A poor man wants the oyster
A rich man wants the pearl
But the man who can sing when he hasn't got a thing
He's the king of the whole wide world

Come on let's sing, sing brother sing
'Cos the man who can sing when he hasn't got a thing
He's the king of the whole wide world

The rich man wants the princess
The poor man just wants a girl
But the man who can sing when he hasn't got a thing
He's the king of the whole wide world

Come on let's sing, sing brother sing
'Cos the man who can sing when he hasn't got a thing
He's the king of the whole wide world

A poor man wants to be a rich man
A rich man wants to be a king
But the man who can sing when he hasn't got a thing
He's the king of the whole wide world

Come on let's sing, sing brother sing
'Cos the man who can sing when he hasn't got a thing
He's the king of the whole wide world

Come on let's sing, sing brother sing
'Cos the man who can sing when he hasn't got a thing
He's the king of the whole wide world
Of the whole wide world
Of the whole wide world

RCA EPA-4371, 1962, Kid Galahad

October 27, 1962, Live Recordings Hollywood, California

King of the Whole Wide World was written by Ruth Batchelor and Bob Roberts for Elvis's 1962 movie, Kid Galahad, where it was sung over the opening credits. Elvis first recorded the tune on October 26, 1961, at Radio Recorders. The acceptable master take (#31) was never officially released by RCA, although it has appeared on bootleg LPs. The following day, October 27, Elvis again attempted to record King of the Whole Wide World, this time with a different arrangement. RCA released take #4 from that session. Boots Randolph's final saxophone solo on that take was deleted before the record's release. Although RCA never issued a single of King of the Whole Wide World to the general public, the song reached #30 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart (for a seven-week stay) in 1962, based on the strength of the EP, Kid Galahad.