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The first and most popular answer song to "Hound Dog" was "Bear Cat (The Answer To Hound Dog)" (Sun 101), recorded at Sun Studios at 706 Union Avenue, Memphis, Tennessee on March 8, 1953, [97] just two weeks after Thornton's original version was released, [98] and even before a review of "Hound Dog" had been published in Billboard. [99] "
Willie Mae "Big Mama" Thornton (December 11, 1926 – July 25, 1984), [1] was an American singer and songwriter of blues and R&B.. The Encyclopedia of Pop, Rock and Soul described Thornton, saying: "Her booming voice, sometimes 200-pound frame, and exuberant stage manner had audiences stomping their feet and shouting encouragement in R&B theaters from coast to coast from the early 1950s on".
The single was released on July 13, 1956, backed with "Hound Dog". [1] Within a few weeks "Hound Dog" had risen to #2 on the Pop charts with sales of over one million. [ 2 ] Soon after it was overtaken by "Don't Be Cruel," which took #1 on all three main charts; Pop, Country , and R'n'B . [ 1 ]
In 1952, the partners wrote "Hound Dog" for blues singer Big Mama Thornton, [13] which became a hit for her in 1953. [3] The 1956 Elvis Presley rock and roll version, which was a takeoff of the adaptation that Presley picked up from Freddie Bell 's lounge act in Las Vegas, [ 14 ] was an even bigger hit. [ 15 ]
The next day, Presley recorded "Hound Dog", "Any Way You Want Me" and "Don't Be Cruel". The Jordanaires sang harmony, as they had on The Steve Allen Show; they would work with Presley through the 1960s. A few days later, Presley made an outdoor concert appearance in Memphis, at which he announced, "You know, those people in New York are not ...
Legendary songwriter Mike Stoller joins our 'Rolling Stone Music Now' podcast to explain how he and Jerry Leiber wrote "Hound Dog" for Big Mama Thornton – and what happened afterwards
British songwriter Tony Macaulay wrote his chart-topping hit "Don't Give Up on Us" in an unorthodox process. The song was recorded by an actor and went to no. 1 just days after it was written.
The original Page recording included the sounds of dogs barking, credited on the label as "Barks by Joe and Mac" (her arranger, Joe Reisman, and a violinist). The recording also features Page's signature multi-part tight harmonies, all sung by Page. Over the course of her career, she also recorded several other versions.