Jailhouse Rock (song)
Encyclopedia
"Jailhouse Rock" is a song written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller
Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller
Jerome "Jerry" Leiber and Mike Stoller were American songwriting and record producing partners. Stoller was the composer and Leiber the lyricist. Their most famous songs include "Hound Dog", "Jailhouse Rock", "Kansas City", "Stand By Me" Jerome "Jerry" Leiber (April 25, 1933 – August 22, 2011)...

 that first became a hit for Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....

. The song was released as a 45rpm single on September 24, 1957, to coincide with the release of Presley's motion picture, Jailhouse Rock
Jailhouse Rock (1957 film)
Jailhouse Rock is an American musical film directed by Richard Thorpe for MGM. The film stars Elvis Presley in his third film and MGM debut, Judy Tyler, and Mickey Shaughnessy....

. Composer Mike Stoller can be seen playing piano in the film presentation of the song.

The song as sung by Elvis Presley is #67 on Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...

s list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time and was named one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.

Releases and chart performance

The single, with its B-side "Treat Me Nice," was a US #1 hit for 7 weeks in the fall of 1957, and a UK #1 hit for three weeks early in 1958. In addition, "Jailhouse Rock" spent one week at the top of the country charts and reached the #2 position on the R&B charts.

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
(You're So Square) Baby I Don't Care
" Baby I Don't Care" is a song written in 1957 by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. It has become a minor pop standard, with notable versions being performed by Elvis Presley and Buddy Holly. Elvis Presley's version was released on his Jailhouse Rock EP, and reached number fourteen on the R&B charts...

." It topped the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...

 EP charts, eventually selling an additional two million copies and earning another double-platinum RIAA certification.

In 2005, the song was re-released in the UK and reached #1 for a single week. The song, which is an example of simple verse form, eventually sold four million copies in the US, thus earning a Double Platinum certification by the RIAA. The video of the song by Elvis is known as the first music video.

Characters and themes

Some of the characters named in the song are real people. Shifty Henry
Shifty Henry
John Willie "Shifty" Henry was an American musician, most noted as a double bass and bass guitar player, and blues songwriter. He also played flute, violin, viola, saxophone, and oboe and was in demand as a session musician and arranger in Los Angeles in the 1940s and 1950s...

 was a well-known L.A.
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...

 musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....

, not a criminal. The Purple Gang
The Purple Gang
The Purple Gang, also known as the Sugar House Gang, were a mob with predominantly Jewish members of bootleggers and hijackers in the 1920s, operating out of Detroit, Michigan, which was a major port for running alcohol products during Prohibition due to proximity to Canada.Many openly violent...

 was a real mob. "Sad Sack
Sad Sack
The Sad Sack is an American fictional comic strip and comic book character created by Sgt. George Baker during World War II. Set in the United States Army, Sad Sack depicted an otherwise unnamed, lowly private experiencing some of the absurdities and humiliations of military life. The title was a...

" was a U.S. Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

 nickname
Nickname
A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....

 in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 for a loser, which also became the name of a popular comic strip
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....

 and comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...

 character.

Possible inspiration

The song and the famous Elvis performance in the movie bear a remarkable resemblance to the theme and performance of a song called "Rock Around the Rockpile" from the movie The Girl Can't Help It
The Girl Can't Help It
The Girl Can't Help It is a 1956 comedy musical film starring Jayne Mansfield, Tom Ewell, and Edmond O'Brien. It was produced and directed by Frank Tashlin, with a screenplay adapted by Tashlin and Herbert Baker from an uncredited novel Do Re Me by Garson Kanin...

, released one year earlier. In that performance, a villain played by Edmond O'Brien
Edmond O'Brien
Edmond O'Brien was an American actor who is perhaps best remembered for his role in D.O.A. and his Oscar winning role in The Barefoot Contessa...

 seeks to escape an assassination attempt by jumping on stage and singing the lyrics, "rock, rock, rock around the rockpile," while backed up by The Ray Anthony Band wearing striped inmate uniforms. O'Brien even includes some of the hip-swiveling and leg motions for which Elvis became famous. Reportedly, the producers had wanted Elvis for The Girl Can't Help It, but Elvis's manager Tom Parker
Colonel Tom Parker
"Colonel" Thomas Andrew "Tom" Parker born Andreas Cornelis van Kuijk, was a Dutch-born entertainment impresario known best as the manager of Elvis Presley...

 had demanded too much money. Two uncredited composers on the film, Hugo Friedhofer
Hugo Friedhofer
Hugo Wilhelm Friedhofer was an American film music composer born in San Francisco. His father was a cellist trained in Dresden, Germany; his mother, Eva König, was born in Germany.Friedhofer began playing cello at the age of 13...

 and Lionel Newman
Lionel Newman
Lionel Newman was an American conductor, pianist, and film and television composer. He was the brother of Alfred Newman and Emil Newman, uncle of Randy Newman, David Newman and Thomas Newman, and grandfather of Joey Newman....

, had also composed music for the Elvis classic movie, Love Me Tender
Love Me Tender (1956 film)
Love Me Tender is a 1956 American black-and-white CinemaScope motion picture directed by Robert D. Webb, and released by 20th Century Fox on November 21, 1956. The film, named after the song, stars Richard Egan, Debra Paget, and Elvis Presley in his film debut. It is in the Western genre with...

, in the same year, 1956.

Covers and references

"Jailhouse Rock" was performed regularly in a medley along with many old rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...

 hits
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...

 by Queen
Queen (band)
Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...

 and was the opening song on Queen's 1980 North American tour for The Game
The Game (Queen album)
The Game is the eighth studio album by British rock band Queen released on 30 June 1980. It was the only Queen album to reach #1 in the US and became Queen's best selling studio album in the US with four million copies sold to date, tying News of the Worlds US sales tally. The album received very...

. It was the last song in the motion picture
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...

 The Blues Brothers
The Blues Brothers
The Blues Brothers are an American blues and soul revivalist band founded in 1978 by comedy actors Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi as part of a musical sketch on Saturday Night Live...

. This song was featured on American Idol
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...

 when Season 5
American Idol (season 5)
The fifth season of American Idol began on January 17, 2006 and concluded on May 24, 2006. Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell returned to judge, and Ryan Seacrest returned to host. It is the most successful season to date ratings-wise and also with 18 contestants getting record deals -...

 contestant Taylor Hicks
Taylor Hicks
Taylor Reuben Hicks is an American singer who achieved fame in 2006, when he won the fifth season of American Idol. Hicks got his start as a professional musician in his late teens and performed around the Southeastern United States for well over the span of a decade, during which he also released...

 performed it on May 9, 2006 and when Season 7
American Idol (season 7)
The seventh season of American Idol, the annual reality show and singing competition, began on January 15, 2008 and concluded on May 21, 2008. Ryan Seacrest continued to host the show with Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson returning as judges...

 contestant Danny Noriega performed it on February 20, 2008. The song was also featured in Disney's animated film Lilo & Stitch
Lilo & Stitch
This article is about the movie. For the television series, see Lilo & Stitch: The Series.Lilo & Stitch is a 2002 American animated feature produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released on June 21, 2002...

 during the ending credits. In an episode of Full House
Full House
Full House is an American sitcom television series. Set in San Francisco, the show chronicles widowed father Danny Tanner, who, after the death of his wife, enlists his best friend Joey Gladstone and his brother-in-law Jesse Katsopolis to help raise his three daughters, D.J., Stephanie, and...

 Jesse and Becky sing this song at their wedding reception. The song was included in the musical revue "Smokey Joe's Cafe
Smokey Joe's Cafe
Smokey Joe's Cafe is a musical revue showcasing 39 pop standards, including rock and roll, rhythm and blues songs written by songwriters Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller...

".

The German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 rock band
Rock Band
Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...

 Spider Murphy Gang
Spider Murphy Gang
The Spider Murphy Gang is a German band from Munich best known for their greatest hit "Skandal im Sperrbezirk". It was founded in 1977 by bank clerk Günther Sigl, together with Gerhard Gmell , Michael Busse and Franz Trojan...

 is named after one of the characters in the lyrics. In Stephen King
Stephen King
Stephen Edwin King is an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy fiction. His books have sold more than 350 million copies and have been adapted into a number of feature films, television movies and comic books...

's novel Christine, "Jailhouse Rock" is playing when the car runs down Buddy Repperton, one of the guys who smashed up the car at the garage.

American rock and roll revival
Rock and roll revival
Rock and Roll Revival was a back-to-basics musical trend of the late 1960s and early 1970s, in a sort-of backlash against the heavier and psychedelic rock sounds then in vogue....

 act Sha Na Na
Sha Na Na
Sha Na Na is an American rock and roll group. The name is taken from a part of the long series of nonsense syllables in the doo-wop hit song "Get a Job", originally recorded in 1957 by the Silhouettes....

 performed "Jailhouse Rock" live at the Woodstock Festival
Woodstock Festival
Woodstock Music & Art Fair was a music festival, billed as "An Aquarian Exposition: 3 Days of Peace & Music". It was held at Max Yasgur's 600-acre dairy farm in the Catskills near the hamlet of White Lake in the town of Bethel, New York, from August 15 to August 18, 1969...

 in August 1969.

The Shadows
The Shadows
The Shadows are a British pop group with a total of 69 UK hit-charted singles: 35 as 'The Shadows' and 34 as 'Cliff Richard and the Shadows', from the 1950s to the 2000s. Cliff Richard in casual conversation with the British rock press frequently refers to the Shadows by their nickname: 'The Shads'...

 did a (vocal) cover version of the B-side 'Treat Me Nice' in 1982.

Westlife
Westlife
Westlife are an Irish boy band established on 3 July 1998. They are to disband in 2012. The group's line-up was Nicky Byrne, Kian Egan, Mark Feehily, Shane Filan, and Brian McFadden . The group are the only act in British and Irish history to have their first seven singles peak at number one...

 performed the song for the medley part of their Where the Dreams Come True Tour
Where The Dreams Come True Tour
A live concert DVD of the tour was released later that same year.The DVD contained several bonus materials such as an "Access All Areas" documentary, a "World Of Our Own" featurette, a link to an exclusive website and a music video of When You're Looking Like That in Dolby Digital 2.0 & 5.1...

.

Chris Brown covered the song at the 2007 Movie's Rock

Scratch Track
Scratch Track
Scratch Track is best described as an Acoustic Hip-Hop Soul band that formed in Tennessee in 2000. The group is composed of Vocalist/Beatboxer DJ Lee and Guitarist Jason Hamlin. Scratch Track is currently based out of Kansas City, MO...

 added this song to their live performance of "Love Someone".

"Jailhouse Rock" has also been recorded by:
  • The Residents
    The Residents
    The Residents is an American art collective best known for avant-garde music and multimedia works. The first official release under the name of The Residents was in 1972, and the group has since released over sixty albums, numerous music videos and short films, three CD-ROM projects and ten DVDs....

  • Jerry Lee Lewis
    Jerry Lee Lewis
    Jerry Lee Lewis is an American rock and roll and country music singer-songwriter and pianist. An early pioneer of rock and roll music, Lewis's career faltered after he married his young cousin, and he afterwards made a career extension to country and western music. He is known by the nickname 'The...

  • Miranda Lambert
    Miranda Lambert
    Miranda Lambert is an American country music artist who gained fame as a finalist on the 2003 season of Nashville Star, where she finished in third place and later signed to Epic Records. Lambert made her debut with the release of "Me and Charlie Talking", the first single from her 2005 debut...

  • Merle Haggard
    Merle Haggard
    Merle Ronald Haggard is an American country music singer, guitarist, fiddler, instrumentalist, and songwriter. Along with Buck Owens, Haggard and his band The Strangers helped create the Bakersfield sound, which is characterized by the unique twang of Fender Telecaster guitars, vocal harmonies,...

  • Mötley Crüe
    Mötley Crüe
    Mötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1981. The group was founded by bass guitarist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee, who were later joined by lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil...

  • Brownsville Station
    Brownsville Station (band)
    Brownsville Station was a rock band from Michigan that was popular in the 1970s. Original members included Cub Koda , Mike Lutz , T.J. Cronley , and Tony Driggins...

  • The Blues Brothers
    The Blues Brothers
    The Blues Brothers are an American blues and soul revivalist band founded in 1978 by comedy actors Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi as part of a musical sketch on Saturday Night Live...

     (This version was the ending song of the movie
    The Blues Brothers (film)
    The Blues Brothers is a 1980 musical comedy film directed by John Landis and starring John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd as "Joliet" Jake and Elwood Blues, characters developed from a musical sketch on the NBC variety series Saturday Night Live. It features musical numbers by R&B and soul singers James...

    , performed with other musicians such as Ray Charles
    Ray Charles
    Ray Charles Robinson , known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records...

     and Cab Calloway
    Cab Calloway
    Cabell "Cab" Calloway III was an American jazz singer and bandleader. He was strongly associated with the Cotton Club in Harlem, New York City where he was a regular performer....

    )
  • Patti Smith
    Patti Smith
    Patricia Lee "Patti" Smith is an American singer-songwriter, poet and visual artist, who became a highly influential component of the New York City punk rock movement with her 1975 debut album Horses....

  • ZZ Top
    ZZ Top
    ZZ Top is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "That Little Ol' Band from Texas". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based boogie rock, has come to incorporate elements of arena, southern, and boogie rock. The band, from Houston Texas, formed in 1969...

  • The Animals
    The Animals
    The Animals were an English music group of the 1960s formed in Newcastle upon Tyne during the early part of the decade, and later relocated to London...

  • Twisted Sister
    Twisted Sister
    Twisted Sister is an American heavy metal band from Long Island. Musically, the band implements elements of traditional heavy metal bands such as Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, along with a style that is similar to early glam metal bands...

  • The Cramps
    The Cramps
    The Cramps were an American rock band, formed in 1976 and active until 2009. The band split after the death of lead singer Lux Interior. Their line-up rotated much over their existence, with the husband and wife duo of Interior and lead guitarist Poison Ivy the only permanent members...

  • Judy Nylon
    Judy Nylon
    Judy Nylon is an American artist who moved to London in 1970. She was half of the punk act called Snatch, which also featured Patti Palladin. Only those who lived in New York and London during the era that spanned glam rock, punk and no wave are likely to appreciate her importance, most of which...

  • John Cougar Mellencamp (This version was included in the soundtrack for Honeymoon in Vegas
    Honeymoon in Vegas
    Honeymoon in Vegas is a 1992 comedy film directed by Andrew Bergman and starring Nicolas Cage, James Caan and Sarah Jessica Parker.-Plot:...

    )
  • Michael Bolton
    Michael Bolton
    Michael Bolton is an American singer and songwriter. Bolton originally performed in the hard rock and heavy metal genres from the mid 1970s to the mid 1980s, both on his early solo albums and those recorded as the frontman of the band Blackjack...

  • Jeff Beck Group (featuring Rod Stewart
    Rod Stewart
    Roderick David "Rod" Stewart, CBE is a British singer-songwriter and musician, born and raised in North London, England and currently residing in Epping. He is of Scottish and English ancestry....

     and Ronnie Wood)
  • Billy "Crash" Craddock
  • Adriano Celentano
    Adriano Celentano
    Adriano Celentano is an Italian singer, songwriter, comedian, actor, film director and TV host.-Biography:Celentano was born in Milan at 14 Via Gluck, about which he later wrote the famous song "Il ragazzo della via Gluck"...

  • Cliff Richard
    Cliff Richard
    Sir Cliff Richard, OBE is a British pop singer, musician, performer, actor, and philanthropist who has sold over an estimated 250 million records worldwide....

     - at concert
    Concert
    A concert is a live performance before an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, a choir, or a musical band...

    s
  • ABBA
    ABBA
    ABBA was a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1970 which consisted of Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Agnetha Fältskog...

     with Olivia Newton-John
    Olivia Newton-John
    Olivia Newton-John AO, OBE is a singer and actress. She is a four-time Grammy award winner who has amassed five No. 1 and ten other Top Ten Billboard Hot 100 singles and two No. 1 Billboard 200 solo albums. Eleven of her singles and 14 of her albums have been certified gold by the RIAA...

     and Andy Gibb
    Andy Gibb
    Andy Gibb was an English singer and teen idol, and the youngest brother of the family whose other male siblings formed the Bee Gees: Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb.-The early years:...

  • Queen
    Queen (band)
    Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...

  • Frankie Lymon
    Frankie Lymon
    Franklin Joseph "Frankie" Lymon was an American rock and roll/rhythm and blues singer and songwriter, best known as the boy soprano lead singer of a New York City-based early rock and roll group, The Teenagers. The group was composed of five boys, all in their early to mid teens...

  • Danny Noriega
  • Enrique Guzmán
    Enrique Guzmán
    Enrique Guzmán is a Mexican singer. He is the father of Mexican singer Alejandra Guzmán by his former wife, actress and politician Silvia Pinal....

     (in Spanish)
  • Micro Chips
    Micro Chips
    Micro Chips was a Mexican childrens rock music group during 1987-1993.-History:In 1987 Javier Willy and Daniel Willy from Torreón, Mexico, decided to start a band. Soon after Ricardo Villa joined them under the name "Explotion" . Later they were joined by ,Jay de la Cueva...

     (In Spanish) http://soundcloud.com/microchips/rock-de-la-carcel
  • Dean Carter (1967)
  • Mind Garage
    Mind Garage
    Mind Garage was an American psychedelic rock and roll band from Morgantown, West Virginia, and a progenitor of Christian rock music. Their "Electric Liturgy" performed in 1968 was the first documented Christian rock worship service, and their 1969 eponymous debut RCA album was one of the earliest...

     recorded by Elvis Presley's sound engineer Tom Pick and Recording technician Roy Shockley in RCA's "Nashville Sound" studio, under the management of Chet Atkins.
  • IBEX
    Ibex (band)
    Ibex was a short-lived Liverpool-based rock band in 1969. It is primarily known for having Freddie Mercury , later of Queen fame, as a member. The other members of the band were Mike Bersin on guitar, Mick Smith on drums and John 'Tupp' Taylor on bass...

     pre-Queen era band featuring Freddie Mercury
    Freddie Mercury
    Freddie Mercury was a British musician, singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist of the rock band Queen. As a performer, he was known for his flamboyant stage persona and powerful vocals over a four-octave range...

     on the recording Live In Liverpool
  • Carl Perkins
    Carl Perkins
    Carl Lee Perkins was an American rockabilly musician who recorded most notably at Sun Records Studio in Memphis, Tennessee, beginning during 1954...

  • Eilert Pilarm
    Eilert Pilarm
    Eilert Dahlberg , who uses the stage name Eilert Pilarm is a Swedish Elvis impersonator.He gained fame when he performed on Morgonpasset in 1992....

  • Carrie Underwood
    Carrie Underwood
    Carrie Marie Underwood is an American country singer-songwriter and actress who rose to fame as the winner of the fourth season of American Idol, in 2005...

  • Link Wray
    Link Wray
    Fred Lincoln "Link" Wray Jr was an American rock and roll guitarist, songwriter and occasional singer....

  • Marshall Chapman
    Marshall Chapman
    Marshall Chapman is an American singer-songwriter and author.Chapman, the daughter of a cotton mill owner, was taken to an Elvis Presley concert in 1957 and says the experience changed her from a southern debutante to a nascent rock and roller...

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