Elvis Presley

Review

So, I'll never be able to be objective about Elvis. My dad was a massive fan and I have memories of him singing Elvis when he was happy or feeling corny or funny. He'd sometimes do a little dance like Elvis, too. I can smell him when I think of these things so... there's just no way I can listen to or think about Elvis without strong emotion clouding everything.

I have a memory of Elvis that is really my dad's memory of Elvis. And oldest images of my dad's he looks like Elvis -or at least enough for a kid to make the connection based on sideburns.

I guess our modern concept of 'album' wasn't a thing when this came out. It's cohesive in style and tone, and the first song opens strong -with a bang. Something still done today. It feels like a grab bag of what Elvis had to offer -it could have been a sampler to showcase his talents but there are clearly though out pairings where a song compliments the previous one.

It's the rawness, the distortion, the overuse of effects that make this great collection of songs so special. And of course its place in Rock n Roll history. He's doing songs originally done by other artists, of course. He often uses the best ideas from the original or earlier versions but still they feel like his. Little Richard, Ray Charles and the rest can't be ignored and there's no escaping the discussion around the politics of that person from that place playing that music. Still, sometimes you just feel the music; Sometimes you get lost in the fun or the dreammy mood.

Track Analysis

1) I suspect if people know only one Elvis tune it's this. It's familar and it's what many people imagine when they think Elvis. And for good reason. It's got that vocal hitch and plosive thing he's so known for, sometimes singing 'blue' like 'ah-blue-uh'

2) I love the vocal effects -they're a bit much but I love it. The doowop vibes - think the backups are the Steer Family or the Jornanaires?

3) So Rock n Roll, I Got a Woman, feels dangerous and cool. There's that one lyric that is pretty ..well, it was of its time. I'm sure a lot if not most of this is via Ray Charles.

4) One-Sided Love Affair might be my second fave on the record. So much swagger. So much playfulness and freedom in the vocals -flourishes and crooning.

5) Then into the movie cowboy I Love You Because -this could be a christmas tune, I say true. I could listen to this a lot. I have listened to it a lot. Some cool vocal turns in this. This does seem an example of well planeed track order -it leads into Just Because and that works really well.

6) Just Because: some lovely vocals, of course. love the rockabilly flourishes and guitar. Thers some dissonance in those bends and that's pretty metal.

7) Tutti Frutti is a tune that I think most people will know, though they may be more familiar with Little Richard's recording. There's a lot of lore around this song but I tend to lean into the less exciting explanation by cowriter Dorothy LaBostrie. I'm not sure what else to say... if I had to pick one song that could be cut it might be this? That's not saying anything bad about the tun e-it;s more about how good the rest of the album is. I do think the solo is cool in how punk it is -it almost falls apart a few times.

8) Tryin To Get To You has some of my favourite flourishes on the album. Another stand out. I'm also partial to the lyrics. I believe Elvis when he sings these words -it's another song that feels 'cool'. It's another favourite I need cull something.

9) I'm Gonna Sit Right Down And Cry (Over You) it's great song I wonder if there was a fight over the track listing where someone said 'but we already have One-Sided Love Affair'. Also a good follow up to Tryin To Get To You.

10) I'll Never Let you Go - mood. beautiful haunting vocal effects and the ballad to doubletime thing is pretty cool. It could have stayed in that moody space too. It's a smart lead in to Blue Moon.

11) Blue Moon -man, this song -this recording. It's so great. It's garage rock and punk and moooood. If I had to pick a fave of this album... maybe a fave Elvis recording... it would almost certainly be this. It owes much more to the Billy Eckstine and Mel Tormé versions that to the June MacCloy versions -though all are worth listening to and I'm gonna make a prediction that Chet Baker did a version of this in the Mel Tormé style...now to the internet we go ...yeah, he totally did but it seems not until quite late in his career ..."like 1978? when his dental issues can be heard. Wouldn't that have been an interesting version, though? Chet Baker singing blue moon in ...1954 or thereabouts?...The clopping horse thing played on ...guitar it's gotta be guitar though some good resources speculate otherwise. I can see how they'd think otherwise but I really do think it's guitar. This 'clipitty-clop cowboy on horseback in a movie thing' can sound a bit hokey but I just let all that go and feel the song.

12) Money Honey sounds so much like a blueprint for rock n roll ... This track has, what I believe is called, a sliding sixtth for a main riff. You know the sound -a distinctive 2 chord rhiff sith a strike on the first that slides up to the second chord . It has the crazy great line "Well the women may come, and the women may go ..." sung with such confidence that only someone like Elvis could make it sound cool and as normal as water is wet.

He's too cool, too dangerous, too sexy, too rock n roll.