Hot diggity dog!
Hot Diggity (Dog Ziggity Boom) · Perry Como · 1956 
Play the song.
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The term “dog days” refers to the observation that the bright star Sirius (the “dog star” prominent in the northern hemisphere in the constellation Canis Major) rises daily with the sun this time of year, and the ancients thought that its added heat must account for the oppressive heat of late summer.
Of course, we now know that the dog star has absolutely nothing to do with summer heat waves, but there is little doubt that the hot dog days are difficult for both man and man’s best friend alike.
So, for dog days music memories, I present some classic dog songs.
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Hot Diggity (Dog Ziggity Boom) was a chart topper for Perry Como in 1956. He had a knack for recording off-beat novelty songs and turning them into #1 hits. This one topped the Billboard™ Jockey Chart. The original record was RCA 6427, and it, of course, prominently features Nipper, the dog from the RCA logo, intently listening to his master’s voice. The Nipper label was also the label for Elvis Presley’s #1 hits, including “Hound Dog“, which along with its B side: “Don’t Be Cruel” dominated the top spot for eleven weeks during the dog days of the summer of 1956. |
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Hound Dog · Elvis Presley · 1956
Old Shep · Elvis Presley
As I have mentioned in a previous article, another song about a dog that was written by Red Foley and was one of Elvis’ favorites was also one of my mother’s favorites. She sang “Old Shep” to us kids when we were very little.
Finally, I can’t let the dog days of summer pass without mentioning “Puppy Love.” The song was recorded (and placed in the top three) in both the sixties and seventies: First by Paul Anka, and later by Donny Osmond.
His All Time Greatest Hits: 30th Anniversary Collection
Puppy Love · Paul Anka · 1960
