Burning Love

For other uses, see Burning Love (disambiguation).

"Burning Love" is a 1972 song by Elvis Presley, written by Dennis Linde, originally released by Arthur Alexander earlier in 1972. Presley found major success with the song, it becoming his final Top 10 hit in the American Hot 100 or pop charts, peaking at number 2 (it was kept out of the top spot by Chuck Berry's "My Ding-a-Ling").

"Burning Love"
Single by Elvis Presley
B-side	"It's a Matter of Time"
Released	August 1, 1972
Recorded	March 28, 1972
Studio	RCA, Hollywood, California
Genre	Rock and roll[1] Southern soul[2]
Length	2:50
Label	RCA Victor
Songwriter(s)	Dennis Linde
Producer(s)	Felton Jarvis
Elvis Presley singles chronology
"An American Trilogy" (1972) "Burning Love" / "It's a Matter of Time" (1972) "Separate Ways" / "Always on My Mind" (1972)
Music video
"Burning Love" on YouTube

Elvis Presley version

Elvis Presley's version was released as a single on August 1, 1972, with the B-side "It's a Matter of Time", and it reached number 36 in the country charts. Elvis had recorded it at RCA's Hollywood studios on March 28, 1972. It was his last big hit.^[3] The electric guitar opening and riffs were overdubbed and played by Dennis Linde himself.

For the week of October 28, 1972, "Burning Love" rose to number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100.^[4][5] It reached number 1 on Billboard's rival Cashbox's pop charts during the week of November 11, 1972.^[6] The song was Elvis's 40th and final Top Ten hit on the Billboard US charts.

He performed it in at least two high-profile productions: the concert film Elvis on Tour (during which he had to use a lyric sheet as the song was still new to him), and the later Aloha from Hawaii concert. Despite its popularity among his fans, he rarely performed the song live, the exception being in 1975 when it was included in his setlist during the majority of the year’s performances, both in Las Vegas and on the road.

The song was also released on an album titled Burning Love and Hits from His Movies, Volume 2 on November 1, 1972. Despite this album's subtitle, the only actual hit on the album was the title song.^[3]

A new backing track for the song was recorded in 1980, intended for the Guitar Man album. It went unreleased until 2000. In 2015, a new orchestral arrangement for the song was recorded accompanied by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and was released on album If I Can Dream.

Personnel

Partial credits from Keith Flynn and Ernst Jorgensen's examination of session tapes and RCA and AFM union paperwork.^[7]

• Elvis Presley – lead vocals
• James Burton, Dennis Linde – guitar
• John Wilkinson – rhythm guitar
• Emory Gordy Jr. – bass
• Glen D. Hardin – piano
• Ronnie Tutt – drums
• J. D. Sumner & the Stamps (Bill Baize, Ed Enoch, Donnie Sumner, Richard Sterban) – backing vocals
• Jerry Carrigan – percussion, cowbell^[8]

1980 version

• Elvis Presley – lead vocals (archived from original recording)
• Jerry Shook – guitar
• Larry Byrom – electric guitar
• Mike Leech – bass
• David Briggs – piano
• Larrie Londin – drums

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1972) Peak position Australia 37 Australian Go-Set Charts[9] 2 Belgium 17 Canada RPM Top Singles 2 Germany 31 Ireland (IRMA)[10] 6 Italy 28 Netherlands 17 New Zealand (Listener) 9 South Africa[11] 7 Switzerland 72 United Kingdom 7 U.S. Billboard Hot 100 2 U.S. Billboard Easy Listening[12] 9 U.S. Cash Box Top 100[13] 1

Year-end charts Chart (1972) Rank US Cash Box[14] 63

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
New Zealand (RMNZ)[15]	Platinum	30,000‡
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[16]	Gold	30,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[17]	Platinum	600,000‡
United States (RIAA)[18]	Platinum	1,000,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Uses

• The song was recorded for the 1979 television movie Elvis, starring Kurt Russell and Ronnie McDowell as the singing voice of Elvis. The song was not released for a soundtrack.

• Wynonna Judd's version of "Burning Love" is the closing song of Lilo & Stitch (2002). The song itself would later play a role in an episode of Lilo & Stitch: The Series, with main character Lilo Pelekai naming a hummingbird-like love-inducing experiment, "Hunkahunka".

• The song was used during the Miss Universe 2010 swimsuit competition, where Ximena Navarrete from México won the title.

• A remix was made for the Cirque du Soleil show Viva Elvis, which began in 2010, and found on its soundtrack. During the live show, it is played during a montage of Elvis's best love scenes on the rear-projection screen, while the band has a spotlight. This remix puts more emphasis on drums and guitars, with a sound similar to The Who.

• The song was used in the 2011 video game Homefront in the mission "Night Raid" where members of the American Resistance launch white phosphorus on soldiers of the Korean People's Army.

• The song is one of six possible soundtracks on the Disney California Adventure attraction Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: Breakout!, which opened in 2017.

• "Burning Love" was used as a wake-up song on the space shuttle mission STS-123.

• The song was frequently used by comedian Conan O'Brien to warm up his audience prior to taping his talk show Late Night with Conan O'Brien, with the host singing the lyrics with musical accompaniment by the house band.

• Various films and television series have included performances of and references to the song, including The Golden Girls (1988), The Simpsons (2001), The Game Plan, Crazy Love (2007), Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (2009), The Newsroom, New Girl, The Mistle-Tones (2012), Planes: Fire & Rescue (2014), Fuller House (2016), Avengers: Infinity War, Zombieland: Double Tap (2019), The Boogeyman (2023) and Agent Elvis (2023).

• Presley's recording was used in Baz Luhrmann's 2022 Presley biopic Elvis, and is featured on its soundtrack.

References

1. "THE STORY BEHIND THE SONG: «Burning Love» by Elvis Presley". 22 April 2021.
2. Breihan, Tom (March 12, 2019). "The Number Ones: Chuck Berry's "My Ding-A-Ling"". Stereogum. Retrieved June 17, 2023. ...Elvis Presley was at #2 with the unapologetically hammy country-soul workout "Burning Love".
3. "Burning Love - Elvis Presley". AllMusic. Archived from the original on March 3, 2015. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
4. "Burning Love" by Elvis Presley (Hot 100 chart history) – Billboard. Retrieved November 18, 2017
5. The Hot 100, Week of October 28, 1972 – Billboard. Retrieved November 18, 2017
6. "Cash Box Top 100 Singles, November 11, 1972". Archived from the original on May 11, 2018. Retrieved September 24, 2017.
7. Flynn, Keith; Jorgensen, Ernst. "Elvis Presley Recording Sessions: March 28-29, 1972". KeithFlynn.com. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
8. "Elvis Presley Recording Sessions".
9. "Go-Set Australian Charts". Go-Set.
10. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Burning Love". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
11. "South African Rock Lists Website - SA Charts 1969 - 1989 Songs (A-B)".
12. Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 192.
13. "Cash Box Top 100 Singles, November 11, 1972". Archived from the original on May 11, 2018. Retrieved September 24, 2017.
14. "Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 30, 1972". Archived from the original on September 28, 2018. Retrieved September 24, 2017.
15. "New Zealand single certifications – Elvis Presley – Burning Love". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved December 15, 2024.
16. "Spanish single certifications – Elvis Presley – Burning Love". El portal de Música. Productores de Música de España. Retrieved 29 April 2024.
17. "British single certifications – Elvis Presley – Burning Love". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved July 23, 2022.
18. "American single certifications – Elvis Presley – Burning Love". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved October 6, 2020.