"Puppet on a String" is a 1965 song originally recorded by

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

. It was written by

Roy C. Bennett Roy C. Bennett (August 12, 1918 – July 2, 2015) was an American songwriter known for the songs he wrote with Sid Tepper, which spawned several hits for Elvis Presley. Between 1945 and 1970, Tepper and Bennett published over 300 songs. Biograp ...

and

Sid Tepper Sid Tepper (June 25, 1918 – April 24, 2015) was an American songwriter. He is best known for his collaborations with Roy C. Bennett, which spawned several hits for Elvis Presley. Between 1945 and 1970, Tepper and Bennett published over 300 son ...

and recorded by Elvis Presley for the

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...

film ''

Girl Happy ''Girl Happy'' is a 1965 American musical romantic comedy and beach party film starring Elvis Presley in his eighteenth feature. The movie won a fourth place prize Laurel Award in the category Top Musical of 1965. It featured the song " Puppe ...

'', which was released on April 14, 1965.

Background

Elvis Presley recorded the vocals for "Puppet on a String" along with other tracks on June 16, 1964 (over a backing track that was recorded earlier) during a recording session at Radio Recorders in

Culver City Culver City is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,779. Founded in 1917 as a "whites only" sundown town, it is now an ethnically diverse city with what was called the "third-most ...

outside of Los Angeles. The song was published by Elvis Presley's publishing company Gladys Music, Inc. Released in the United States in 1965 as a

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

with the 1960 recording from the film ''

G.I. Blues ''G.I. Blues'' is a 1960 American musical comedy film directed by Norman Taurog and starring Elvis Presley and Juliet Prowse. The movie was filmed at Paramount Pictures studio, with some pre-production scenery shot on location in Germany before Pr ...

'', "

Wooden Heart "Wooden Heart" is a pop song recorded by Elvis Presley. The composition is based on a German folk song "Muss i denn" (''lit.'' Must I then) and it was featured in the 1960 Elvis Presley film ''G.I. Blues''. The song was a hit single for Presle ...

", on the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

, "Puppet on a String" reached number 14 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for the week of December 25, 1965, where it would stay for two weeks. (The other single from the same movie, "

Do the Clam "Do The Clam" is a pop song recorded by Elvis Presley for his 1965 feature film ''Girl Happy''. It was written by Sid Wayne, Ben Weisman, and Dolores Fuller. Chart History ''Do The Clam'' was released worldwide as a single by RCA Victor, reaching ...

", was released earlier in the same year and reached number 21.) The single peaked at number 15 on the ''Record World'' chart and number 16 on Cash Box Singles. In Canada, the single reached number 3 in a 10-week chart run, entering the chart in November, 1965.Song artist 2 - Elvis Presley.tsort.
/ref> The single was certified Gold in the U.S. by the RIAA in March, 1992.

Musical style and lyrics

"Puppet on a String" is an

easy listening Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to 1970s. It is related to middle-of-the-road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit songs, n ...

love song A love song is a song about romantic love, falling in love, heartbreak after a breakup, and the feelings that these experiences bring. A comprehensive list of even the best known performers and composers of love songs would be a large order. ...

or a ballad.

Charts

References

{{Elvis Presley singles 1965 songs 1965 singles Elvis Presley songs RCA Records singles Songs written by Roy C. Bennett Songs written by Sid Tepper Songs written for films