Hound Dog (2:14)

“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. This is the 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. From the 1970’s onward, the song has appeared, or is heard, as a part of the soundtrack in numerous motion pictures, most notably in blockbusters such as American Graffiti, Grease, Forrest Gump, Lilo and Stitch and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.