Leave My Kitten Alone

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You better leave my kitten all alone
You better leave my kitten all alone
Well I tell you, big bad bulldog
Well, you better leave her alone

Don't you know my kitten isn't tame
Don't you know my kitten isn't tame
So get your hands off of her
'Cause I'm her lovin' man

Well mister dog, I'm gonna hit you
On the top of your head
That girl's gonna miss you
And you're gonna wish that you were dead
You better leave my kitten all alone
I love my little kitten
Well, like you hounddogs love your bone

Well mister dog, I'm gonna hit you
On the top of your head
That girl's gonna miss you
And you're gonna wish that you were dead
You better leave my kitten all alone

I tell you, big bad bulldog
Well, you better leave her
I tell you, big bad bulldog
Well, you better leave her
I tell you, big bad bulldog
Well, you better leave her alone

You better leave
You better leave
You better leave my kitten all alone

Leave My Kitten Alone (Kojak Variety version)
Written byLittle Willie John, Titus Turner & James McDougal
Performed byElvis Costello
Produced byElvis Costello & Kevin Killen
MusiciansElvis Costello - vocals
Pete Thomas - drums
Jim Keltner - drums
Jerry Scheff - bass
Larry Knechtel - Hammond organ, piano
Marc Ribot - rhythm guitar
James Burton - lead guitar
Recorded1990, Blue Wave Studios, Barbados
Vocal backgrounds added at Eden Studios, London
ReleasedMay 9, 1995
AlbumsKojak Variety, 1995
Length3:18

First known performance:
May 17, 1986, Dublin, Ireland
Last known performance:
April 29, 2017, Washington, DC
     (112 known performances, 1 as a snippet)


Eye.jpg
“Written by Little Willie John. I came to this via Peggy Lee's version which was in my parents' record collection. We used to do a white noise thrash version in The Attractions. It's just a great song. I've always wanted to sing it. There's a Beatles version somewhere, a bootleg I think. Not that I have a copy of course.” — Elvis writing in Q magazine, June 1995

Alternate versions

Leave My Kitten Alone (Blood & Chocolate reissue version)
Performed byElvis Costello & The Attractions
Produced byNick Lowe
MusiciansElvis Costello - vocal, guitar
Steve Nieve - keyboards
Bruce Thomas - bass
Pete Thomas - drums
RecordedApril 8, 1986, Olympic Studios, London
ReleasedFebruary 19, 2002
AlbumsBlood & Chocolate (Rhino/Edsel reissue), 2002
Length3:23

Leave My Kitten Alone (Live 1986)
Performed byElvis Costello & The Attractions
MusiciansElvis Costello - vocal, guitar
Steve Nieve - keyboards
Bruce Thomas - bass
Pete Thomas - drums
RecordedMay 17, 1986, Dublin, Ireland
ReleasedJanuary 1988
Various Artists collectionsLive For Ireland, 1988 (double-vinyl & cassette only)
Length3:15
Kojak VarietyKV album cover large.jpg

Blood & ChocolateBAC album cover large.jpg

Live For IrelandLive For Ireland album cover.jpg


Recordings by other artists

 Artist  Year  Release  Links
 Little Willie John  1959  single AllMusic
 The Beatles  1964 (recorded) Anthology 1 (1995) BeatlesBible.comAmazon.uk

Internal links

External links