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Post by jk on Aug 16, 2020 5:54:20 GMT -5
Curiously, I was spurred on to start this topic by an Elvis impersonator, the irrepressible Eilert Pilarm, the "Swedish Elvis" (although he says there are at least three). Lotsa good stuff by the original Big E to follow.  linken.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eilert_Pilarm |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 16, 2020 9:13:15 GMT -5
My Hopalong Cassidy guitar and Elvis Presley pretty much launched my musical life. I saw Elvis on TV - probably on the Ed Sullivan show - when I was a tyke. I'm told I was beside myself - gyrating and mimicking him on the living room coffee table. For a while they called me Little Elvis. Fifteen years later, my mom took me to see him in Lake Tahoe for my 18th b'day. He was in great shape at that time and put on a helluva show. Thank you very much...
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Post by jk on Aug 16, 2020 12:19:48 GMT -5
Thanks for that, Steve.  Here's a real Elvis song, the one that prompted the title of this thread. Here you get a genuine chuckle (at 2:07) instead of those horrendous "having fun with Elvis" hysterics: |
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Post by jk on Aug 17, 2020 16:28:13 GMT -5
Staying with his Sun records, this is the truly anthemic "Good Rockin' Tonight":
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Post by jk on Aug 19, 2020 7:59:57 GMT -5
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Post by jk on Aug 22, 2020 5:53:53 GMT -5
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Post by Moon Dawg on Aug 22, 2020 9:38:46 GMT -5
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Post by Moon Dawg on Aug 22, 2020 9:52:49 GMT -5
Apologies for the above technical snafu. I meant to add that KING CREOLE stands as the best of the Elvis movie soundtracks, while the film itself is probably his best picture. Director Michael Curtiz (CASABLANCA, MILDRED PIERCE, ROBIN HOOD) creates a nice film noir atmosphere that works as a drama and a musical. The opening sequence with the "Crawfish" duet is superbly realized. Presley gives a nuanced performance within a very good ensemble cast including Carolyn Jones, Walter Matthau, Vic Morrow, and Dolores Hart. (In my view his post-Army amphetamine use had a decidedly negative impact on his acting.)
As for the music, it is mostly first rate, with the rockers standing out a bit more than the ballads. "King Creole", "Trouble", "New Orleans", and "Hard Headed Woman" rock the house, with "Steadfast, Loyal and True" hinting at the tripe to come. The aforementioned "Crawfish" is an overlooked gem in the Elvis catalog. The 45rpm single "Hard Headed Woman" b/w "Don't Ask Me Why" made #1 on Billboard's HOT 100 while the album peaked at #2 on the LP chart.
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Post by jk on Aug 22, 2020 17:09:11 GMT -5
Apologies for the above technical snafu. I meant to add that KING CREOLE stands as the best of the Elvis movie soundtracks, while the film itself is probably his best picture. Director Michael Curtiz (CASABLANCA, MILDRED PIERCE, ROBIN HOOD) creates a nice film noir atmosphere that works as a drama and a musical. The opening sequence with the "Crawfish" duet is superbly realized. Presley gives a nuanced performance within a very good ensemble cast including Carolyn Jones, Walter Matthau, Vic Morrow, and Dolores Hart. (In my view his post-Army amphetamine use had a decidedly negative impact on his acting.) As for the music, it is mostly first rate, with the rockers standing out a bit more than the ballads. "King Creole", "Trouble", "New Orleans", and "Hard Headed Woman" rock the house, with "Steadfast, Loyal and True" hinting at the tripe to come. The aforementioned "Crawfish" is an overlooked gem in the Elvis catalog. The 45rpm single "Hard Headed Woman" b/w "Don't Ask Me Why" made #1 on Billboard's HOT 100 while the album peaked at #2 on the LP chart. Thanks for this, MD. Yes indeed, "Hard Headed Woman" is a fantastic track: |
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Post by jk on Sept 2, 2020 15:32:35 GMT -5
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Post by jk on Sept 25, 2020 14:03:40 GMT -5
This has to be one of the spookiest singles ever released. I remember leaving the main area of a party in '65 and wandering into a darkened room where Elvis's "Blue Moon" was playing and had just reached the point when he breaks into falsetto! Scared the living daylights out of me it did, as if there were a banshee in the room with me.  |
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Post by Moon Dawg on Sept 27, 2020 9:43:52 GMT -5
"Blue Moon" is definitely one of the great Elvis tracks from Sun and a clear highlight off his RCA debut LP. Spooky and strange, late night aura. Nice yodeling...he was something of a tenor as a young singer.
I never quite understood RCA's motivation in simultaneously releasing seven Elvis singles of previously released material in September 1956. (Between "Hound Dog"/"Don't Be Cruel" and "Love Me Tender"/"Any Way You Want Me". ) Some good stuff, but a rather strange marketing ploy. I'd imagine these cuts from his first album and early EPs collectively sold around 700,000 copies in 45 rpm form, so yeah, the $ was green, as always.
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Post by jk on Oct 4, 2020 7:30:48 GMT -5
"I Got Stung" (1958) is for fans of eusocial insects everywhere. Let's face it, they're going to be around a lot longer than us! |
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Post by jk on Oct 31, 2020 16:59:40 GMT -5
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Post by jk on Jan 14, 2021 16:04:40 GMT -5
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Post by AGD on Jan 14, 2021 18:18:51 GMT -5
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Post by jk on Jan 15, 2021 4:33:16 GMT -5
"Wear My Ring Around Your Neck" always struck me as a strange request! Great song though. I love how the drummer, D.J. Fontana, goes berserk in the bridge, particularly on its second appearance. On a chain ! Ah! Now that makes sense. I was wondering whether the song came from some exotic movie where rings around necks were the order of the day but it doesn't. The first time I heard the record on Radio Luxembourg in the early '60s, DJ Barry Alldis (I had to refresh my memory on who hosted their Elvis show) made a similar remark and it stuck with me. Thanks for clarifying! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barry_Alldis |
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Post by jk on Jan 27, 2021 17:40:04 GMT -5
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