Jailhouse Rock (song)

"Jailhouse Rock"
Single by Elvis Presley
from the EP Jailhouse Rock
B-side	"Treat Me Nice"
Released	September 24, 1957 (1957-09-24)
Recorded	April 30, 1957
Studio	Radio Recorders, Hollywood
Genre	Rock and roll
Length	2:10
Label	RCA Victor
Songwriter(s)	Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller
Producer(s)	Jeff Alexander
Elvis Presley singles chronology
"(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear" (1957) "Jailhouse Rock" (1957) "Don't" (1958)
Music video
"Jailhouse Rock" (audio) on YouTube
Audio sample
Jailhouse Rock file help

"Jailhouse Rock" is a rock and roll song recorded by American singer Elvis Presley for the film of the same name. It was written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. RCA Victor released the song on a 45 rpm single on September 24, 1957, as the first single from the film's soundtrack EP. It reached the top of the charts in the U.S. and the top 10 in several other countries. The song has been recognized by the Grammy Hall of Fame, the American Film Institute, and others.

Characters and themes

Cashbox advertisement, October 5, 1957

Some of the characters named in the song are real people. Shifty Henry was a well-known Los Angeles musician, not a criminal. The Purple Gang was a real mob. "Sad Sack" was a U.S. Army nickname in World War II for a loser, which was also the name of a popular comic strip and comic book character.^[1]

According to Rolling Stone, Leiber and Stoller's "theme song for Presley's third movie was decidedly silly, the kind of tongue-in-cheek goof they had come up with for The Coasters. Presley, however, sang it as straight rock & roll, overlooking the jokes in the lyrics (like the suggestion of gay romance when inmate Number 47 tells Number 3, 'You're the cutest jailbird I ever did see') and then introducing Scotty Moore's guitar solo with a cry so intense that the take almost collapses."^[2] Gender studies scholars cite the song for "its famous reference to homoerotics behind bars,"^[3] while music critic Garry Mulholland writes, "'Jailhouse Rock' was always a queer lyric, in both senses."^[4] Douglas Brode writes of the filmed production number that it's "amazing that the sequence passed by the censors".^[5]

Releases and chart performance

The single, with its B-side "Treat Me Nice" (another song from the film's soundtrack) was a US number one hit for seven weeks in the fall of 1957, and a UK number one hit for three weeks early in 1958.^[6] In addition, "Jailhouse Rock" spent one week at the top of the US country charts,^[7] and reached the number one position on the R&B charts.^[8]

Also in 1957, "Jailhouse Rock" was the lead song in an EP (extended play single), together with other songs from the film, namely "Young and Beautiful", "I Want to Be Free", "Don't Leave Me Now" and "(You're So Square) Baby I Don't Care" (but with "Treat Me Nice" omitted). It topped the Billboard EP charts, ultimately selling two million copies and earning a double-platinum RIAA certification.^{[citation needed]}

Personnel

Credits sourced from AFM union contracts and label records.^[9]

• Elvis Presley – lead vocals and acoustic guitar
• The Jordanaires – backing vocals
• Bill Black – bass guitar
• Scotty Moore – electric guitar
• D. J. Fontana – drums
• Dudley Brooks – piano

Legacy

Rolling Stone magazine included "Jailhouse Rock" at number 67 on its list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time^[10] and it was named one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll. In 2004, it finished at number 21 on AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs survey of top tunes in American cinema. On November 27, 2016, the Grammy Hall of Fame announced its induction, along with that of another 24 songs.^[11] In 2019, the song ranked number 31 on Spanish radio station Rock FM 500's list of "Five Hundred Rockers of All Time", ahead of any other song of the 1950s.^{[citation needed]}

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts Chart (1957–1958) Peak position Australia (Kent Music Report)[12] 3 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[13] 8 Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[14] 7 South Africa (Springbok) 1 UK Singles (OCC)[15] 1 US Billboard Hot 100[16] 1 US Billboard Best Sellers in Stores[17] 1 US Billboard Most Played by Jockeys[17] 1 US Billboard Most Played Country & Western Singles[17] 3 US Billboard Most Played Rhythm and Blues Singles[17] 1 US Billboard Top Selling Country & Western Singles[16] 1 US Billboard Top Selling Rhythm and Blues Singles[16] 1 US Cash Box Magazine Top Country & Western Singles[17] 1 Chart (1971) Peak position UK Singles (OCC)[18] 42 Chart (1974) Peak position Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[19] 9 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[20] 4 Chart (1977) Peak position UK Singles (OCC)[21] 44 Chart (2005) Peak position Ireland (IRMA)[22] 23 France (SNEP)[23] 87 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[20] 19 Scotland (OCC)[24] 1 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[25] 37 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[26] 96 UK Singles (OCC)[27] 1

Year-end charts Chart (1957) Position Australia (Kent Music Report)[12] 22 US Billboard (Best Sellers in Stores)[28] 16 US Singles (Cash Box)[29] 11 Chart (1958) Position South Africa (Springbok)[30] 11 Chart (2005) Position UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[31] 134

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[32]	Gold	45,000^‡
Germany (BVMI)[33]	Gold	300,000^‡
Italy (FIMI)[34]	Gold	35,000^‡
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[35]	Gold	30,000^‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[36]	Platinum	600,000^‡
United States (RIAA)[37]	2× Platinum	2,000,000^^
^^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. ^‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

See also

• List of Top 25 singles for 1957 in Australia
• List of Billboard number-one rhythm and blues hits
• List of Billboard number-one singles of 1957
• Billboard year-end top 50 singles of 1957
• List of Cash Box Best Sellers number-one singles of 1957
• List of CHUM number-one singles of 1957
• List of number-one country singles of 1957 (U.S.)
• List of UK Singles Chart number ones of the 1950s
• List of UK Singles Chart number ones of the 2000s

References

1. "A Short History of 'Retcon'". Merriam-webster.com. Retrieved November 24, 2019.
2. "Jailhouse Rock". In Rolling Stone, December 9, 2004.
3. Philip Brett, Elizabeth Wood and Gary Thomas, Queering the Pitch: The New Gay and Lesbian Musicology (Routledge, 2006), p. 363.
4. Garry Mulholland, Popcorn: Fifty Years of Rock'n'Roll Movies (Orion Books, 2010).
5. Douglas Brode, Elvis Cinema and Popular Culture (McFarland & Co., 2006), p. 46.
6. Rice, Jo (1982). The Guinness Book of 500 Number One Hits (1st ed.). Enfield, Middlesex: Guinness Superlatives Ltd. p. 34. ISBN 0-85112-250-7.
7. Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944–2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 272.
8. Billboard November 4, 1957, page 58.
9. "Elvis Presley Recording Sessions". keithflynn.com. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
10. "The RS 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". Rollingstone.com. December 11, 2003. Archived from the original on October 23, 2012. Retrieved June 2, 2007.
11. Kreps, Daniel (November 29, 2016). "Nirvana, Bowie, R.E.M. Songs Among Grammy Hall of Fame's 2017 Inductees". Rollingstone.com. Retrieved April 27, 2021.
12. Kent, David (2005). Australian Chart Book: 1940–1969: the Hit Songs and Records from Thirty Years of Specially Compiled Charts. Australian Chart Book Limited. ISBN 9780646444390. Retrieved March 3, 2013.
13. "Elvis Presley – Jailhouse Rock" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved March 3, 2013.
14. "Elvis Presley: Jailhouse Rock" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved March 3, 2013.
15. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
16. "Elvis Presley – Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved March 3, 2013.
17. Joel Whitburn's top pop singles 1955–2006. Record Research. January 8, 2008. ISBN 9780898201727. Retrieved March 3, 2013.
18. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
19. "Elvis Presley – Jailhouse Rock" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved March 3, 2013.
20. "Elvis Presley – Jailhouse Rock" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved March 3, 2013.
21. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 3, 2013.
22. "Chart Track: Week 1, 2005". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved March 3, 2013.
23. "Elvis Presley – Jailhouse Rock" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved March 3, 2013.
24. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 8, 2018.
25. "Elvis Presley – Jailhouse Rock". Singles Top 100. Retrieved March 3, 2013.
26. "Elvis Presley – Jailhouse Rock". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved March 3, 2013.
27. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 3, 2013.
28. "Billboard Top 50 – 1958". Billboard. Longbored Surfer. 1958. Archived from the original on June 23, 2013. Retrieved March 3, 2013.
29. "The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1958". Cash Box Magazine. 1958. Archived from the original on September 24, 2011. Retrieved March 3, 2013.
30. "Top 20 Hit Singles of 1959". Rock.co.za. Retrieved December 26, 2018.
31. "The Official UK Singles Chart 2005" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved July 8, 2018.
32. "Danish single certifications – Elvis Presley – Jailhouse Rock". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved April 21, 2023.
33. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Elvis Presley; 'Jailhouse Rock')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
34. "Italian single certifications – Elvis Presley – Jailhouse Rock" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved November 17, 2023.
35. "Spanish single certifications – Elvis Presley – Jailhouse Rock". El portal de Música. Productores de Música de España. Retrieved September 16, 2024.
36. "British single certifications – Elvis Presley – Jailhouse Rock". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
37. "American single certifications – Elvis Presley – Jailhouse Rock". Recording Industry Association of America.