Elvis Songs: A Big Hunk O' Love

Written by: Sid Wyche, Aaron Schroeder

Recorded: June 10, 1958, RCA Nashville Studios
Released master is a splice of takes 3 and 4

Single: w/ "My Wish Came True", 47-7600, June 23, 1959 (Million Seller)
Also re-released as Gold Standard Series, 447-0626, February 1962

Highest U.S. Charts Position:
#1 on Billboard Hot 100 for 2 weeks
#10 on Rhythm & Blues chart.

1st LP release:  50,000,000 Elvis Fans Can't Be Wrong - Elvis' Gold Records, Volume 2 - December 1959

This was one of Elvis' wildest rockers of the '50s, a frantic, noisy, lightning-fast song that would make Little Richard proud. The song opens in full instrumentation, as if you'd switched over to it in the middle of the song, the piano, guitars, and background voices already cranking out at full speed. A few bars into it, Elvis comes in with a shout, "Hey baby!" and you already know it's a classic! Now that he's got your attention, he gets to the main point:

Hey baby, I ain't askin' much o' you
No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, baby, I ain't askin' much o' you
Just a big-a big-a big-a hunk o' love... will do!



Like most fast rock songs of the '50s, there's a playful sense of humor, and definitely nothing serious about the lyrics. "A Big Hunk O' Love" contains the typical mix of aggressiveness and silliness, as in the classic lines at the end of the third verse:

You're just a natural-born beehive, filled with honey to the top
But I ain't greedy baby, all I want is all you got




Released a little over a year after Elvis went in the army, this song was probably a welcome sound on the radio, reassuring fans that although he was temporarily out of the public eye, the King could still rock! I first heard it when I got my brother a copy of 50,000,000 Elvis Fans Can't Be Wrong for Christmas (mainly so I could listen to it myself, of course), and it immediately became my favorite from that album.



Starting in 1972, Elvis began incorporating "A Big Hunk O' Love" into his live performances, with an updated arrangement. Glen D. Hardin starts it off with a piano intro, and after a few bars, Ronnie Tutt's drum builds up to the full band and orchestra kicking in just in time for Elvis' first line, "Hey baby...". Although not as manic as the 1958 studio recording, it was still a rock 'n' roll highlight of his '70s shows. Elvis seemed to get into it more than the performances of his other '50s hits that he felt obligated to sing. He can be seen performing it in the film Elvis On Tour, in the summer of 1972, and on the TV special Aloha From Hawaii, in January 1973. He continued to include it in his concerts until 1974.

"A Big Hunk O' Love" is a classic rocker. Presley is at the top of his form. Although the recording is smothered with echo, it is in keeping with the song.

Robert Matthew-Walker, Elvis Presley - A Study In Music, 1979

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Hey baby, I ain't askin' much of you
No no no no no no no no baby, I ain't askin' much of you
Just a big-a big-a hunk o' love will do

Don't be a stingy little mama
You're 'bout to starve me half to death
Well you can spare a kiss or two and
Still have plenty left, no no no
Baby, I ain't askin' much of you
Just a big-a big-a hunk o' love will do

You're just a natural born beehive
Filled with honey to the top
Well I ain't greedy baby
All I want is all you got, no no no
Baby, I ain't askin' much of you
Just a big-a big-a hunk o' love will do

I got a wishbone in my pocket
I got a rabbit's foot around my wrist
You know I'd have all the things my lucky charms could bring
If you'd give me just one sweet kiss, no no no no no no no
Baby, I ain't askin' much of you
Just a big-a big-a hunk o' love will do