"Rock-A-Hula Baby ("Twist" Special)" is a 1961 song recorded by

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the " King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. His ener ...

and performed in the 1961 film ''

Blue Hawaii ''Blue Hawaii'' is a 1961 American musical romantic comedy-drama film directed by Norman Taurog and starring Elvis Presley. The screenplay by Hal Kanter was nominated by the Writers Guild of America in 1962 in the category of Best Written Americ ...

''. The song was also released as a single.

Background

The song was recorded on March 23, 1961 at Radio Recorders in Hollywood, California. The RCA Victor 45 single was released on October 1, 1961.

Steve Sholes Stephen Henry Sholes (February 12, 1911 – April 22, 1968) was a prominent American recording executive with RCA Victor. Career Sholes was born in Washington, D.C. and moved with his family to Merchantville, New Jersey, at the age of nine, ...

produced the studio recording session.

The Jordanaires The Jordanaires were an American vocal quartet that formed as a gospel group in 1948. Over the years, they recorded both sacred and secular music for recording companies such as Capitol Records, RCA Victor, Columbia Records, Decca Records, Voc ...

provided the backing vocals. The song was published by Gladys Music, Inc., Elvis Presley's publishing company. It was written by

Ben Weisman Benjamin Weisman (November 16, 1921 – May 20, 2007) was an American composer. He wrote 57 songs recorded by Elvis Presley, more than any other songwriter. Biography Weisman was born in Providence, Rhode Island, and grew up in Brooklyn, New Yor ...

, Fred Wise, and

Dolores Fuller Dolores Agnes Fuller ( Eble, later Chamberlin; March 10, 1923 – May 9, 2011) was an American actress and songwriter best known as the one-time girlfriend of the low-budget film director Ed Wood. She played the protagonist's girlfriend in ...

, it is a

genre Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other f ...

mix of Hawaiian

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

and

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm an ...

. It was the first song published by Fuller, who would eventually co-write a dozen songs for Presley. The title song of the 1991 film '' Rock-a-Doodle'', which featured Elvis Presley's original backing vocal group The Jordanaires, parodied "Rock-a-Hula Baby".

Charts

"Rock-A-Hula Baby" peaked at No. 23 in the U.S. on the ''Billboard'' pop singles chart, No. 1 in Australia, No. 4 in Canada, and No. 1 in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. In the United Kingdom (UK), where it was a double A-sided release with " Can't Help Falling in Love", it peaked at No. 1 in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top ...

in February 1962, and spent four weeks at the chart summit. When re-released in March 2005, it reached No. 3 in the UK in a four-week chart run.

Other recordings

Paul Rich Paul Rich (20 August 1921 – 23 February 2000) was a singer and guitarist, recording many songs with Lou Preager's band. He later became a music publisher. Life Rich was born in London in 1921, son of immigrants from Russia. He studied guitar wi ...

, Werner Müller and The London Festival Orchestra & Chorus, Tulsa McLean,

Pop Will Eat Itself Pop Will Eat Itself are an English alternative rock band formed in 1986 in Stourbridge in the West Midlands of England with members from Birmingham, Coventry and the Black Country. Initially known as a grebo act, they changed style to incorpo ...

, Martin Fontaine, Stephen Collins, Terry Buchwald, and Steven Pitman have also recorded the song.Rock-A-Hula Baby. Second Hand Songs.
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References

{{Authority control Songs about rock music Twist (dance) Elvis Presley songs 1961 singles UK Singles Chart number-one singles Songs with music by Ben Weisman Songs with lyrics by Fred Wise (songwriter) Songs written by Dolores Fuller Songs written for films Songs about dancing 1961 songs