't touch the microphone, he stood square, both feet spread and stuck to the ground.

After he had finished, the audience of professionals applauded.

Steve patted him on the back and told him it was great. Elvis smiled and in a slow, modest voice, he said, "Thank you, Mr. Alien."

Posted by: Antje Oct 31 2010, 09:11 AM

Indeed this topic is a lot of fun with all the waggy tails, but also is your info

Posted by: JohanD Oct 31 2010, 10:48 AM

Great topic Rex!!
Congrats on the details!!

Sidenote: The parodysong "Bearcat"by Rufus Thomas is also an excellent blues classic!!

BEAR CAT
(Sam Phillips)
Rufus Thomas - 1953

You know what you said about me, don't you woman...
Well, you ain't nothin' but a bear cat
Been scratchin' at my door
You ain't nothin' but a bear cat
Been scratchin' at my door
You can purr pretty kitty
But I ain't gonna rub you no more

You said you was a long-hair
But I can see through that
You said you was a long-hair
But I can see through that
And mama I know
You're just an old bear cat

You ain't nothin' but a bear cat
Been scratchin' at my door
Ain't nothin' but a bear cat
You been scratchin' at my door
You can purr pretty kitty
But I ain't gonna rub you no more

Whoa, rub you!
Whoa, git with it now
Git it, git it, git it, git it!
Oh, listen to that old cat
Meooowwww... scat!
Oh, tip it miss kitty
Tip it honey, tip it!
Hey!
I'm tellin' you honey...

You made me feel so mean
Made me moan and groan
You made me feel so mean
You made me moan and groan
You ain't wantin' no man
You're just lookin' for an old soup bone

You ain't nothin' but a bear cat
Been scratchin' at my door
You're just an old bear cat
Been scratchin' at my door
You can purr pretty kitty
But I ain't gonna rub you no more

Meow, meow
Meoooww, meoooowwwww!

Posted by: REX Oct 31 2010, 02:13 PM

QUOTE (Antje @ Oct 31 2010, 09:11 AM)

Indeed this topic is a lot of fun with all the waggy tails, but also is your info

Thankyou ANTJE.. this is a 3 decade Song Journey.. just wondering if I will run out of 4 legged friends pictures before the end of this Topic (?)

ALFRED WERTHEIMER – Remembers the HOUND DOG Rehearsals Continued....

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16261

Rehearsal "Steve" in Short-Sleeve Shirt !

A stage-hand shoved a platform to the microphone and was followed by a trainer with a female basset hound.

As he dressed her in collar, bow tie and top hat,

Elvis laughed and the audience laughed with him.

The dog's woeful eyes seemed even more disconsolate with the constraints of her formal attire.

Posted by: REX Oct 31 2010, 02:18 PM

QUOTE (JohanD @ Oct 31 2010, 10:48 AM)

Thanks JOHAN.. I remember playing this around 1968-69.. its a fun tongue in cheek Number, if anyone hasn't heard it (try SPOTIFY etc.,) I had forgotten it was written by SAM PHILLIPS..... "Trust a Cat to get into this ~topic....."

ALFRED WERTHEIMER – Remembers the HOUND DOG Rehearsals Continued....

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16260

For the show ~ ELVIS still looks surprised, even though he did a run through at Rehearsal

Elvis was instructed to sing to the dog.

Without the mike, he crouched down nose-to-nose with the dog and let her know,

"you ain't nothing but a hound dog." She heard that and ignored him for the rest of the song.

Now they had a problem.

Steve wanted the hound to listen to Elvis, so he suggested that they get to know each other.

Posted by: REX Oct 31 2010, 06:04 PM

ALFRED WERTHEIMER – Remembers the HOUND DOG Rehearsals Continued....

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16253

Remembering the Rehearsal - Elvis brushes his Head down close to the H O U N D - D O G

The top hat and bow tie were removed.

Elvis leaned over, caressed her neck and whispered in her ear. She turned away.

Elvis became intimate, speaking softly, touching her forehead with his hand to let her know she was the only one in his life.

She didn't believe him.

The director tried his technique, scratching her chin and speaking his own special dog language.

He convinced her to put aside her feelings and be the trooper he knew she was.

Posted by: NightRider Oct 31 2010, 08:15 PM

An excellent and enjoyable thread as always Rex

Hound Dog is one of - if not the best rock 'n' roll tracks of all time.....it's a true CLASSIC never to be equalled let alone bettered. Love the original recording.

Posted by: REX Oct 31 2010, 09:15 PM

QUOTE (NightRider @ Oct 31 2010, 08:15 PM)

An excellent and enjoyable thread as always Rex

Hound Dog is one of - if not the best rock 'n' roll tracks of all time.....it's a true CLASSIC never to be equalled let alone bettered. Love the original recording.

1950s HOUND DOG really is a huge Ahead of its time Hit... It didn't need DON'T BE CRUEL on the other side (equally big!) the other pop entertainers of the time.. must have wondered how they could match such a DOUBLE SIDED MONSTER HIT.. Thankyou CHRIS..

------

ALFRED WERTHEIMER – Remembers the HOUND DOG Rehearsals Continued....

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16252

The director gave the cue.

Elvis extended his hand and she leaned forward and rested her chin in his palm.

He told her again she was nothing but a hound dog, and when he had her where he wanted her, his hand holding her face close to his,

he told her she "ain't never caught a rabbit."

Posted by: REX Nov 1 2010, 09:44 AM

ALFRED WERTHEIMER – Remembers the HOUND DOG Rehearsals Continued....

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16250

Elvis tried to keep a straight face when she turned away. Scotty, D. J. and Bill rocked through the refrain.

Elvis coiled like a runner at the starting blocks, shot his finger straight out at her and told her again.

She looked right back at him and took it, and when he finished telling her,

"you ain't no friend of mine," he patched it all up, hugging and caressing her, laughing as she licked his face.

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16512

Posted by: REX Nov 1 2010, 10:37 AM

ALFRED WERTHEIMER – Remembers the HOUND DOG Rehearsals Continued....

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16251

The audience applauded, the stagehands nodded, and Steve approved.

The Memphis Flash was okay.

Even with a positive reception from the assembly of journeymen, his slow Southern style of speaking — halting at times — made him appear unsure of himself.

He was working with established stars and still remained a little in awe of them, never addressing them by their first names.

The sketch they were to perform would be Elvis's first opportunity to act on live television, and though his part was small, it was still a part that he would have to portray with the same ease and spontaneity as his veteran partners had exhibited.

The rehearsal of the skit began immediately after the hound dog act.

Steve, Andy and Imogene kept it light hearted and easy going, and with their support, Elvis relaxed into the natural fellow I had come to know.

Posted by: REX Nov 1 2010, 02:10 PM

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16509http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16508

HOUNDED OUT:

Given the unusual circumstances, Elvis is undoubtedly feeling a little awkward, even in his rehearsal.

"Away you Go" Steve Allen muttered, like an executioner.

But Elvis gamely sang HOUND DOG to the Bewildered Basset Hound.

Elvis courageously did his best, even Kissed the dog a couple of times
- an act surely beyond the call of duty.

The Audience approved of his willingness.

Posted by: J Nov 1 2010, 03:33 PM

Great topic. ..... 'Hound Dog' is indeed a pretty iconic rock 'n' roll song, athough it apparently wasn't meant as such originally. Elvis' version on the Milton Berle show is pretty spectacular to watch even today. The audience reactions are rather interesting too, as it almost seems like they quite don't know how to react to EP's "vulgar" bumps and grinds... ...the audience on the second Ed Sullivan show some five months later gives a very different reaction to Elvis' wild moves...

I also like Thornton's original, so it's cool to hear on the '68 comback special when Elvis does a slight lyric alteration to his version, and adds the "snoopin' 'round my door" line in there... ..... As an 'end' note, as great as the song is, at the same time it's easy to see why Elvis wasn't too motivated to sing it properly after '70... he must've done it a million times in the 50s already, and let's face it, the lyrics aren't all that great... but on the other hand, maybe that's where some of the magic of Elvis' original version lies...

Posted by: REX Nov 2 2010, 12:36 PM

QUOTE (J @ Nov 1 2010, 03:33 PM)

Many thanks JOUNI... HOUND DOG on film was the backbone of many of my film shows in the 1970s, with the Ed Sullivan Shows and Steve Allen.
-----

ELVIS leaving the stage and HOUND DOG, at the end of his number,

heading to change into a HILLBILLY outfit and GUN ! ! !

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16283

Photo Above © Alfred Wertheimer

Posted by: REX Nov 2 2010, 02:15 PM

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16284

Posted by: REX Nov 2 2010, 07:45 PM

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=8280

On September 9, with the song topping the US charts

Presley performed an abbreviated version of "Hound Dog" on the Ed Sullivan Show hosted by Charles Laughton.

After performing "Ready Teddy," he introduced the song with the following statement,

"Friends, as a great philosopher once said"…”

Elvis's first time on the Sullivan show was an event that drew some 60 million TV viewers.

During his second Sullivan show appearance, October 28, he introduced the song thusly
(although unable to keep a straight face).

"Ladies and gentlemen, could I have your attention please.

Ah, I'd like to tell you we're going to do a sad song for you.

This song here is one of the saddest songs we've ever heard.

It really tells a story friends. Beautiful lyrics. It goes something like this"”

He then launched into a full version of the song. Elvis was shown in full during this performance.

Again, Presley drew more than 60 million viewers.

Posted by: REX Nov 3 2010, 02:21 PM

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16263

RCA Italiana 1956 45rpm E.P. Release - strange they didn't put HOUND DOG on it !

ELVIS' "Hound Dog" sold over 4 million copies in the United States on its first release.

It was his best selling single and starting in July 1956, it spent a record eleven weeks at #1.

It stayed in the #1 spot until it was replaced by "Love Me Tender," (3rd Nov: 56) also recorded by Elvis.

In March, 2005, Q magazine placed Presley's version at number 55 in its list of the Q Magazine's 100 Greatest Guitar Tracks.

Rolling Stone magazine ranked it #19 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time—the highest ranked of Presley's eleven entries.

Posted by: REX Nov 3 2010, 08:31 PM

STUDIO SESSIONS ~ 2nd July 1956 (2pm to 9pm) - RCA STUDIOS, NEW YORK

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16307

Shorty Long had been hired to play piano on the session, but he was running late that morning.

Fortunately, in addition to being a solid vocalist, Stoker could also play the keyboard. Not wanting to wait for Long to arrive, Sholes asked Stoker to sit down at the ivories on the first day of the recording session.

Then Sholes sat back and gave control of the recording session to Elvis.

Elvis may not have wanted to record "Hound Dog," but he had a definite idea about how he wanted the finished product to sound.

Posted by: REX Nov 3 2010, 08:32 PM

STUDIO SESSIONS ~ 2nd July 1956 (2pm to 9pm) - RCA STUDIOS, NEW YORK

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16306

Pan Pacific Auditorium ~ 28th October 1957 - Los Angeles, California

Though he usually slowed it down and treated it like a blues number in concert, in the studio Elvis wanted the song to come off as fast and dynamic.

As he sang his up-tempo version for the studio musicians and backup vocalists, he began to beat his hands, in a machine-gun manner, against the body of his guitar—and anything else he could find.

Then, to emphasize to drummer Fontana what he wanted, he had the Jordanaires clap out the rhythm with him.

Posted by: Antje Nov 3 2010, 08:38 PM

Again great pictures, this is still a great topic Rex!!!!!!

Posted by: REX Nov 3 2010, 11:12 PM

QUOTE (Antje @ Nov 3 2010, 08:38 PM)

Again great pictures, this is still a great topic Rex!!!!!!

Yes... thankyou "ANTJE" just 2 more Decades to go.. Have the 60s sort of sorted out in my Mind.. just need to fashion it all together..

STUDIO SESSIONS ~ 2nd July 1956 (2pm to 9pm) - RCA STUDIOS, NEW YORK

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16305

Pan Pacific Auditorium ~ 28th October 1957 - Los Angeles, California

It would take the percussionist thirty-one takes to get it just like Elvis wanted, and even on the final version, the quartet's clapping can still be heard setting the pace.

Steve Sholes loved the final result of the session.

But what impressed him more than the perfect final take was the focus and determination that Elvis had exhibited as he toiled to get the number just right.

Posted by: REX Nov 4 2010, 11:29 AM

STUDIO SESSIONS ~ 2nd July 1956 (2pm to 9pm) - RCA STUDIOS, NEW YORK

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16304

Pan Pacific Auditorium ~ 28th October 1957 - Los Angeles, California

The producer usually worked with artists who simply recorded a song a time or two and said, "That will do"

When Elvis took over this session, it was obvious that the singer would settle for nothing less than perfection.

With its rapid beat and dynamic pacing, the song was a real rocker.

Because of this, "Hound Dog" probably had more to do with making Elvis the "King of Rock 'n' Roll" than anything he recorded before or after.

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16507

Posted by: REX Nov 4 2010, 03:17 PM

R E L E A S E + CHART

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16303

Pan Pacific Auditorium ~ 28th October 1957 - Los Angeles, California

"Hound Dog" was shipped on July 13, 1956.

It was one side of what would become a huge double-sided hit.

The single remained on the pop charts for twenty-eight weeks.

Eleven of them at # 1.

It also held the top spot on the R&B chart for six weeks.

Plus it ruled the country charts for ten weeks.

Thus becoming one of the first records in history to earn the #1 spot on all the major play lists simultaneously.

Posted by: REX Nov 4 2010, 09:47 PM

CHART SUCCESS

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16302

Pan Pacific Auditorium ~ 28th October 1957 - Los Angeles, California

With this accomplishment, the song easily eclipsed "Heartbreak Hotel” as the biggest Elvis release and seemed to assure the world that the singer was something more than a flash in the pan.

What "Hound Dog" meant to Elvis is easy to ascertain, but what did this version of the song mean to its writers?

After all, Leiber and Stoller were already well established in R &.B and pop music circles.

Posted by: jinjoe Nov 4 2010, 10:24 PM

great stuff, much thanks

Posted by: REX Nov 5 2010, 11:33 AM

QUOTE (jinjoe @ Nov 4 2010, 10:24 PM)

great stuff, much thanks Great you enjoyed it "Thankyou"

LEIBER & STOLLER "Big Time"

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16301

Pan Pacific Auditorium ~ 28th October 1957 - Los Angeles, California

They had previously penned scores of hits.

Yet, as Stoller remembers, Elvis's decision to record the song was such big news to his partner that it all but overshadowed an actual life-and-death situation.

"I was sitting in a lifeboat with sixty or seventy other people somewhere in the Atlantic," Stoller recalls.

"I was relieved to be away from the sinking Andrea Doria, the beautiful Italian liner I had been on for the past eight days, which now had a large, gaping hole in its side and was going down fast.

Posted by: REX Nov 5 2010, 03:26 PM

LEIBER & STOLLER "Big Time"

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16300

Pan Pacific Auditorium ~ 28th October 1957 - Los Angeles, California

The lifeboat had a broken rudder and couldn't be steered.

I wondered what would happen to me next.

Fifteen hours later I stepped on the dock in New York and was greeted by Jerry Leiber."

What was the first thing Leiber told the damp, cold, and traumatized Stoller?

"Elvis has cut “Hound Dog” and it is going to be his next single!"

Posted by: spirto Nov 5 2010, 07:26 PM

A bit larger image

Posted by: MauricePColgan Nov 5 2010, 07:48 PM

Wonderful stuff REX, Hound Dog was the first 78rpm record I bought way back in 1957.

People living near to our home back thenwould know it by heart. :-)

Posted by: REX Nov 5 2010, 11:07 PM

QUOTE (spirto @ Nov 5 2010, 07:26 PM)

A bit larger image

Thankyou SPIRTO / BESSIE yes the same image I used in Post # 36.. I reversed the picture due to seeing Scotty's Guitar !

QUOTE

MauricePColgan Posted Today, 07:48 PM --- Wonderful stuff REX, Hound Dog was the first 78rpm record I bought way back in 1957.
People living near to our home back then would know it by heart. :-)

Ha! ...an Auntie brought the record to my family's home in Cheltenham, on a visit... and our Volume Control moved to HIGH also.. I remember the kids at school singing it at playtime...

"Okay FUR-kid......QUIT stealing the show!"

With THANKS to ...."SWEET CAROLINE" for the pix and cartoons "perfect"

Posted by: REX Nov 6 2010, 02:47 PM

Elvis' "Last" Louisiana Hayride show, (Saturday) 15th December 1956.

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16379

Tracklist:
Heartbreak Hotel, Long Tall Sally, I Was The One, Love Me Tender, Don't Be Cruel, Love Me, I Got A Woman, When My Blue Moon Turns To Gold Again, Paralyzed - closing with HOUND DOG

Posted by: REX Nov 13 2010, 08:39 PM

25th February 1961

Just before the Luncheon and Press Conference...

Elvis meets a Group of Elvis Fan Club Presidents -

including the HOUND DOG CHAPTER OF ELVIS FAN CLUB

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=11228

Posted by: REX Nov 25 2010, 03:22 PM

HOUND DOG "LYRICS" E L V I S

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16865

Elvis Presley - Hound Dog Lyrics
(written by Jerry Leiber and 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

Well they said you was high-classed
Well, that was just a lie
Yeah they said you was high-classed
Well, that was just a lie
Well, you ain't never caught a rabbit
And you ain't no friend of mine

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

[instrumental interlude]

Well they said you was high-classed
Well, that was just a lie
Yeah they said you was high-classed
Well, that was just a lie
Well, you ain't never caught a rabbit
And you ain't no friend of mine

[instrumental interlude]

Well they said you was high-classed
Well, that was just a lie
Ya know they said you was high-classed
Well, that was just a lie
Well, you ain't never caught a rabbit
And you ain't no friend of mine

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
You ain't no friend of mine

So much of this songs words are changed that, only the Title is the same (You ain't nothing but a) HOUND DOG

Elvis doesn't get to sing these first lyrics that are on BIG MAMA THORNTON's Version...

"you can wag your tail"
"but I ain't gonna feed you no more"

"and daddy I know - you ain't no real cool cat"
- & -
"you made me feel so blue ~ you made me weep and moan
you made me feel so blue ~well you made me weep and moan
'cause i'm looking for a woman ~ all your lookin' for is a home"

Posted by: REX Nov 26 2010, 07:52 PM

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16866

Big Mama Thornton - Houng Dog [Take 1] lyrics

you ain't nothing but a hound dog
been snoopin' round the door (ELVIS: "Crying all the Time")
you ain't nothing but a hound dog
been snoopin' round my door
you can wag your tail
but i ain't gonna feed you no more

you told me you was high class
but i could see through that
yes, you told me you was high class
but i could see through that
and daddy i know
you ain't no real cool cat

you ain't nothing but a hound dog
been snoopin' round the door
you ain't nothing but a hound dog
been snoopin' round my door
you can wag your tail
but i ain't gonna feed you no more

you made me feel so blue
you made me weep and moan
you made me feel so blue
well you made me weep and moan
'cause i'm looking for a woman
all your lookin' for is a home

you ain't nothing but a hound dog
been snoopin' round the door
you ain't nothing but a hound dog
been snoopin' round my door
you can wag your tail
but i ain't gonna feed you no more

Posted by: phyllisnelvis Nov 27 2010, 12:48 AM

Much thanks for this grand thread. Steve Allen still should be kicked in the butt.
Have a great weekend

Posted by: REX Nov 27 2010, 11:29 AM

QUOTE (phyllisnelvis @ Nov 27 2010, 12:48 AM)

Much thanks for this grand thread. Steve Allen still should be kicked in the butt.
Have a great weekend

Well thanks for that PHYLLIS - if it wasn't a bit late, and the fact your closer than me... you should have done it (Hey, you got my Vote!)

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16862

HOUND DOG 1956 ~ to ~ 1968 "Performances"

May 15, 1956 - Memphis
Tennessee - Ellis Auditorium (first reported time Elvis performed HOUND DOG at the Close of his Show)

May 16, 1956 - Little Rock
Arizona - AZ - Robinson Auditorium - 7:00 - Purple coat and black silk slacks

June 05, 1956 - LOS ANGELES, California
- NBC STUDIOS L.A. ~ "The Milton Berle Show"

July 01, 1956 - New York
New York - NY - NBC-TV's The Steve Allen Show - Tuxedo !

July 02, 1956 - New York
HOUND DOG Recording Sessions.. - RCA STUDIOS -N.Y.

September 09, 1956 - Los Angeles
California - Calif - CBS-TV "The Ed Sullivan Show"

September 26, 1956 - Tupelo
Mississippi - MS - Mississippi Alabama Fair And Dairy Show - 2:30

September 26, 1956
Tupelo - Mississippi - MS - Mississippi Alabama Fair And Dairy Show - 7:30

October 28, 1956 - New York
New York - NY - CBS-TV "The Ed Sullivan Show"

December 15, 1956 - Shreveport
Louisiana - LA - Louisiana Hayride - Shreveport - LA - Hirsch Memorial Coliseum -Last HAYRIDE.

January 6, 1957 - New York
New York - NY - CBS-TV "The Ed Sullivan Show"

August 30, 1957 - Spokane
Washington - WA - Memorial Stadium

February 25, 1961 - Memphis
Tennessee - TN - Ellis Auditorium

March 25, 1961 - Honolulu
Hawaii - HI - Bloch Arena - 8:30 - 1957 - Gold Jacket

June 28, 1968 - Los Angeles
California - CA - Burbank - NBC-TV'S Studio "4" - The NBC-TV "Comeback Special" - 6:00 - Black leather suit

June 28, 1968 - Los Angeles
California - CA - Burbank - NBC-TV'S Studio "4" - The NBC-TV "Comeback Special" - 8:00 - Black leather suit

Posted by: REX Nov 27 2010, 05:04 PM

HOUND DOG 1956 ~ "Performances"

First reported time Elvis performed HOUND DOG
at the Close of his Show

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=13050

The 1st show that featured a Musical Treat ~ HOUND DOG Live! on Stage

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16880

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=13052

May 15, 1956 - Memphis
Tennessee - Ellis Auditorium (first reported time Elvis performed HOUND DOG at the Close of his Show)

It is said that this show was the first time - Elvis, Scotty & Bill at the "Ellis Auditorium - on the 15th May 1956"

Had performed (and closed) with "Hound Dog,"

An arrangement of a song they only recently picked up from Freddie Bell and The Bell Boys.

~ While performing in Las Vegas just weeks before.

The song would be their staple closer for the reminder of their performances.

Posted by: REX Nov 28 2010, 02:56 PM

Elvis: First TV Broadcast on

National NBC TV of "H O U N D . D O G"

5th June 1956 - NBC STUDIOS ~ LOS ANGELES, California

"The Milton Berle Show"

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=318

Elvis performs without a guitar, and Explodes in front of the camera.

HOUND DOG is a dramatic showstopper with Elvis bumping and grinding

in a Burlesque-Queen version - with a Half speed slow down Ending.

The press reported in outrage at the "Vulger" and "Obscene" performance...

It would be 27 days yet... before Elvis would record the song at RCA Studios in New York.

The fans could hardly wait for it to hit the Record Stores!

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=2321

Posted by: REX Nov 28 2010, 05:10 PM

"H O U N D . D O G" 5th June 1956 - NBC STUDIOS ~ LOS ANGELES (Continued....)

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=2504

Elvis opened the show with “Hound Dog”

The evolution of the song – from its R&B origins through a series of more “countrified” versions culminating in Elvis’s own unique up-tempo interpretation – in many ways mirrored the mixing of musical forms that would provide the basic blueprint for the emerging rock and roll sound.

This is Elvis’s eighth television appearance, and it’s the first one on which he would perform without a guitar.

Confident and comfortable, it is impossible not to get caught up in the excitement and enthusiasm that the King exhibits on stage.

Posted by: REX Nov 29 2010, 02:46 AM

"H O U N D . D O G" 5th June 1956 - NBC STUDIOS ~ LOS ANGELES (Continued....)

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16882

Elvis biographer Peter Guralnick perceptively noted how during Scotty Moore’s solo the singer hangs back and exhibits the “shrugging, stuttering, existential hopelessness of James Dean”

(who indeed was one of Presley’s idols) but it was what Elvis did during those moments when he held centre stage that really define this clip.

Twenty seconds in, Elvis stretches out his left arm and lets his hand quiver and vibrate seductively in the air, as though his whole body is charged with the electrical energy of the song.

It’s basically all over at this point: Elvis has won, and the gyrating hip thrusts, the plaintive, bent-knee bearing and toe-pop poses are all merely icing on the cake.

Posted by: REX Nov 29 2010, 01:34 PM

"H O U N D . D O G" 5th June 1956 - NBC STUDIOS ~ LOS ANGELES (Continued....)

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16896

Bumping and grinding in time to the beat, he eventually slows the tempo down to a bluesy pace and singles out an audience member (no doubt female) for special attention.

You can almost hear the nation’s moral guardians sitting bolt upright in their chairs at home, outraged at the indecency of what they were seeing on their screens, while the studio audience, shown in a series of cutaways, scream and swoon at his sexually charged magnetism.

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16881

Posted by: REX Nov 29 2010, 06:20 PM

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16897

This performance would ensure that the Nick-Name “the pelvis” would be appended to Elvis’s name in countless newspaper and magazine articles from this point on, while a sampling of some of the more colourful press reactions gives a sense of how prudish and stuck up a good deal of America still was in 1955:

an exhibition that was suggestive and vulgar, tinged with the kind of animalism that should be confined to dives and bordellos” wrote one,

a strip-tease with clothes on” said another.

[Popular music] has reached its lowest depths in the ‘grunt and groin’ antics of one Elvis Presley” groused the Daily News.

Posted by: NightRider Nov 29 2010, 07:40 PM

Interesting to see those original lyrics. Was anyone credited as changing them on Elvis' version ?
Great thread btw Rex !

Posted by: REX Nov 29 2010, 10:03 PM

QUOTE (NightRider @ Nov 29 2010, 07:40 PM)

Interesting to see those original lyrics. Was anyone credited as changing them on Elvis' version ? Great thread btw Rex !

Words wise its almost a completely different song... they didn't feel the lyrics appropriate to Elvis, so Leiber and Stoller, mostly re-wrote the whole thing.... So its still "Leiber & Stollers" song.. 'tiss interesting to compare.. and makes you wonder if Elvis ever tried out the Mama Thornton version... and which version was BELL doing in Vegas, that Elvis watched him perform so many times.... Ahh... questions, questions ??? Thanks "Chris"

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16898

"H O U N D . D O G" 5th June 1956 - NBC STUDIOS ~ LOS ANGELES (Continued....)

Elvis himself remained perplexed at the intensity of the moral outrage, and would later comment “I can’t figure out what I’m doing wrong…I know my mother approves of what I’m doing” (Guralnick, p 322).

Nonetheless, the reaction necessitated a toning down of the stage act, as future television appearances were jeopardized by the growing scandal.

The next time Elvis performed Hound Dog on TV, he would be conservatively dressed in a long coat and tails, and would sing a slowed down version of the number to an actual basset hound.

On Ed Sullivan, he would famously be shot from the waist up.

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=2591

Posted by: SweetCaroline Dec 4 2010, 08:35 PM

Awesome thread, Rex, with great detail as always. Took me a day to read through it all carefully and enjoy the fantastic pictures. ELVIS' happy spirit sure showed through in those pictures. Yes, ELVIS' should have been ticked at the treatment by Steve Allen. Likely it only made us love ELVIS more for him being such a good natured soul. So ELVIS actually had the last laugh.

Posted by: REX Dec 5 2010, 04:38 PM

QUOTE (SweetCaroline @ Dec 4 2010, 08:35 PM)

Awesome thread, Rex, with great detail as always.

Took me a day to read through it all carefully and enjoy the fantastic pictures. ELVIS' happy spirit sure showed through in those pictures. Yes, ELVIS' should have been ticked at the treatment by Steve Allen. Likely it only made us love ELVIS more for him being such a good natured soul. So ELVIS actually had the last laugh. Many thanks CAROLE.. still a lot more info to cover on HOUND DOG thru the years...

ALFRED WERTHEIMER Remembers

the "HOUND DOG" Session.

2nd July 1956: 2pm RCA Studios, New York

The floor was a series of short strips of wood scaled in a sawtooth pattern of right angles. In the centre of the room lay a patch of carpet on which the musicians had placed their instruments.

The assistant engineer placed mikes and said "test" to the engineer.

D.J. "Sticks" Fontana tightened his drum heads, tapping and booming.

Bill Black plumbed his bass. Scotty Moore tuned his guitar. Shorty Long played the piano.

Elvis joined the Jordanaires in a spiritual.

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16994http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16993

I took a few pictures - then they stopped for a break.

Posted by: REX Dec 5 2010, 05:50 PM

ALFRED WERTHEIMER Remembers the "HOUND DOG" Session.

2nd July 1956: 2pm RCA Studios, New York ..Continued..

I said good morning. Elvis, eyes bright and generous, asked me, "How ya feel?"

"A little tired. It should be a good session today."

I had no reason to believe it one way or the other.

He just cocked his head like John Wayne surveying the cattle drive and said, "Well, I hope so."

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16995

Steve Sholes in White Shirt with rolled up Sleeves!

Steve (Sholes) walked in and suggested they record "Hound Dog" first.

While Elvis and Steve conferred in a corner, the engineer set the levels.

Posted by: REX Dec 5 2010, 09:11 PM

ALFRED WERTHEIMER Remembers the "HOUND DOG" Session.

2nd July 1956: 2pm RCA Studios, New York ..Continued..

Recording in those days did not enjoy the luxury of twenty-four-track tape recorders and post recording mixes. Modern artists can add or subtract instruments, overdub, change levels, and electronically alter the sound with so much range that the final product may barely resemble what was heard at the original session.

Nineteen fifty-six was still in the era of monaural sound. The engineer ran single-track tape recorders and mixed the sounds as they were recorded. The entire process was restricted to the present: if it wasn't right from the beginning you had to stop and do it all over again.

Patching separate takes together wouldn't do. The only way the musicians and singers knew what they sounded like was to perform a rehearsal take and listen to the playback. What the engineer heard at the moment of recording was what you got.

After a cold but punchy rendition in the studio (where the sound seemed so lopsided at times that I could barely hear Elvis over the drums), everyone sat on the floor around the one speaker in the room.

Posted by: REX Dec 6 2010, 12:17 AM

ALFRED WERTHEIMER Remembers..."HOUND DOG" 2 July'56: RCA Studios N.Y. ..Continued..

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16998

Elvis held his forehead in his hand and concentrated on the sound.

Steve Sholes stood by, shirt sleeves rolled up, his hands in his pockets, waiting for the reaction.

At the end of the playback, Elvis looked up preoccupied and discontent.

The engineer was concerned the drums were too loud.

Elvis thought they were all right, he wanted more guitar and another run-through.

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16997

Posted by: REX Dec 6 2010, 11:05 AM

ALFRED WERTHEIMER Remembers..."HOUND DOG" 2 July'56: RCA Studios N.Y. ..Continued..

http://elvis-tkc.com/forum2/index.php?autocom=gallery&req=si&img=16999

The second mix was satisfactory.

Steve resumed his position in the control booth.

The engineer cued, "Hound Dog, take one."

Elvis began,"You ain't nothin' but aaah-oooh, let's try it again."

"Okay, anytime you're ready, we're still rolling. Take two."

A word stuck inhis throat. "Take three."

Elvis opened, didn't like the way it sounded, and tried again.