Released August 8, 1961 Length 3:00 | Genre Rock and roll Label RCA | |
B-side "(Marie's the Name) His Latest Flame" Recorded June 26, 1961, RCA Studios, Nashville, Tennessee | ||
"Little Sister" is a rock and roll song written by Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman. It was originally released as a single in 1961 by American singer Elvis Presley, who enjoyed a No. 5 hit with it on the Billboard Hot 100. The single (as a double A-side with "(Marie's the Name) His Latest Flame") also reached No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart. Lead guitar was played by Hank Garland, with backing vocals by the Jordanaires featuring the distinctive bass voice of Ray Walker.
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Presley performs the song as part of a medley with "Get Back" in the 1970 rockumentary film Elvis: That's the Way It Is. The song would later be covered by such artists as Dwight Yoakam, Robert Plant, The Nighthawks, The Staggers, Pearl Jam, Ry Cooder and Jesse and the Rippers.
The song lyric makes mention of "Jim Dandy" which was the title of a 1956 song "Jim Dandy" by LaVern Baker. An answer song to "Little Sister", with the same melody but different lyrics, was recorded and released under the title "Hey, Memphis" by Baker on Atlantic Records (Atlantic 2119-A) in September 1961.
Personnel
Recorded in RCA Studio B, Nashville, Tennessee, June 25, 1961.
Music video
The music video for Dwight Yoakam's 1987 version of "Little Sister" was directed by Sherman Halsey.
Parody
Christian parody band ApologetiX recorded a parody of the song, called "Little Esther", for their 1993 debut album Isn't Wasn't Ain't.