Otis Blackwell Songwriter
1956 # 1 Don't Be Cruel - Elvis Presley 1956 #24 Fever - Little Willie John 1957 # 1 All Shook Up - Elvis Presley 1957 # 2 Great Balls Of Fire _ Jerry Lee Lewis 1958 # 7 Breathless - Jerry Lee Lewis 1958 # 8 Fever - Peggy Lee 1959 #20 Hey Little Girl - Dee Clark 1959 #18 Just Keep It Up - Dee Clark 1960 # 2 Handy Man - Jimmy Jones 1962 # 2 Return To Sender - Elvis Presley 1963 #11 One Broken Heart For Sale - Elvis Presley 1977 # 4 *Handy Man - James Taylor *remake of the 50s era classic	This is Elvis singing the song that started everything for Otis Blackwell
On Christmas Eve, 1955, everything changed for Otis Blackwell. The 24 year old struggling songwriter sold 6 songs for a total price of $150. One of those 6 demo’s included Otis on piano, singing, and a friend keeping rhythm on a cardboard box. The song was "Don't Be Cruel." Recorded by Elvis Presley with the flip side of "Hound Dog" it became the biggest selling record of the 50s era. Otis was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1931. He grew up listening to cowboy songs (he particularly liked Tex Ritter and R&B songs by artists such as Chuck Willis. Otis wrote under the name John Davenport as well as his given name. Highly respected within the music industry, his name was never well known to the general public. Needless to say the success of "Don't Be Cruel" gave a jolt to the young songwriting career of the talented Blackwell, which was followed quickly with another monumental success. "All Shook Up" hit the charts later that same year! Other songs he wrote for Presley included "One Broken Heart For Sale" and "Return To Sender." Blackwell admired Presley, and Presley looked to Blackwell for inspiration on the arrangements of some of his early songs. Referring to The Brill Building in NYC, Blackwell said; "It was an open door policy when I was coming along. You'd just go to 1619 Broadway and start at the top floor. Regardless of what kind of song you had, by the time you got down the stairs to the first floor, somebody had your song -- you didn't have to play an instrument, you just beat it out on your leg and sang!" Always an artist, Otis continued to record and release his own records, but none of them ever managed to crack the top forty. Otis Blackwell passed away on May 6, 2002 in Nashville. His legacy lives on!
To Learn More
Recommended Viewing Text Recommended Listening text Recommended Reading text

you can search this website .....