(You're the) Devil in Disguise

"Devil in Disguise" redirects here. For other uses, see Devil in Disguise (disambiguation).

"(You're the) Devil in Disguise" is a 1963 single by Elvis Presley which was written by Bill Giant, Bernie Baum and Florence Kaye. It was published by Elvis Presley Music in June 1963.

"(You're the) Devil in Disguise"
Single by Elvis Presley
B-side	"Please Don't Drag That String Around"
Released	18 June 1963
Recorded	May 26, 1963, RCA Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Genre	Rock and roll, pop
Length	2:17
Label	RCA Victor
Songwriter(s)	Bill Giant, Bernie Baum, Florence Kaye
Elvis Presley singles chronology
"One Broken Heart for Sale" / "They Remind Me Too Much of You" (1963) "(You're the) Devil in Disguise" (1963) "Bossa Nova Baby" / "Witchcraft" (1963)
Music video
"(You're the) Devil in Disguise" (audio) on YouTube

The song peaked at No. 3 in the US on the Billboard singles chart on August 10, 1963, and No. 9 on the Billboard Rhythm and Blues singles chart, becoming his last top ten single on the Rhythm and Blues charts.^[1] The single was certified "Gold" by the RIAA for sales in excess of 500,000 units in the US. The song also topped Japan's Utamatic record chart in the fall of 1963.^{[citation needed]}

In June 1963, when the song was debuted to a British audience on the BBC television show Juke Box Jury, celebrity guest John Lennon voted the song "a miss" stating on the new song that Elvis Presley was "like Bing Crosby now". The song went on to reach No. 1 in the UK for a single week.^[2]

Bill Porter engineered the song for the Elvis Presley recording session on May 26, 1963, at RCA Studios in Nashville. "(You're the) Devil in Disguise" and its flipside, "Please Don't Drag That String Around", were recorded for a full-length album that was scheduled for release in 1963, but RCA chose instead to release the album piecemeal on singles and as soundtrack album bonus tracks.^[3]

Bass singer Ray Walker, of the gospel vocal group The Jordanaires (who worked as Presley's backing vocalists for much of his early career), is featured in the song, singing the repeated phrase in a deep voice, in order to represent the devil: "Oh, yes, you are," before the song's fade.

The recording appeared on the 1968 RCA Victor compilation Elvis' Gold Records Volume 4.

Personnel

• Elvis Presley – vocals
• The Jordanaires – backing vocals
• Millie Kirkham - backing vocals
• Scotty Moore – rhythm guitar
• Grady Martin - lead guitar
• Harold Bradley - "tic-tac" bass
• Floyd Cramer – piano
• Bob Moore – double bass
• D. J. Fontana – drums
• Buddy Harman - drums
• Boots Randolph - shakers

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts Chart (1963) Peak position Australia (ARIA)^[citation needed] 2 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)^[4] 1 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)^[5] 1 Canada (CHUM Hit Parade)^[6] 1 Finland (Finnish Singles Chart)^[citation needed] 1 French Singles (SNICP)^[7] 1 Ireland (IRMA)^[8] 1 Netherlands (Single Top 100)^[9] 1 New Zealand Singles (NZFPI)^[10] 3 Norway (VG-lista)^[11] 1 Sweden (Kvällstoppen)^[12] 1 Sweden (Tio i Topp)^[13] 1 UK Record Retailer^[14] 1 US Billboard Hot 100^[15] 3 Billboard Hot R&B Singles^[16] 9 West Germany (Official German Charts)^[17] 2 Chart (2005) Peak position European Hot 100 Singles (Billboard)^[18] 11 Netherlands (Single Top 100)^[19] 23 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)^[20] 58

Year-end charts Chart (1963) Rank UK ^[21] 30 US Hot 100 (Billboard)^[22] 58 US Singles (Cash Box)^[23] 76 Decade-end charts Chart (1960–69) Rank German Singles (Boxen-Schlager)^[10] 107 Certifications Region Certification Certified units/sales United Kingdom (BPI)^[24] Silver 200,000 United States (RIAA)^[25] Gold 500,000^^ ^^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Other versions

A cover version by Trisha Yearwood appears on the Honeymoon in Vegas soundtrack, which consists mainly of covers of Presley songs. Punk rock band The Misfits covered the song on the extended edition of Project 1950, an album which also contained a cover of Presley's "Latest Flame".^[26] Karel Gott recorded the song in 2012. The Residents, Tom Green, Ronnie McDowell, Showaddywaddy, and Peter Kraus have also recorded the song. Scotty Moore and D.J. Fontana have performed the song live in concert.

In 1977, a Finnish band called Kontra covered the song in Finnish titled as "Nainen valepuvussa" in their debut album "Ei kontrollia" (Love Records LRLP 258).^[27] Johnny Hallyday recorded the song in French in 1964.

References

1. Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 468.
2. Norman, Philip (2008). John Lennon: The Life. Doubleday Canada. p. 335. ISBN 978-0-385-66100-3.
3. Christopher Niccoli (1991), liner notes for The "Lost" Album (BMG-RCA 61024-2), 1991
4. "Elvis Presley – (You're the) Devil in Disguise" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
5. "Elvis Presley – (You're the) Devil in Disguise" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved February 17, 2013.
6. CHUM Hit Parade, July 29, 1963
7. . Syndicat National de l'Industrie et du Commerce Phonographiques (in French). Infodisc.fr. 2013. Archived from the original on January 7, 2010. Retrieved February 17, 2013.
8. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Devil Disguise". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
9. "Elvis Presley – (You're the) Devil in Disguise" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved February 17, 2013.
10. Steve Hawtin; et al. (January 27, 2013). "Song artist 2 - Elvis Presley". Tsort pages. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
11. "Topp 20 Single uke 30, 1963 – VG-lista. Offisielle hitlister fra og med 1958" (in Norwegian). VG-lista. Retrieved February 17, 2013.
12. Hallberg, Eric (1993). Eric Hallberg presenterar Kvällstoppen i P 3: Sveriges radios topplista över veckans 20 mest sålda skivor 10. 7. 1962 - 19. 8. 1975. Drift Musik. p. 243. ISBN 9163021404.
13. Hallberg, Eric; Henningsson, Ulf (1998). Eric Hallberg, Ulf Henningsson presenterar Tio i topp med de utslagna på försök: 1961 - 74. Premium Publishing. p. 313. ISBN 919727125X.
14. Elvis Presley - Full Official Chart History, Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 10, 2021.
15. "Elvis Presley Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
16. (You're the) Devil in Disguise Chart History, billboard.com. Retrieved July 10, 2021.
17. "Offiziellecharts.de – Elvis Presley – (You're the) Devil in Disguise". GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved February 17, 2013. To see peak chart position, click "TITEL VON Elvis Presley"
18. "Elvis Presley – Chart Search" Billboard European Hot 100 Singles for Elvis Presley.^{[dead link]}
19. "Elvis Presley – (You're the) Devil in Disguise" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
20. "Elvis Presley – (You're the) Devil in Disguise". Singles Top 100. Retrieved February 17, 2013.
21. The 100 Best-Selling Singles of 1963
22. Top 100 Hits of 1963
23. . Cash Box Magazine. December 28, 1963. Archived from the original on May 1, 2008. Retrieved February 17, 2013.
24. "British single certifications – Elvis Presley – (You're the) Devil in Disguise". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved June 11, 2021.
25. "American single certifications – Elvis Presley – Devil in Disguise". Recording Industry Association of America.
26. (You're the) Devil in Disguise by Elvis Presley and the Jordanaires. Second Hand Songs.
27. "Moog Konttinen - discografia / Kontra".

External links

"(You're the) Devil in Disguise" on YouTube