Treat Me Nice

Ten years ago, on August 16, 2002, an one hour radio program titled Treat Me Nice was aired on nationwide radio in Sweden. Having produced and recorded the program a couple of days earlier, I remember how excited and proud I felt reading about it in one of the biggest newspapers in the morning (the text was a shortened version of the press release) and it read something like this:

On August 16 it is 25 years since Elvis Presley died. Still, Elvis is more alive today than ever. No one has more organized fans and Graceland is the most visited private home in the USA after the White House. Elvis records are selling like never before and this summer he has been number one in the charts [with the JXL remix of “A Little Less Conversation”]. More about this can be heard in the program Treat Me Nice, where Thomas Melin takes a closer look at the phenomenon of Elvis.

Listening to the program today (I have a copy of it on CD, of course), it hit me how much of what I included in it still holds true. Ernst Jorgensen is still searching for unreleased Elvis material and the demand for alternate takes, home recordings and live versions is as high as ever. Books about Elvis continues to be written and Elvis Week only seems to be getting bigger and bigger every year. And Elvis keeps performing “live on screen” accompanied by his old band members (although it might be for the last time during tonight's Elvis 35th Anniversary Concert in Memphis).

At the end of the program, I asked Ernst Jorgensen how big he thought the interest in Elvis would be in another 25 years. His answer was that Elvis will probably sell fewer albums as the music gets older, but that he will not be forgotten.

Ten years later, it is still great times to be an Elvis fan. The official collectors label Follow That Dream Records continues to serve us with unreleased material and their latest release, the book and 3 cd set A Boy From Tupelo : The Complete 1953-55 Recordings is truly remarkable. And then there is the Sony October release Prince From Another Planet 40th Anniversary Madison Square Garden 2 CD/1 DVD set to look forward to.

On a completely different level, this marks my 500th post since I started the Elvis Today Blog exactly five years ago, on August 16, 2007. Something that would have never been possible without the support of my readers. To all of you I express my gratitude. But most of all, thank you Elvis, for always being there for me with your music. It means the world.

With this post I'm taking an indefinite break from blogging. There is so much going on in my life at the moment, at the top of the list is my two year old daughter, I simply haven't got either the time or energy to write about Elvis. But I will continue to listen to the man who, like Troy Y. over at The Mystery Train Blog puts it so well, provides the soundtrack to my life.

From Hawaii To The Rest Of The World

What if the previously unreleased cassette recording of Elvis rehearsing the day before his opening show at the Las Vegas Hilton on January 26, 1973 had been a rehearsal for an upcoming world tour instead? In an alternate universe, a review of the recently released From Hawaii To Las Vegas album from FTD would have sounded a bit different. To borrow a phrase from fellow blogger Troy Y: You've just crossed over into ... the edge of reality. 

Fortunately Elvis didn't return for another routine engagement in Las Vegas after his triumphal Aloha From Hawaii Via Satellite show. As you all know, he went on a highly successful world tour instead, starting in Europe. The recent From Hawaii To The Rest Of The World release from Follow That Dream Records provides an unique “fly-on-the-wall” experience of Elvis rehearsing for his opening show in London. Captured on a personal tape recorder, the sonic quality is below normal standards, but historical significance more than compensates for its audio limitations.

The first two songs on the cassette recording are “Something” and “You Gave Me A Mountain,” both sounding very much like their counterparts from the satellite show. As Aloha From Hawaii served more or less as a blueprint for the song list included on the world tour, Elvis probably rehearsed “See See Rider” and “Burning Love” as well, before someone pressed the “record” button.

The third song, “Steamroller Blues,” is the extended version we know so well from the first world tour. Elvis sings the “I'm a napalm bomb” verse two times, first time low and bluesy right after the guitar solo, the second time in the same exploding style as the last “I'm a steamroller baby” verse. No wonder this became a firm fan favorite during the tour. 

“My Way” is again very similar to the version from Hawaii, except for some clowning around with Charlie Hodge during the first verse. Then it's time for “Love Me” and “It's Over.” “Love me till it's over,” Elvis jokingly says before delivering a straight forward “Love Me” that ends with the orchestra playing a few bars of “The Star-Sprangled Banner,” evoking laughter from the band and musicians. “It's Over” is a nice version, every bit as beautiful as the one from the Aloha concert. 

“Blue Suede Shoes” is a one minute throw away version, involving some uninspired singing from Elvis part. Thankfully, it always sounded much more full of energy when performed during the shows abroad. A far better rehearsal is “I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry” featuring the additional verse heard on the world tour as well. One of the highlights on the CD.

Listening to the rehearsal of “Welcome To My World” took me back to the time I saw Elvis perform in Paris for the first time (the soundboard from that concert was made available by FTD on the album Paris '77 a few years ago), the giant pictures of Graceland projected behind Elvis as he was singing the song. I remember it sent shivers up my spine.

Elvis then discusses the order of some of the songs to be performed on the opening show, among them “Hound Dog,” “What Now My Love,” “Fever” and “Suspicious Minds,” neither of which are rehearsed. (But listening to them on the Elvis Recorded Live On Stage In London album, it's obvious they turned out all right all the same.)

The ending of “I'll Remember You” causes the orchestra some problems. “I thought that was bad enough,” Elvis mutters after an abandoned attempt. After they finally get it right, Elvis launches himself into a driven and rockin' medley of “Long Tall Sally”/Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On.” Not only is this version one minute longer than the one from Hawaii, it's also much better, sounding very much like the one found on the Live On Stage In London album (although that one of course lasts for about five minutes). 

“An American Trilogy” always evoked great response, not only in the southern states, but also when performed all throughout Europe and then the rest of the world during 1973. Listening to the powerhouse version on From Hawaii To The Rest Of The World it's easy to understand why. Similarly, the rehearsal of “A Big Hunk O' Love” gives you an idea of why everyone stood up and clapped their hands when this rock 'n' roll oldie was belted out by Elvis in arenas all around the world.

The catchy “I'm Leavin It Up To You” was always a highlight during the first world tour, but the rehearsal reveals that the song almost didn't make it to the set list. Lasting only for about 43 seconds, Elvis cuts it short with the words “That's all. Let's do 'Faded Love'.” Someone then asks him why he stopped, receiving the answer, “It was written with a pen. I couldn't read it.” Thankfully, someone must have produced typed written lyrics and convinced Elvis to rehears it again (after the cassette tape ended).

Just like “I'm Leavin' It Up Top You,” “Faded Love” wasn't performed on the Aloha From Hawaii show. But luckily Elvis choose to retrieve this number from his 1971 Elvis Country album. It was then regularly performed during the following world tour, the rehearsal reminding me of the version recently released on the FTD treatment of Live In Australia.

The rehearsal of “I Can't Stop Loving You” is a near copy of the version found on Aloha From Hawaii Via Satellite. Not bad, but far more interesting are the two versions of “Separate Ways,” one with just the band and the other with band and orchestra. Always an emotional moment when performed during the first world tour, one can hardly dare to think about what a loss it would have been if Elvis had chosen not to try the song in front of an audience. Just listen to the heartbroken version included on the Elvis Recorded Live On Stage In London album and you'll understand what I'm talking about.

Another highlight during Elvis' first world tour was of course “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” and it's nice to listen to a rehearsal of it, even if the live versions available all sound much more exciting. “Let's do 'Can't Help Falling In Love' and we can call it off,” Elvis then tells the band before the From Hawaii To The Rest Of The World release ends with an (incomplete) version of the show closer we all know so well. To think that Elvis didn't change that one until 1977!

To sum it up – From Hawaii To The Rest Of The World is an essential release. Granted, the sound quality leaves a lot to be desired, but as a historical document it's priceless. This is how Elvis worked with his repertoire up to the last moment before leaving for his opening show in London.

Back in this universe, I'd like to recommend From Hawaii To Las Vegas as well. It's certainly not everyday a rehearsal turns up like this. But what a strange experience it must have been for Elvis to return to doing routine shows in Las Vegas after the Aloha From Hawaii success just a few weeks earlier. What if the satellite show had been followed by a world tour instead. One can only dream.

This post is dedicated to Troy Y. who runs The Mystery Train Blog.

Temple Riser Is Alive And Well

One of my greatest Elvis moments so far this year was attending 'The Original Elvis Tribute 2012' opening show in Vara, Sweden, on April 7. Therefore I was excited to receive the following press release from tour manager Arjan Deelen: 
 

TEMPLE RISER FOUND!
“The moment he came into the studio, I was in awe” 

For many years, the name Temple Riser was a bit of a mystery in the Elvis world. Not much was known about the dark-haired beauty with the deep, strong voice other than the fact that she had sung backup for Elvis at his early 70s Nashville sessions, and that she got to record a duet with Elvis live in the studio on ‘The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face’. Her whereabouts were unknown, and it seemed like she had simply vanished off this planet. Nobody seemed to know where she was located or whether she was still amongst us. Earlier this year, Elvis expert Arjan Deelen decided to try and locate her, and just a few weeks ago, his research paid off when he found her alive and well and even looking pretty much the way she did 40 years ago! 
 
Temple Riser, who is now 63, feels that she has been blessed in life, and cites working with Elvis and singing at President Nixon’s inauguration as her (singing) career highlights. About meeting Elvis for the first time, she says: “I was a little stuck up… I didn’t want to give him the impression that I was starstruck. But the moment he came into the studio, I was in awe… He had such a charisma about him, and he was so handsome. And he was very flirtatious!”, she says with a smile.

When asked about her nicest memories of him, she answers: “There’s several… I remember that he invited me and Ginger & Mary (Holladay) to come to his hotel room in Nashville - and we did. He was just so nice to us. Very easy to talk to, very talkative. He grabbed his guitar and we sang Gospels together. He didn’t sing any of his hits, just Gospel music… he loved that”.

About the duet, she says: “He asked me to do the duet with him. He was really having a good time while we recorded it. I just tried to do the best I could. You know, I used to be embarrassed about it. I didn’t think I sounded so good. These days with the internet it’s turning up everywhere, and people ask me about it. I’m proud of the fact that I got to sing with Elvis Presley. It doesn’t get any better than that!”.
 
The really exciting news is that Temple Riser will be joining the ’Original Elvis Tribute’ show together with a.o. Mary and Ginger Holladay for a Euro tour in May 2013! 
 
“People have told me that the Elvis fans in Europe know about me, and I have always said: ‘You’ve got to be kidding!’. I’m really excited about coming to Europe for the very first time, and meeting the fans and performing for them. We may even do that duet, ‘The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face’. Hopefully, I will do a better job on it this time around!”, Temple laughingly says. “It’s a priviledge to be able to pay tribute to the greatest performer ever and I will do my best to make this tour memorable for the fans. See you all in May 2013!”.

After reading the above e-mail I wanted to know more. So, after pressing the “reply” button, I wrote a couple of questions that Arjan Deelen was kind enough to answer right away. 

Elvis Today: How did you get the idea to search for Temple Riser?

Arjan Deelen: The name Temple Riser has always fascinated me, combined with the few photos that we have of her. Plus, there was virtually no information available anywhere, and that’s where things usually get really interesting for me! Somehow searches like this become more interesting when you know that they are virtually impossible – for me at least! Temple is one of the few people who actually recorded a duet with Elvis live in the studio. For me, it was also the logical next step after finding Mary and Ginger Holladay (who will also be on the next tour).

Elvis Today: How did you find her?

Arjan Deelen: Through a contact – and more or less by coincidence, believe it or not.

Elvis Today: What has she been doing all these years?

Arjan Deelen: Temple raised a family and now has children and grandchildren. She left the music business in the early 70s. She has lived a quiet life, but has been very active in church. Her second husband died a few years ago, and I think my timing was right when I contacted her. She says that she wants to show her grandchildren that there is more to her than just being a grandma, and she is really looking forward to the tour. She says that this will mark her first trip outside the U.S.

Elvis Today: What do you think her contribution will mean to 'The Original Elvis Tribute' when it tours Europe next year?

Arjan Deelen: Temple still has a very strong voice – and it’s well trained due to her singing in church. I think she is going to add a whole lot to the show. She has lots of nice stories to tell and I think the combination of her voice together with Mary and Ginger is going to sound tremendous. Just like they did together back in the early 70s. Temple says that she is really looking forward to being reunited with the Holladays. Like them, she is a vibrant and charming woman, and I think the audiences are going to enjoy her. It’s going to add a whole new energy to the show.

Elvis Today: Finally, when will the show return to Europe and will you play Sweden again?

Arjan Deelen: We will be touring in mid-May and yes, I definitely hope so!

So do I, as the opening show in Vara without question was the best Elvis tribute show I've ever attended. And I'm sure Temple Riser will add icing to the cake when 'The Original Elvis Tribute' returns, just as Mary and Ginger Holladay did when then joined the tour last year.

The King And The Boss

“Is Bruce Springsteen the one they call 'The King'?” said the guy sitting behind us while waiting for Bruce to start the show in Gothenburg a few days ago.

“No, that's Michael Jackson, isn't it?” answered his girlfriend.

“No way, Elvis Presley is the King,” the somewhat older man sitting next to them said firmly. “Michael Jackson is called The King of Pop.”

“By the way, do you know that a colleague at my office told me a great Elvis story?” the man continued. “He told me that his father had visited the States on business sometime in the seventies. He came to a town, I don't remember which one, and to his great pleasure saw that Elvis was going to perform there. But then he started thinking that maybe it would be better to bring his whole family to a show with Elvis. Seeing as they were planning a trip to the States the year after, he decided to wait. Boy, was that a mistake. Before the trip with the family Elvis died, so he really missed his chance to see the king.”

“Ah! Now I remember, Bruce is called The Boss!” exclaimed the younger guy who started the whole conversation.

The above conversation was overheard by me and my wife right before the Bruce Springsteen concert in Gothenburg on July 28. There being over 66,000 people in the audience, what were the chances of an Elvis fan like me getting seats just in front of a guy telling an Elvis story? Still, that's what happened.

Unfortunately, another Elvis connection that I sat hoping for during the actual show, never materialized. The Boss didn't salute the King with a cover of “Burning Love” this time, like he did in Firenze, Italy, earlier this year on the same tour. My wife shouted “Burning Love” valiantly a couple of times, but with thousands and thousands of screaming Bruce Springsteen fans between her and the stage, it was a hopeless effort.

Still, the show was a fantastic one, and the day after I watched the “Burning Love” performance on YouTube, noticing that it was sung on my birthday, no less. Kind of an Elvis connection as well, I guess.

Technical advisor for this post was my wife.

Additional reading:

• The Night Bruce Springsteen Jumped the Fence at Graceland (Elvis Australia)

Following That Dream (Part 4)

The fourth and last part of the article "Following That Dream," that I wrote for the Elvis International magazine, takes a closer look at the “what if” albums released by FTD.

“The album that could and should have been,” Ernst Jorgensen writes in the booklet accompanying FTD’s Standing Room Only, and he’s right. The decision to release Burning Love And Hits From His Movies Vol. 2 instead was both dumb and inexcusable. But 37 years later, in 2009, FTD aimed to put things right. The label’s version of Standing Room Only combines the Las Vegas masters from February 1972 with the studio masters recorded the following month. The second CD consists of outtakes from the March studio session.

The second album “that never was” is titled Elvis Sings Memphis, Tennessee. It was recorded by Elvis in Nashville in May, 1963 and January, 1964, but for different reasons didn’t see the light of day until 1990 when it was released as For The Asking – The Lost Album in Europe. (When released in the U.S. in 1991 it was titled just The Lost Album.) What FTD did in 2008 was to release all the original masters and alternate takes from these two sessions on 2 CD’s. In 2011 the same formula was used with Elvis Sings Guitar Man, the third “what if” album that included songs recorded in Nashville as well, masters as well as outtakes, this time from the period 1966-1967.

One of the highlights on the Elvis Sings Guitar Man album is the making on the title track from the September 1967 session. Listening to Jerry Reed taking command of the recordings is fascinating stuff, as is the studio banter between him and producer Felton Jarvis. And that brings me back to what I really enjoy the most about the releases from FTD; to listen to how Elvis approached his work, and in that way learn more about him as an artist and a performer To read about it is one thing, to listen to what actually took place when it happened is a completely different ball game.

I’d like to end this article with something I wrote for my blog last year after having listened to the recording of “Guitar Man” on Elvis Sings Guitar Man. Combining what I heard in my headphones with facts and memories from those who that were there (described in books by, for example, Ernst Jorgensen and Peter Guralnick) and by using a bit of imagination, I came up with the following.

Jerry Reed, a whirlwind of energy, hooks up his electric gut string, tunes the B-string up a whole tone, and tones the low E-string down a whole tone. “So I can bar straight across,” he explains to his fellow guitar players. He plays a couple of tones with his fingers.

Felton Jarvis glances at Elvis who is standing at the microphone, looking expectantly at Jerry. “We’re rolling, this is ‘Guitar Man’ take one,” Felton says, as Jerry continues to run through some guitar licks, trying to get his fingers up to speed. Elvis laughs as Jerry excuses himself, “I ain’t played all weekend, Elvis.” “I know, you’re house is a mess, Reed,” Felton kids him. Elvis, fascinated by the man, chimes in, “That’s a mess, man.” “It is ... a mess,” answers Jerry as he starts working out the intro.

“No man, there ain’t no way you can get them both, they'll just sound like a room full of spastics or something,” Jery Reed tells Chip Young, who nods his understanding that it’s not possible to do all the guitar parts from his original recording at one time. Then, after a couple of tries, he turns to bass player Bob Moore, “It’s long on the record, I forgot it’s like this,” he says and plays the intro just right. Elvis’ face lits up.

What follows is a take abandoned after the first verse, but during those 35 seconds there’s no mistaking Elvis sounding energized and engaged, focusing on the music. Instead it’s Jerry Reed making the mistakes, “Man, I may wonder of in the parking lot. Stay with me, or I’ll get to you, sometime tonight,” he jokes. “I can do that better ... one two, three four.”

And better and better it gets. Elvis, responding well to the shot of musical adrenaline injected by Jerry Reed’s guitar sound, really gets into it. Take 5 is the first complete take, and at the end of take 10, when the guitars and the rhythm is just right, Elvis starts singing “What’d I Say.”

As the band adds power, steel guitar player Pete Drake, wearing his customary flowered shirt, glances as Elvis and a thought runs through his mind: “Is this really the same guy that I played for in June, and whose last recording was that silly song, what was it called again ... yeah, the one with the corny title ... ‘He’s Your Uncle, Not Your Dad’?”

So, there you have it, one of many special moments with Elvis provided by the Follow That Dream label. With over 100 releases during its 13 years of existence, I still find myself looking forward to every new announcement for the next upcoming titles.

Still, it’s not easy to please everyone. Ernst Jorgensen and Roger Semon have constantly been criticized by fans for not releasing the right material, bad mixes, poor artwork on the covers and so on. And certainly, I don’t agree with everything they do either. But the amount of unreleased material that they have made available is really awesome, and I for one only have to think back to the 1980’s to realize how lucky the fans are to have them. As someone wrote on an Elvis forum a couple of years back, defending Ernst Jorgensen, “We’re spoiled folks, remember that!”

This post is dedicated to Ernst Jorgensen and Roger Semon.

• Following That Dream (Part 1)
• Following That Dream (Part2)
• Following That Dream (Part 3)

Following That Dream (Part 3)

Now follows the third part of the article “Following That Dream,” that I wrote for the Elvis International magazine. This part deals with the live concerts released by FTD.

From the beginning live concerts have also played an important part of the FTD label, and the policy is to issue at least one show from each and every engagement that Elvis did in Las Vegas and Lake Tahoe, as well as from every tour during the 1970’s. So far some 40 concert recordings have been released; the majority in the form of so called soundboard recordings (recorded from the mixing desk in mono).

These soundboards make it possible for fans to experience how Elvis sounded on stage throughout the 1970’s. For example, a release such as Elvis As Recorded At Boston Garden ’71 offers you the chance to experience a fantastic concert that shows that Elvis was still at the top of the game during his third tour, in November 1971. And thanks to releases such as Dixieland Rocks and A Dixieland Delight I’ve learned that it must have been an incredible experience to see Elvis live on tour in the spring and summer of 1975. Not only was Elvis himself often in a great mood and looking well, but the audiences also created atmospheres in the auditoriums that were incredible.

The Follow That Dream label also offers you the possibility to get a ticket to one of the weirdest concerts of Elvis’ career, available on the album Closing Night. The closing show in Las Vegas on September 3, 1973, was an unusual, and at times, crazy show. One moment Elvis in a good joking mood, for example while performing “What Now My Love” lying on a bed that had been pushed out on stage. Another moment he is showing his frustration with the Las Vegas routine, by changing the lyrics in “Love Me Tender” to “Adios, you mother, bye bye, papa, too. To hell with the Hilton Hotel … the showroom, too.” (Colonel Tom Parker was in the audience, and Elvis blowing off steam didn’t go down to well with him, as it resulted in a heated argument after the show where Elvis fired his manager, although he changed his mind a bit later).

At times FTD has released a taped rehearsal as well. The one titled From Sunset To Las Vegas makes it possible to visit Elvis’ rehearsals at RCA’s Hollywood studio on August 16, 1974 for his upcoming Las Vegas season, and then, with the help of the CD Nevada Nights get a seat in the Las Vegas Hilton showroom and listen to the opening show, where Elvis performs an entirely different repertoire than his standard show. Dropping the “2001” introduction, he opens with “Big Boss Man,” introduces new material like “Promised Land” and “It’s Midnight” and throws in songs he never done live before, including, surprisingly, “Down In The Alley” recorded back in May 1966. Unfortunately the second CD, featuring the August 21 Midnight Show, reveals that he is back in the old “2001”-“See See Rider”-“I Got A Woman”/”Amen” routine only two nights later.

For better or worse, a show from each and every tour and engagement means that not every release can be a great one content wise. Playing New Haven ’76, recorded live on July 30, 1976, is downright distressing. Not only does “And I Love You So” sound off-key, there is also no mistaking the tiredness in Elvis’ voice. That Elvis is exhausted and out of breath is painfully evident during the next song as well. Usually “America” was one of the highlights during his concerts in 1976, but this time it’s another story altogether. Elvis voice is weak and fragile. In fact, pretty much the whole show is a sad affair.

When you think about it, it’s hard to understand that this is the same guy that five months later performs some of his best shows that year, during his December tour. The 2 CD release Showtime! Birmingham/Dallas ’76 features two of those shows, recorded on December 28 and 29. Both makes for pure listening pleasure. Take the concert in Dallas, for example. From the first notes of “See See Rider” where he practically throws himself into the song, to the falsetto ending of “Unchained Melody,” it’s Elvis at full blast. “No Teddy Bear, forget that,” he says at one point and delivers an emotional rendition of “My Way” instead. Then it’s right into high gear and “Polk Salad Annie.” It’s that kind of show.

Some professionally recorded concerts have been issued by FTD as well. Nearly all of them are live recordings that RCA did in Las Vegas during 1969 and 1970, featuring Elvis at his peak. One Night In Vegas (August 10, 1970 Opening Show) and Elvis At The International (August 23, 1969 Midnight Show) are two examples of this.

From the day I heard the Elvis In Person album for the first time when I was a kid I have always enjoyed the live recordings with Elvis from 1969. He’s so full of energy, sings fantastic with much of that raw 68-voice still present and clowns around quite a bit (maybe too much at times). Even the old songs sound great, like “Blue Suede Shoes” and “Hound Dog.” And the monologue is always funny to listen to (“I did Loving You, loving her and loving everybody I could get my hands on at the time,” for example). That’s why I’m happy that four complete shows from August 1969 have been released from FTD so far, and I’m looking forward to more of the same. And of course the rest of the professionally August recorded 1970 shows are on my wish list too.

In one case professional recordings were done by RCA between March and May, 1977 at various concert halls (released under the title Spring Tours ’77). FTD has also issued the Recorded Live On Stage In Memphis album (taped March 20, 1974), including the eight songs that were cut from the original release in 1974.

With one of the latest concert offerings FTD managed to surprise us all. Last year, out of the blue, a professionally recorded Elvis concert suddenly made an appearance. Titled Forty Eight Hours To Memphis, it features a show recorded in Richmond, Virginia, on March 18, 1974, two days before the show in Memphis that was released as the Recorded Live On Stage In Memphis album I just mentioned. Elvis sounds engaged, like he is having a great time. It’s really incredible that a concert in this sound quality has surfaced so many years after it was recorded. The release shows that there is still more out there, waiting to be discovered. Things not even rumored to exist. In some ways, it was almost as exciting waiting for it as listening to it.

The last of the professionally recorded live material done by RCA that has been released by FTD on an album so far (I’m still waiting for Elvis In Concert) comes from Elvis’ January-February 1972 Las Vegas engagement. Titled An American Trilogy it includes songs from different shows done on February 14-17, recorded for the abandoned Standing Room Only album. Which brings me to the three “what if” albums that FTD has put together, one of which is, yeah, you guessed it, Standing Room Only. 

To be concluded on July 29 (Part 4) …

• Following That Dream (Part 1)
• Following That Dream (Part 2)

Following That Dream (Part 2)

Here follows the second part of the article “Following That Dream,” that I wrote for the Elvis International magazine. This part focus on the Classic Album series.

But it was with the launch of the Classic Album series in 2003 that FTD opened the doors wide to the different studios where Elvis worked during his career, and let us experience the recording sessions first hand. By releasing Elvis’ original albums in deluxe 7” size packaging together with an accompanying booklet and most of the times a second CD full of outtakes (many of them previously unreleased) we are offered a fly-on-the-wall experience of how Elvis and his group of musicians and singers develop the different arrangements of the songs in question.

I, for one, love to put my headphones on and time-travel to a recording session, listening to the laughter, banter, tuning of instruments and discussions taking place among Elvis and the musicians as they work out intros and make progress with the songs. Let me illustrate with a few examples, taken from the FTD classic albums Jailhouse Rock Volume 2, Blue Hawaii, How Great Thou Art and Elvis Sings The Wonderful World Of Christmas.

Starting with Jailhouse Rock Volume 2, I've always thought the title track must've been a demanding song for Elvis, and listening to the last couple of takes confirms that. “I don’t think I’m gonna make it all way through,” he says after take 8 and then goes on recording just the ending. Another highlight is the first movie version of “Treat Me Nice,” where not only the tempo changes during the course of the 19 takes of the song, but also the beginning and the ending. “That’s a hit,” Elvis jokes after the third take and a bad ending by the Jordanaires.

Overall, Elvis seems to be in a good mood during the Jailhouse Rock sessions. “How bad you want me to get,” he laughs after the second take of “Young And Beautiful” (jail version). The only time he seems irritated is while recording the second version of “Don't Leave Me Now.” “Seems like everybody is holding down, we can’t get any feeling out of it this way,” he mutters after the first couple of tries of the song.

Moving on to Blue Hawaii, the FTD version of the soundtrack offers a fascinating insight into the making of one of Elvis’ biggest selling albums. The first takes of “Rock-A-Hula Baby” are worth the admission alone. When Elvis for some reason stops singing 40 seconds into the second take, the band just keeps going, seemingly unable to stop. “Hold it,” Elvis shouts, then laughs, before launching into the third take, delivering a wild and cooking performance. Another highlight is the making of the movie version of “Can’t Help Falling In Love,” Elvis going through 26 takes of the song (12 of them are included on the FTD album). “Damn pants too tight,” he says before take 14. The following takes shows Elvis having trouble with the slow tempo of the song “I can’t hold a note worth a damn,” he sighs after abandoning take 22.

“Slicin’ Sand” might not be called a classic, but many of the 12 takes included are fun to listen to. One example is take 6 which has Elvis throwing in an extra verse: “Sand in my toes, sand in my hair, sand in my sandwich but I don’t care.” Elvis worked hard with “No More,” going through take after take of the song. As they all sound pretty similar, I was wondering about this, until I read today in Ernst Jorgensen’s A Life In Musicthat the writer of the song, Don Robertson, was invited to the studio that day. Elvis obviously wanted to show him that he was serious about the song.

Next in line is How Great Thou Art, recorded in May 1966. Getting a front seat in RCA’s Studio B in Nashville and being able to listen to Elvis’ new producer Felton Jarvis directing the session with his supportive comments and encouragement offers a great listening experience. The five takes of “Stand By Me” are good examples of this. Elvis can’t see the lyrics as the lights are turned down in the studio and mutters after an abandoned take, “That’s not the right lyrics, I’m singing another song. Give us just a little bit of light.” To me it then sounds like someone is rummaging around in a box of matches!

A demanding song for Elvis was “Where No One Stands Alone,” proof being the grand finale that Elvis recorded a couple of times as a work part to be spliced to the rest of the song. The ending always sends a shiver up my spine, and apparently Felton Jarvis felt the same way, exclaiming at one point: “It sounded great, Elvis. God, I was scared to death.” “By And By” is one of the fast numbers, in fact so fast that Elvis mixes up the lyrics. “We try to do our best when we wonder how to test,” he laughs. “Sounded like you said what the hell is this,” somebody in the studio shoots back as everybody cracks up. Hearing Elvis sing “I come to the piano...” after the intro played by Floyd Cramer (or is it David Briggs?) on the first take of “In The Garden” is a funny moment. It's easy to imagine Elvis walking towards the piano while singing this, making the pianist look up and lose his way among the keys.

One of the last albums FTD released in 2011 was Elvis Sings The Wonderful World Of Christmas. Elvis seems to be having a good time from the start during the session that took place in Nashville during two nights in May, 1971. While producer Felton Jarvis and the musicians discuss the beginning of “It Won't Seem Like Christmas (Without You)” featuring a celeste, Elvis throws in a line of “Merry Christmas Baby.” David Briggs follows suit, hammering away on the celeste. “I gotta hold you guys down, man,” Elvis laughs. Admittedly, he sounds a bit annoyed when the second take breaks down, complaining that the lyrics aren’t written out, but then works hard through a couple of more takes before settling on take 7 as the master. The previously unreleased take number 5 is a highlight, with Elvis pushing the boundaries of the song, the result a looser and less polished version than the master.

The FTD treatment of Elvis Sings The Wonderful World Of Christmas also reveals a more intimate and sensitive side of the 1971 Christmas recordings, with the help of outtakes not being overdubbed in any way. One example of this is “If I Get Home On Christmas Day.” When originally released in October 1971, Felton Jarvis had just about used every trick in the book when it came to making overdubs on it, adding strings, horns and a lot of backing vocals. Listening to the alternate takes, especially the early ones, you can almost be fooled into thinking it’s another song, it sounds so much more intimate.

As promised, those were some examples from the Classic Album series that give you an idea of how Elvis practiced his craft. I love the feeling of “being thrown” into the studio like that, and on occasion, see the recording sessions in a different light. For example, in his book Careless Love, Peter Guralnick writes that Elvis “was no more at ease than he had been at that strange session the previous September” while recording the songs for Elvis Sings The Wonderful World Of Christmas. Maybe that was the case, but it’s not something I found evidence of while listening to the outtakes provided by FTD's treatment of the album.

To be continued on July 27 (Part 3) ...

• Following That Dream (Part 1)