Tag Archives: Music

That’s The Way It Is reveals a different side of Elvis

by Troy Y.

My favorite album released during Elvis Presley’s lifetime is That’s The Way It Is. First hitting record stores in November 1970, it features studio material from his June recordings in Nashville as well as four live cuts from his August Las Vegas engagement. It serves as a soundtrack of sorts for the excellent documentary of the same name, also released that month.

Despite the status I give it, the album is not perfect. Rock ‘n’ roll fans sometimes dismiss it as an easy-listening bore. One of the causes of that issue, I believe, is the sequencing of songs. Many of them should have been presented in a different order. For instance, the album unfortunately begins with a live version of the sleepy B.J. Thomas hit “I Just Can’t Help Believin’” and establishes the wrong tone.

Adding to the trouble, two of the live performances, “Patch It Up” and “I’ve Lost You,” are not as powerful as their studio counterparts, which should have been used instead. The studio recordings had been released as singles prior to the album, so the live versions were likely considered bonuses for fans that already had the 45s. The artistry of the album should have taken priority, though.

Apparently to complete the “feel” of a live album, RCA overdubbed applause on the end of the studio version of “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” which closed out That’s The Way It Is. Elvis’ vocals on the first verse of the song are also very faint in the mix, either on purpose or due to a technical glitch. You can better hear Elvis’ beautiful performance of this song, with his voice louder on the first verse and without the annoying applause overdubs, on Heart & Soul and the Elvis: Walk A Mile In My Shoes-The Essential 70s Masters boxed set.

That's The Way It Is (1970)

Side 1

“I Just Can’t Help Believin’”
Live Master–8/11/1970 Dinner Show (DS): As noted above, the song does not serve well as an album opener. While it is misplaced on the album, the performance is strong. I love the little traces of humor in his voice. He sounds on the verge of laughing a couple of times. Also memorable is his interaction with the Sweet Inspirations throughout (“Sing the song, baby”). Elvis would never be quite as incredible again live as he was in this engagement.

“Twenty Days And Twenty Nights”
Master–Take 9: For me, this song represents the adult Elvis, the recording artist that is too often overlooked. “Twenty Days And Twenty Nights” is about a man who regrets leaving his wife, and Elvis evokes this character through music as well as any actor could on screen. The performance plays through the range of emotions, even striking a hopeful tone (“One day soon I’m going back…”) before falling back into despair as he laments “Oh, how I miss her,” over and over at the end.

“How The Web Was Woven”
Master–Take 3: The highlight of the album, “How The Web Was Woven” is a love song that ranks right up there with the better-known “Can’t Help Falling In Love.” From the acoustic guitar opening to the accompanying piano, the arrangement on this one works very well. “At last, I’m where you want me . . . Don’t you know that’s where, where I wanna be,” he sings with a passion that, for this listener anyway, exceeds even the incredible American Sound sessions in Memphis the year before.

“Patch It Up”
Live Master–8/12/1970 DS: Compared to the excellent studio take, this live version sounds almost like a throwaway. Watching this same energetic performance in the film, though, is an entire other experience.

“Mary In The Morning”
Master–Take 5: This is a pretty, if forgettable, love song. It goes on a bit too long and eventually becomes tiresome.

“You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me”
Master–Take 3: Though it is a fine performance, I would have chosen “How The Web Was Woven” or one of the others as a single over Elvis’ version of the Dusty Springfield hit.

Side 2

“You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’”
Live Master–8/12/1970 MS: This live performance is the definitive version of this song by anyone. This is Elvis at his best: “It makes me just feel like cryin,’ ’cause baby . . . something beau-ti-ful’s dy-in.’” The Righteous Brothers sound like they are singing a lullaby in the original recording compared to the Elvis version. Even Elvis was never able to equal his own performance again in other concerts.

“I’ve Lost You”
Live Master–8/11/1970 DS: While I love this live performance of “I’ve Lost You,” I prefer the studio version featuring more complicated lyrics and arrangement. That being said, this is still a highlight.

“Just Pretend”
Master–Take 3: Picking up where “Twenty Days And Twenty Nights” left off, this turns the despair of a man who left his lover and turns it back to hope for reconciliation. “Now I know, it was wrong to go, I belong there by your side,” he sings, bordering on the type of apology song that Elvis would perfect a couple of years later with “Always On My Mind.” The impressive “Just Pretend,” with a gospel-inspired arrangement, is another all-time favorite.

“Stranger In The Crowd”
Master–Take 9: This is yet another highlight. The band really cooks on this one. For some, Elvis Presley brings to mind “Hound Dog,” “Don’t Be Cruel,” “All Shook Up,” and similar tunes. While those are all fine, when I think of Elvis, I think of songs like “How The Web Was Woven,” “I’ve Lost You,” and “Stranger In The Crowd.”

“The Next Step Is Love”
Master–Take 11: Here’s one studio song where I actually prefer the live version. “The Next Step Is Love” is a little hokey either way, but the studio arrangement, complete with xylophone(!), does not help matters.

“Bridge Over Trouble Water”
Master–Studio Take 8 (with overdubbed applause): I stopped listening to the original album version of this song once RCA finally released a proper studio track. The one on this album simply does not do justice to his performance. The Heart & Soul version, though, I would contend as the best version of this song by anyone.

Upon its original release, That’s The Way It Is faced stiff competition from none other than Elvis himself. In their infinite wisdom, his record label released the following Elvis music in October and November of 1970:

  • Almost In Love album (an excellent “budget” release)
  • “You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me”/”Patch It Up” single
  • Elvis In Person album (re-release of record 1 of the previous year’s From Memphis To Vegas/From Vegas To Memphis double album)
  • Back In Memphis album (re-release of record 2 of From Memphis To Vegas/From Vegas To Memphis)
  • Elvis’ Christmas Album (“budget” repackaging)
  • That’s The Way It Is album
  • “I Really Don’t Want To Know”/”There Goes My Everything” single

Despite the oversaturation, That’s The Way It Is made it to number 21 on the charts and obtained gold record status. It probably would have done even better had fans not been so bombarded with Elvis product in the fall of 1970.

Elvis rehearsing How The Web Was Woven, 1970

Elvis rehearsing How The Web Was Woven, 1970

While a wonderful album, That’s The Way It Is also would have been greatly improved if a couple of different song versions had been used and the album had been sequenced as below in my imaginary version of That’s The Way It Is.

Side 1

  • “Stranger In The Crowd” (studio, as on original)
  • “I’ve Lost You” (substitute studio version)
  • “How The Web Was Woven” (studio, as on original)
  • “You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me” (studio, as on original)
  • “Bridge Over Troubled Water” (substitute Heart & Soul studio version without overdubbed applause)
  • “I Just Can’t Help Believin’” (live, as on original)

Side 2

  • “Patch It Up” (substitute studio version)
  • “Twenty Days And Twenty Nights” (studio, as on original)
  • “Just Pretend” (studio, as on original)
  • “The Next Step Is Love” (studio, as on original)
  • “Mary In The Morning” (studio, as on original)
  • “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’” (live, as on original)

No matter the order you listen, though, That’s The Way It Is represents a true Elvis masterpiece.

Portions of the above review originally appeared on The Film Frontier pop culture blog on May 21, 2008.

The Audition

by Troy Y.

Witness one anxious singer as she enters her final audition, in a place located just north of… the edge of reality.

When was the last time she had truly auditioned for anything? She could not remember. As she sat in the little lobby, waiting her turn, someone continued pounding the piano in a bombastic style in the next room, just beyond a closed door.

Over the piano, she could also hear a male voice. “I need your love,” the captivating voice sang. He sounded so familiar, but she could not place him. “God… speed your love… to… me,” he finished on a high note and added a flourish of piano keys.

No trace of doubt. No trace of strain. Every note perfect.

Was this her competition?

How could she top that?

She hated that she had to ask those questions. At one time, it would not have mattered. Her voice would have carried her well beyond any challenger. But now, things were different.

Dressed in blue, the guard rose and fished through dangling keys on a ring before inserting one into the doorknob. “You can go in,” he said, holding the door open for her.

“You really have this place locked down. You must get a lot of crime here.”

“No, not exactly,” he said, and ushered her inside.

She walked into a large, dim studio. The only thing cutting through the darkness was a single spotlight, shining down on a young man sitting before a grand piano.

“Hello?” her voice squeaked. After hearing the awe-inspiring song from the lobby, she was completely nervous. So much for all the practicing.

“I’m ready when you are,” he said.

She could not even remember what she planned to perform.

As if sensing this, the young man began playing a quiet melody. She knew the song. She had practically grown up singing it.

“Yes, Jesus loves me…” she began singing. She knew immediately. Her voice, her gift, was finally back. Like it was before. Full of joy, she wanted to cry, but she kept going, “…for the Bible tells me so.”

The song seemed to come from within her. The more she sang, the more she realized this was not like before. Even then, she had not been able to sing like this.

She wanted to go on singing forever, but she soon came to the end of the song. She realized she was now within the warmth of the spotlight, too. The young man behind the piano was smiling.

“Have we met? You seem so familiar,” she said.

“Yes, but you were just a little girl back then.”

She laughed. “When I was a little girl? You’re not even half my age, you know.”

“It depends on the day,” he said. “And, by the way, welcome to the show.”

“You mean, I made it? I’m in? No call-backs?”

His blue eyes sparkled in amusement. “You made it as soon as he let you through that door,” he said.

“Then, what was all this?”

“I just wanted to hear you sing. Back then, I had to go, before I ever had the chance. Your voice is so powerful.”

“I know… I don’t know where that came from.” The tears began flowing from her eyes.

“Honey, don’t cry.” His voice was suddenly different, like that of a father. She looked at him again, and he seemed older. She felt younger, like she was six-years-old again.

She recognized him now.

His hands began playing another melody on the keyboard. An old country song. His voice boomed as he sang, “In the twilight glow, I see her…”

He stopped and said, “That new strength in your voice, part of it comes from joy, you see. Your music brings happiness to millions of people, and now you have all of that joy within you. They are sharing it with you.”

She understood now. “But I did so many things wrong,” she said.

“So did I,” he said and shook his head, lost in thought for a moment. “So did all of us.”

“Then, how did we make it here?” she asked.

“Our audience is very forgiving.”

“He’s here with us?”

“He always has been, Whitney. He always has been,” said Elvis.

Two legends, united in destiny and still making music on… the edge of reality.

[With apologies to Serling.]

The Audition

Last Saturday night, I was browsing through some of my favorite sites before I went to bed. I checked The Sheila Variations blog for any new pieces. The top story featured an embedded video of Whitney Houston singing “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

The story had no text, but Sheila’s headline was simple, effective, and haunting: How I Will Always Remember Her.

The words sent a chill through me. Why would she title her post something like that? My heart did not want to know, but my mind understood exactly what it meant.

Still feeling cold, I went to Yahoo News and confirmed the worst. Whitney Houston was dead. As I began to read the story, I queued up “The Greatest Love Of All,” the first Whitney song I’d ever heard. Memories of being a fifth-grader in elementary school came flooding back. My teacher, a gifted educator and vocalist, sang this to us one day and told us all about a young singer named Whitney Houston.

Next up, I played “I Will Always Love You,” a song that Whitney simply owned. No one, not even the songwriter, can sing that one like Whitney did in her prime. Not even close.

I’m not going to pretend I’ve been a huge Whitney Houston fan for all of these years. For a period of time in the early 1990s, though, she was one of my favorite singers. Eventually, I overplayed her albums and moved on to other artists.

I didn’t follow her as closely after that, but I still rooted for her. I was sorry to learn of her struggles, and I was always hoping that, somehow, she would work things out and stage a huge comeback.

“Now, she won’t get her comeback,” is actually one of the first things I thought about when learning she had passed away. In fact, that thought was the beginning of the above short story.

The night Whitney Houston died, I concluded my impromptu tribute by playing the “Star-Spangled Banner.” I remembered watching the live television broadcast of Super Bowl XXV in 1991 when she performed what would soon become the gold standard against which all other versions of the National Anthem are judged.

The song ended, but before I could close iTunes, Whitney’s version of “America The Beautiful” began. I just couldn’t turn it off, so I considered it an encore.

Farewell, Whitney. Thank you for the music.

This post is dedicated with respect to the memory of Whitney Houston, 1963-2012. Her music lives on.