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My Baby Left Me

Rating:
4.7 / 5

Words & Music: Arthur Crudup

Yes my baby left me,
never said a word.
Was it something I done,
something that she heard?

My baby left me,
my baby left me.
My baby even left me,
never said a word.

Now I stand at my window,
wring my hands and cry.
I hate to lose that woman,
hate to say goodbye.

You know she left me,
yes, she left me.
My baby even left me,
never said a word.

Baby, one of these mornings,
Lord, it won't be long,
You'll look for me and,
Baby, and daddy he'll be gone.

You know you left me,
you know you left me.
My baby even left me,
never said a word.

Now, I stand at my window,
wring my hands and moan.
All I know is that
the one I love is gone.

My baby left me,
you know she left me.
My baby even left me,
never said a word.

Recordingdate: 1956/01/30, first released on: single (album)

Musicians

Musicians who contributed to the first recording of My Baby Left Me:

(guitar)
(guitar)
(bass)
(drums)
(piano)

Availability

Find available albums with My Baby Left Me.

Lex wrote on May 17, 2008
Another great Crudup track, Elvis at his best.
My boy, my boy wrote on June 04, 2008
How refreshing to hear such a hillbilly cat...the TTWII version is good but nothing surpasses the raw studio one from 1956. Elvis' voice is a master piece + Scotty, Bill and D.J sound fantastic !
Pedro Nuno wrote on June 04, 2008
One of my best loved Elvis songs ever. Just can't help loving it no matter what! Love the original, love the 1970 jam (it's perfect in its bluesy way) love the fast driving version of 1974 (Memphis or Vegas). Just love it! And Love the Video that was made of it (Memphis 1974 version) and you can see it in You Tube!
Rob Wanders wrote on June 04, 2008
This is the first song on the first album I ever had of Elvis (Elvis forever, 32 hits). So a special song for me and especially the intro of the song; it brings me back to 1975 when I received the lp Elvis forever. Wow that intro...
Natha wrote on June 04, 2008
One of those unforgettable rockers by the King. The impact must have been great. The first time I heard this one and related songs back in the early sixties made me long for having been part of that tremendous musical revolution.
Steve V wrote on June 04, 2008
This is Elvis! One of his best!
Ton Bruins wrote on June 04, 2008
When I became an elvis fan in 1977 my father did buy the record "Elvis Forever" for me. I was 14 years old and this song impressed me the most right away ! Even more than "Heartbreak Hotel" or "Hound Dog". That rythem, that tempo ! Wow !!!
Viva wrote on June 04, 2008
Awesome, simply awesome. As perfect a Rock and Roll track as you're ever likely to get. Elvis's delivery on this is beyond comprehension. True genius at work.
daviddoelen wrote on August 09, 2008
Elvis re-wrote part of the lyrics and added some lines! Great early rock n roll song
JLpResLey wrote on August 20, 2009
Great song. One of the highlights of his first album, and that´s an album full of highlights. I´m really crazy about the slow and bluesy 1970 version, it´s my favorite version. I wish the live versions were like that. Now I think they were way too fast
pasa-ryu wrote on August 20, 2009
an Elvis rockin' classic!-he DID do a good 'live' version a few times in las vegas!!!-the best live version i have ever heard him sing is on the FTD/RCA album "I Found My Thrill",possibally the best live version he did?-when you hear it on this cd his voice is amazing and sounds exactley the same as the 1956 version(his voice was so unique)..it brings tears to my eyes when i play this cd as elvis never lost his touch or his voice!!!
derekd wrote on August 20, 2009
This is as near as Elvis got to the 'Sun Sound' after joining Rca. That alone makes it a gem. I reckon Elvis was in complete control during this session. Has his early trademark all over it.
NONE000000 wrote on August 20, 2009
Such a great song and kind of an anomaly. It sounds like a missing track from the Sun sessions, yet it was recorded at RCA. Everytime I hear it I am blown away by it, but it somehow always slipped through the cracks for me--it isn't a Sun song so it is never on any of those compilations, and it wasn't a big hit like Hound Dog and Don't Be Cruel and the others of this same period, so it tends to be forgotten. And it's a great GREAT song! I'd put in on the same level as Mystery Train or Baby Let's Play House---and those are regarded as absolutely brilliant. Bill Black's bass in the opening is just perfect too.
potluck62 wrote on August 20, 2009
One of my favorite 50's tracks.It makes' you wonder if Scotty,Bill and E would have stayed together where they could have gone foward musically.
Michael.W. wrote on April 08, 2011
One of my all time favourites! Alot of rockabilly artists recorded this song but no one even got close to elvis' version! A true classic!
Pieter wrote on October 06, 2011
This is Elvis, 10 stars!
SuziB wrote on February 10, 2012
One of the top 5 things Elvis did at RCA in the 50s, possibly the greatest of them all. Pure genius.
Deano1 wrote on March 05, 2012
I like it a lot, but not as much as "Don't Be Cruel", "Jailhouse Rock" and many other 50's classics. It is as close to a "Sun" sound as Elvis achieved at RCA. That said, I feel Elvis progressed past that sound. 4 stars for the track.
Andy_2 wrote on March 05, 2012
My fave, rockin and raw. This is rock n roll, this is Elvis.
freedom101 wrote on March 05, 2012
It's a travesty that this song didn't top Billboard's singles chart. There were a ton of singles RCA should've pushed but didn't. Despite the injustices, Elvis has racked up over 70 number one singles in various countries over the years, more than any other artist.
Gorse wrote on November 20, 2012
Yes I can only boringly add that this was sensational in every possible way.
sugartummy wrote on April 12, 2013
Kim Wilde said this was the best intro of any song she knew. It's said of Crudup, that he only wrote two songs:one fast, one slow. Of course it's just That's allright with different lyrics, but then again, it's not. It's brilliant stuff. Since RCA owned Crudup's recordings, why didn't Elvis recorded much more by him. A Dutch reporter stood in line in the seventies to meet Elvis and was allowed one question. He asked:"Who do you admire?" upon which Elvis said:"Arthur Crudup, do you know him?" Jip Goldstein (the reporter) knew him.
Cruiser621 wrote on May 19, 2013
One of the most fully formed blues songs ever recorded by Elvis. An all-time favorite of mine from 1956 thru today.
TheMemphisFan wrote on March 09, 2014
Performed live in Memphis on March 20, 1974 ~ Immediately after James Burton's guitar solo (midway through the song) listen for Elvis singing his ad-libbed lyrics of -- "All I know now, the band I knew was gone, my baby left me . . . "
ElvisSacramento wrote on March 11, 2014
This song is a true masterpiece and very underrated too. It should have been a smash hit for Elvis here in the United States, but, sadly it wasn't a hit for Elvis at all here in the United States. Maybe, this song would finally become a hit for Elvis here in the United States if a remixed version of it gets made.
trudygillenwater wrote on March 03, 2015
A true Elvis classic! Should have been number one.
bajo wrote on September 13, 2016
A true rockn' roll classic from Elvis! Strangely enough it didn't get any chart action. Completely overshadowed by the eminent A side of this wonderful single. He had so many double sided singles making the charts at the time, and this should have been a double sided #1 imo. Still, we can listen and enjoy to this masterpiece without having to deal with chart positions.
atomic powered poste wrote on September 11, 2018
The intro is great, elvis rocks, the bands kicks butt, the whole thing is crisp and nothing but tons of fun. I never get tired of this one. 5 stars.
Milky White Way wrote on July 10, 2019
What an intro, pure genius and so underrated. My favourite track of all his 56 recordings. My first record I ever owned was Elvis 40 greatest in 1974, I was nine years old. I became an instant fan and this was the first track I heard. 5 stars.
marty wrote on October 07, 2020
I was 10 years old when Elvis died and was visiting my mother's family in Sweden. The news said that he had died and they played part of a song on TV (possibly Hound Dog from Aloha). I wanted to hear more and my uncle had "Elvis Forever" on cassette. "My Baby Left Me" was the first track and many other great ones followed. Wow, I became an instant fan! Here I am 43 years later still collecting records and posting on fan sites. I has been a wonderful journey and it all started with this song. I love it!
Steve V wrote on October 08, 2020
When this started playing in the documentary 'The Searcher' it felt good didnt it? It all came together musically for him when this was recorded. Id rate this as one of his top 10 recordings. I wish he did more R&/blues after the 50's on a regular basis. Damn those movie years!
Miknik7077 wrote on November 30, 2020
Just an absolute classic. The definition of blues/rock. This should have been more well known. Definitely top 5 song of the 50's.
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