Seventy years ago today, three songs were recorded in a New York recording studio. At the time, no one could have known the impact that those recordings would would have on music history—or that, nearly twenty-five years later, they would quietly shape my own life.
By the summer of 1956, Elvis Presley was already becoming a national phenomenon. Over the previous year and a half, he had built a loyal following throughout the South, but everything changed after signing with RCA Records and appearing on national television. His manager, Colonel Tom Parker, understood something that seems obvious today but was incredibly forward-thinking at the time: television could turn a regional star into a household name.
He was right.
Appearances on programs like the Dorsey Brothers Stage Show introduced Elvis to millions of Americans, but it was a performance on The Milton Berle Show that truly ignited controversy. Elvis had already been performing "Hound Dog" during his live shows, but for many viewers this was their first time seeing it.
His movements, the energy of the performance, and the famous slowed-down ending shocked much of America. To modern audiences it may seem harmless, but in 1956 it was considered downright scandalous. Newspapers, critics, and viewers all weighed in, and suddenly Elvis wasn't just a singer—he was the center of a national conversation.
A few weeks later, he appeared on The Steve Allen Show.
Steve Allen wanted the ratings that came with having Elvis on his program, but he wanted none of the controversy. So he had Elvis perform "Hound Dog" dressed in a tuxedo... singing to an actual basset hound.
By nearly every account, Elvis hated the experience.
The very next day—July 2, 1956—he walked into RCA's New York studio and recorded three songs:
- "Hound Dog"
- "Don't Be Cruel"
- "Any Way You Want Me"
All three would later appear on his first greatest hits collection, Elvis' Golden Records.
"Don't Be Cruel" and "Any Way You Want Me" came together fairly quickly. "Hound Dog" was another story. Elvis recorded thirty-one takes before settling on the master that the world still knows today.
I've often wondered whether some of the fire you hear in that recording came from the previous evening. Obviously, I can't prove that, but knowing what had happened on The Steve Allen Show, it's hard not to hear an extra level of determination in that performance.
Whatever the reason, the result speaks for itself.
Just eleven days later, on July 13, the single was released.
"Hound Dog" backed with "Don't Be Cruel" became the first single in history to produce a Number One hit on both sides. "Hound Dog" itself would remain at Number One for eleven weeks, setting a record that stood for decades. Both songs remained as staples in his live act right up until the end.
Twenty-three or twenty-four years later, those recordings found another audience.
Me.
My grandmother owned a two-record Elvis collection that had been sold through a television mail-order offer. It had a blue cover featuring the famous silhouette from the Aloha from Hawaii concert and contained twenty songs recorded between 1956 and 1962.
I absolutely wore those records out.
Looking back now, it's still one of the most perfectly assembled greatest hits collections I've ever heard. Nineteen of the songs were Number One hits. The only exception was "Return to Sender," which reached Number Two.
One thing never occurred to me until I started writing this article.
Despite being built almost entirely from Number One hits, the collection doesn't include "Heartbreak Hotel"—Elvis' very first Number One record.
I'm not criticizing the album. In fact, I wouldn't change a thing about it. I just find it fascinating that such an iconic song was left off an otherwise nearly perfect collection.
As a kid, I desperately wanted my own copy.
The problem was that it had only been available as a limited-time television offer the very year I was born. You couldn't just walk into a record store and buy one. I looked more than once in used record stores, hoping to get lucky, but I never found it.
Years later, thanks to eBay, I finally tracked down my own copy.
I still have it, although I have digitized it and now listen to it via the mp3 files I created from it.
One of the first Elvis albums I ever bought with my own money was the soundtrack to the movie This Is Elvis. I remember being excited because I thought I was getting many of the same songs I loved from my grandmother's collection.
Technically, I was.
What I didn't understand as a seven-year-old was that many of these weren't the original hit recordings.
"Hound Dog" turned out to be the controversial performance from The Milton Berle Show.
"Heartbreak Hotel" was a live television performance.
"Don't Be Cruel" wasn't the familiar RCA master either.
I was completely confused.
Why did these songs sound different?
I was always curious and learning whatever I could, so it didn’t take me too long to understand what I was hearing.
Today, I smile thinking about that little kid trying to figure it all out.
July 2, 1956 wasn't important simply because three songs were recorded.
It was important because those recordings inspired millions of people over the decades.
One of those kids eventually became me.
And seventy years later...
I'm still listening.
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