"Bird Dog" is a song written by

Boudleaux Bryant Felice Bryant (born Matilda Genevieve Scaduto; August 7, 1925 – April 22, 2003) and Diadorius Boudleaux Bryant (; February 13, 1920 – June 25, 1987) were an Americans, American husband-and-wife country music and pop songwriting team. They ...

and recorded by

the Everly Brothers The Everly Brothers were an American rock duo, known for steel-string acoustic guitar playing and close harmony singing. Consisting of Isaac Donald "Don" Everly (February 1, 1937 – August 21, 2021) and Phillip "Phil" Everly (January 19, 193 ...

. It was released in 1958 and was a no. 1 hit on the

Billboard Country Chart Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital s ...

for six weeks. The song also hit no. 2 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, as well as peaking at no. 2 for three weeks on the

R&B charts The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

Background

The song deals with the singer's dismay that a boy, by the name of Johnny, is trying to take his girlfriend away. The singer calls him a bird dog as a result of his behavior. The musical structure is relatively unusual in that it has a 12 bar blues stanza and an 8 bar blues chorus.

Personnel

Don Everly The Everly Brothers were an American rock duo, known for steel-string acoustic guitar playing and close harmony singing. Consisting of Isaac Donald "Don" Everly (February 1, 1937 – August 21, 2021) and Phillip "Phil" Everly (January 19, 1939 ...

– vocals, guitar *

Phil Everly The Everly Brothers were an American rock duo, known for steel-string acoustic guitar playing and close harmony singing. Consisting of Isaac Donald "Don" Everly (February 1, 1937 – August 21, 2021) and Phillip "Phil" Everly (January 19, 1939 ...

– vocals, guitar * Floyd “Lightnin’” Chance – double bass

Charts

All-time charts

Cover versions

*In 1958, Morris And Mitch recorded a version in which was released in the UK. *In 1966, The Newbeats released a version of the song as a single.The Newbeats, "Bird Dog" single release
Retrieved April 25, 2015 *In 1975, English

Glam rock Glam rock is a style of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s and was performed by musicians who wore outrageous costumes, makeup, and hairstyles, particularly platform shoes and glitter. Glam artists drew on diver ...

band Mud recorded a cover of the song on their album ''Use Your Imagination'' which reached no. 33 on the UK charts. *In 1978,

the Bellamy Brothers The Bellamy Brothers are an American pop and country music duo consisting of brothers David Milton Bellamy (born September 16, 1950) and Homer Howard Bellamy (born February 2, 1946), from Dade City, Florida. The duo had considerable musical suc ...

, recorded a cover of the song which reached no. 86 on the Hot Country Singles chart.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bird Dog (song) 1958 songs 1958 singles 1966 singles Songs written by Felice and Boudleaux Bryant The Everly Brothers songs Hep Stars songs The Newbeats songs The Bellamy Brothers songs Cadence Records singles