The story behind the song
Don’t Ask Me Why is a pop-rock ballad that was written by Fred Wise, who handled the lyrics, and Ben Weisman, who composed the music. Elvis Presley recorded this song on January 16, 1958, at Radio Recorders located in Hollywood. The recording was made for the soundtrack of his fourth movie, King Creole.
During an intense multi-day recording session that was managed by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, the track was created. The song showcases strong close-harmony backing vocals performed by The Jordanaires, along with Dudley Brooks playing piano, Gordon Stoker on bongos, and Elvis’s main rhythm section made up of Scotty Moore on guitar, Bill Black on bass, and D.J. Fontana on drums.
On June 10, 1958, RCA Victor put out the track as the B-side to the wild rocker Hard Headed Woman. The single came out just a few months after Elvis joined the United States Army in March 1958, and it was an important release that helped keep Elvis in the spotlight while he was stationed at Fort Hood.
While the big hit Hard Headed Woman reached number 1 for two weeks, Don’t Ask Me Why also did really well, reaching number 25 on the Billboard Hot 100. The single together sold more than a million copies, which earned it a Platinum certification from the RIAA and placed it at number 49 on Billboard’s year-end Popular chart.
After doing well as a single, the ballad appeared on the King Creole soundtrack album, which came out later that year on September 19, 1958.
AT A GLANCE