Don't Be Cruel
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Elvis Presley
Want to Learn How to Play Guitar? Learn to Play Easy Guitar Songs –Acoustic Lessons Here!
Runtime: 31:05 Teacher: David
- A7
- D
- Em
- G
Lesson Description
This guitar lesson has 7 chapters. The Performance shows you what David wants to have you learn in the lesson. The Overview gives you some useful historical tidbits about the song. In the Intro you learn that classic Backbeat Strum Pattern, but David takes you a step further and has you “swing” it. The next chapter is the Verse, where you get to apply what you’ve just been learning to play behind the singing. The next chapter, Stops, introduces you to palm muting, an important technique that you’ll want to be able to do without losing your groove. In this chapter we cover the Chorus and the Chorus Tag that you’ll need to know how to play if you want to play this song like Elvis did. Next comes your chance to Put It All Together. This is your chance to jam with David on the song as many times as you need. At the end, you get a nice D69 chord that David will show you after this section. The most challenging part of this song comes in the Bonus Chapter where David shows you how to play the boogie-woogie part that Elvis’ bass player did. This requires you to play a single string melody, a very valuable skill.
Song Information
Don't Be Cruel
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| "Don't Be Cruel" | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single by Elvis Presley | |||||
| B-side | "Hound Dog" | ||||
| Released | July 13, 1956 | ||||
| Format | single | ||||
| Recorded | July 2, 1956, New York | ||||
| Genre | Rock and roll | ||||
| Length | 2:04 | ||||
| Label | RCA Records | ||||
| Writer(s) | Otis Blackwell, Elvis Presley | ||||
| Producer | Steve Sholes, Elvis Presley | ||||
| Certification | Gold | ||||
| Elvis Presley singles chronology | |||||
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"Don't Be Cruel" was written by Otis Blackwell and reworked by Elvis Presley, who often changed music and lyrics for Otis Blackwell songs. He is accordingly listed as co-songwriter. The song was issued as a single with "Hound Dog" as the B-side, but was later released as a single with two A-sides. It was recorded with Elvis playing rhythm guitar, Scotty Moore on lead guitar, Bill Black on bass, D.J. Fontana on drums and backing vocals from the Jordanaires.
"Don't Be Cruel" hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 the week ending August 18, 1956, and remained in the top position for 11 consecutive weeks. It was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2002. In 2004, it was listed #197 in Rolling Stone's list of 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, and is also ranked as the 92nd greatest song of all time, as well as the 5th best song of 1956 by Acclaimed Music. It was also the first single to top all three Billboard charts: pop, rhythm & blues, and country & western.
Presley and his band appeared on the Ed Sullivan show three times, in September and October of 1956 and January of 1957. They performed this song during all three performances.
Other artists who covered "Don't Be Cruel" after Elvis Presley:
- Billy Swan (a #4 hit in 1975 on the Swiss Charts)
- Jody Miller
- Mike Berry's (#14 in 1975 on the Dutch Top 40)
- Cheap Trick (#4 hit in the United States)
- The Judds (#10 hit on the country charts)
- The Residents (in the U.S and The Netherlands)
- Merle Haggard
- Ringo Starr
- Keith Richards
- John Lennon (The Lost Lennon Tapes syndicated radio program)
- Jerry Lee Lewis
- Gene Summers and Sonny Fisher (Paris, France, 1981)
- Kim Carnes
- Foster Sylvers
- Jackie Wilson (Billy Ward's Dominoes with Elvis in the audience)
- Neil Diamond
- Deborah Harry and Jimmy Destri (1995 Otis Blackwell tribute album Brace Yourself)
- Devo.
| Preceded by I Want You, I Need You, I Love You |
Cash Box magazine best selling record chart #1 record September 15, 1956–October 20, 1956 |
Succeeded by Love Me Tender |
| Preceded by "My Prayer" by The Platters |
Billboard Top 100 number-one single (Elvis Presley version) September 15, 1956 (7 weeks) |
Succeeded by "Green Door" by Jim Lowe |
