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Elvira (song)

"Elvira" is a song written and originally recorded by Dallas Frazier in 1966 on his album of the same name. Though a minor hit for Frazier at the time of release, the song became a bigger and much more famous country and pop hit by the Oak Ridge Boys in 1981. "Elvira" is now considered one of the Oak Ridge Boys' signature songs.

"Elvira"

"That Ain't No Stuff"

June 3, 1966

2:30

Dallas Frazier

Marvin Hughes

Song history[edit]

Songwriter Dallas Frazier wrote "Elvira" in 1966 and included it as the title track of an album he released that year. The title of the song was inspired not by the name of a woman, but by the name of a street in East Nashville, Tennessee.[1] The song's chorus bears a resemblance to the song "Searchin" written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller and recorded famously by the Coasters.


Frazier's version peaked at No. 72 on the Billboard Hot 100, and was a top 40 hit in Canada, reaching No. 27.[2] A number of other artists recorded the song through the years with varying degrees of success, most notably Kenny Rogers and the First Edition.[3] Rogers' version appeared on the album Something's Burning, which reached the top 30 of the Billboard 200. In 1978, alternative country recording artist Rodney Crowell recorded his cover of "Elvira" (with "Ashes by Now" on the B-side).[4] Crowell's version hit No. 95 on Billboard's country chart.[3]

"Elvira"

August 1978

3:30

Dallas Frazier

Brian Ahern

"A Woman Like You"

March 1981 (U.S.)

1981

Woodland Sound Studios, Nashville, Tennessee[5]

3:45 (album version)
2:39 (single edit)

Dallas Frazier

Whitburn, Joel, "Top Country Songs: 1944–2005," 2006.

Whitburn, Joel, "Top Pop Singles: 1955–2006," 2007.

Works cited