The Elvis Beat Newsletter

Review: THAT’S THE WAY IT IS CD [The Elvis Beat newsletter]

/ TY

I was 18 when I wrote this review back in 1993 for The Elvis Beat #5, my official Elvis Presley Fan Club newsletter.

That’s The Way It Is (RCA), recorded by Elvis Presley, produced by Felton Jarvis. Recorded June 1970, RCA Studios (Nashville) and August 1970, International Hotel (Las Vegas). Released: December 1970. Re-released: 1993 (CD).

That’s The Way It Is continued Elvis’ string of awesome studio work which had started at the Memphis sessions in January 1969. It is definitely one of the most outstanding albums of his career.

Over half of the twelve songs on the album were recorded in June 1970 at RCA’s Nashville studios, a recording session which eventually yielded the bulk of the songs on three albums.

The rest of the songs were taken from his Summer 1970 Las Vegas engagement, which was filmed for the documentary Elvis: That’s The Way It Is.

All twelve songs on the album are so great that favorites cannot even be chosen. Elvis does his own distinct versions of several previously recorded songs of other artists which far exceed the originals – “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin'” and “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” for example.

Fans of this album should also obtain the videos Elvis: That’s The Way It Is, which contains all of the songs in one form or another, and Elvis: The Lost Performances, which features excellent live versions of “Twenty Days And Twenty Nights” and “Just Pretend.”

Songs:

  1. “I Just Can’t Help Believin'”
  2. “Twenty Days And Twenty Nights”
  3. “How The Web Was Woven”
  4. “Patch It Up”
  5. “Mary In The Morning”
  6. “You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me”
  7. “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin'”
  8. “I’ve Lost You”
  9. “Just Pretend”
  10. “Stranger In The Crowd”
  11. “The Next Step Is Love”
  12. “Bridge Over Troubled Water”

Rating: 10 out of 10

New 70s Elvis CDs released [The Elvis Beat newsletter]

/ TY

I was 18 when I wrote this piece back in 1993 for The Elvis Beat #5, my official Elvis Presley Fan Club newsletter.

The latest additions to RCA’s “Elvis In The 90s” series have arrived at record stores. The new trio, available separately, consists of:

  • That’s The Way It Is
  • Elvis Country
  • Elvis Now

All three of the albums were originally released in the 1970s, but they have been digitally remastered and released on CD for the first time.

Only days away is the year’s biggest Elvis release, ELVIS: From Nashville To Memphis – The Essential 60s Masters I. Reviews of the three new 1970s CDs appear elsewhere in this newsletter.

From Nashville To Memphis . . . [The Elvis Beat newsletter]

/ TY

I was 18 when I wrote this article back in 1993 for The Elvis Beat #5, my official Elvis Presley Fan Club newsletter.

ELVIS: From Nashville To Memphis – The Essential 60s Masters I, a new 5-CD boxed set, will appear in record stores on September 28. The collection is the follow-up to the highly successful 1992 release ELVIS: The King Of Rock ‘n’ Roll – The Complete 50s Masters, which earned platinum status and three Grammy nominations.

The Essential 60s Masters I follows the same format established by The Complete 50s Masters. Along with the five CDs will be a new 94-page booklet that will contain recording session data, a 1960s discography, and liner notes by Peter Guralnick. Also included will be a page of stamps depicting Elvis’ 1960s record covers.

According to promotional material, the CDs will feature “Elvis Presley’s finest 60’s performances from Nashville plus the complete 1969 Memphis Sessions.” In addition, the set will contain 19 previously unreleased/alternate performances for a total of 130 digitally remastered tracks.

The unreleased/alternate songs will include:

  • “I’ll Remember You”
  • “Guitar Man/What’d I Say”
  • “This Time/I Can’t Stop Loving You”
  • “In The Ghetto”
  • “Suspicious Minds”
  • “Kentucky Rain”
  • “It’s Now Or Never”
  • “Love Me Tender/Witchcraft” (duet with Frank Sinatra)

The collection brings the world a little closer to achieving RCA’s goal of having every Elvis song available on compact disc. Future releases are to include The Essential 60s Masters II and the long-awaited 70s boxed set.

Review – ELVIS AND THE COLONEL: THE UNTOLD STORY (1993) [The Elvis Beat newsletter]

/ TY

I was 18 when I wrote this review back in 1993 for The Elvis Beat #4, my official Elvis Presley Fan Club newsletter.

Elvis And The Colonel: The Untold Story (NBC), starring Beau Bridges, directed by William A. Graham, aired January 10, 1993.

Elvis And The Colonel: The Untold Story is a story that should have remained untold. Not only is this the worst movie ever made about Elvis, but this is also probably the worst movie ever.

The initial concept behind this television movie was actually a good idea – an examination of the well-documented mismanagement of Elvis’ career by Colonel Tom Parker. But the end result is an absolute failure.

Elvis And The Colonel is one big mistake after another. A listing of some of the many factual errors contained in this movie appears on page 5 of this newsletter.

The biggest mistake of all occurred in the casting department when Robb Youngblood was chosen to play “Elvis.” Youngblood does not bear the slightest resemblance to Elvis, so one can only assume that he was selected for his acting ability. The problem with that theory is that [. . .] at no time during the entire two-hour movie is he convincing as “Elvis.” [. . . .]

It is also obvious that no effort was made to make Youngblood look like Elvis. Throughout the 22 years of “Elvis”‘ life that this movie portrays, Youngblood wears basically the same hairstyle–even while in the Army. It looks awful and resembles none of the many different styles Elvis wore his hair in over the years.

Youngblood’s clothes in the movie look so cheap that even the local [discount store] would be embarrassed to sell them. Once again, they resemble nothing the real Elvis ever wore. The styles may have changed since his time, but Elvis never looked cheap the way Youngblood does.

All of these cosmetic problems could have been overlooked had Elvis And The Colonel been a good story but, as mentioned before, it is filled with errors. And even beyond those errors, the script is poorly written and the entire movie is poorly made. [. . . .]

Beau Bridges, who was obviously chosen only to draw more viewers, stars as “Colonel Parker” and does a poor job also, but in a different way than Youngblood. Bridges makes the Colonel appear too likable and too nice, defeating the purpose of the movie.

Youngblood seems to have accidentally studied Gomer Pyle videos instead of Elvis ones for his part, for he plays Elvis as an extremely stupid fool – which could not be further from the truth.

Appropriately, even the house that is supposed to be Graceland looks nothing like the real thing.

The ELVIS television special, or the ’68 Comeback Special as it has come to be known, featured Elvis in top form. Of course, this movie slaughters this as well. One of the most ludicrous moments in the movie, and there are many, occurs when Youngblood is shown standing in front of a series of waist-high letters that spell “ELVIS” in red lights. The real version was over two stories tall and looked much better.

One of the many myths that Elvis And The Colonel perpetuates is everyone’s old favorite: “Elvis” appears overweight throughout the 1970s in this movie while the real Elvis did not begin to experience significant weight problems until about two years before his death. Youngblood is shown obese by 1971, while the real Elvis at the time was in shape and would remain so for a few more years. Of course, in such an inaccurate movie, such mistakes are not surprising.

Half of the “Elvis” songs used in the movie were apparently taken from Ronnie McDowell’s work for the 1979 television movie Elvis, starring Kurt Russell, and not surprisingly, Youngblood does a poor job lip-synching to them. The rest of the songs were performed by Youngblood himself and are awful. One particularly bad scene uses a combination of McDowell’s and Youngblood’s vocal tracks.

The most surprising thing about this movie is that Dick Clark was its executive producer. Clark also executive produced the Kurt Russell Elvis movie, directed by John Carpenter, which is one of the better movies based on Elvis’ life.

With this new movie, Clark has gone wrong. He has stated his respect for Elvis in the past and his disdain for the Colonel, but this movie serves only to slam Elvis instead of its intended target.

Incidentally, Elvis And The Colonel was directed by William A. Graham, who directed the real Elvis in Change Of Habit, which was one of Elvis’ better films.

It is apparent that no one connected with this movie bothered to do any significant research about its topic. It is also apparent that the movie’s production was rushed, probably to have it ready in time to cash in on the free publicity of the Elvis stamp release two days prior to this movie airing. They need not have bothered, for The Carol Burnett Show: A Reunion special beat it soundly in the ratings.

The worst part about Elvis And The Colonel: The Untold Story is that some people, who knew nothing about Elvis, probably watched this irresponsible movie and now think that this is what Elvis was really like.

Songs include:

  • “Lawdy, Miss Clawdy”
  • “Rip It Up”
  • “Tutti Frutti”
  • “Long Tall Sally”
  • “Heartbreak Hotel”
  • “Trouble”
  • “Blue Moon Of Kentucky”
  • “Are You Lonesome Tonight”
  • “The Wonder Of You”
  • “Dixie/The Battle Hymn Of The Republic”

Rating: 1 out of 10

Review – ELVIS: THE EARLY YEARS (1993) [The Elvis Beat newsletter]

/ TY

I was 18 when I wrote this review back in 1993 for The Elvis Beat #4, my official Elvis Presley Fan Club newsletter.

Elvis: The Early Years (ABC/TNT), starring Michael St. Gerard, various directors. Original Elvis series airdates: February–May 1990 (ABC). Mini-series edit airdates: January 6 (Part I) and 7 (Part II), 1993 (TNT).

TNT obtained the rights to air the 13 half-hour episodes of the 1990 ABC television series Elvis, edited them together, and aired them earlier this year as the two-part mini-series Elvis: The Early Years. Three of these episodes were previously unaired in any form due to the untimely cancellation of the 1990 Elvis series.

Elvis: The Early Years – Part I encompasses the episodes:

  • “Money Honey”
  • “The Storm”
  • “The Locket”
  • “Bel-Air Breakdown”
  • “Moody’s Blues”
  • “Hole In The Pocket”

Elvis pays to record a record for his mother, which eventually leads to his discovery. He joins forces with guitarist Scotty Moore and bassist Bill Black, and together they record “That’s All Right,” Elvis’ first release. The single becomes popular regionally and they go on several concert tours, causing friction between Elvis and his fictional girlfriend, Matti Walker.

Elvis purchases the famous pink Cadillac for his mother with his first royalty check from “That’s All Right.”

Elvis: The Early Years – Part II encompasses the episodes:

  • “Roots”
  • “Grand Ole Opry”
  • “Sun Sessions”
  • “Four Mules”
  • “The Old Man”
  • “Bodyguards”
  • “Let It Burn”

Elvis appears on the Grand Ole Opry radio program and is told to “stick to driving a truck,” an incident which haunts him and almost causes him to give up his singing career.

Elvis recovers and they continue to tour. They are booked on the Louisiana Hayride, another Southern radio program, and later sign to appear weekly. With the increased exposure, Elvis’ popularity continues to rise and, as it does, his problems with Matti escalate as well.

When Matti decides to marry another man, an enraged Elvis drives the Cadillac until the wheel bearings go out and the car burns.

Elvis: The Early Years is the best fictional production ever about Elvis. Michael St. Gerard is near-perfect as Elvis. Ronnie McDowell’s “Elvis” singing vocals are as authentic as the actor who lip-synchs to them.

The rest of the cast is delightful as well. Billy Green Bush reprises his role of Vernon Presley from the Elvis And Me mini-series. Millie Perkins, who appeared with the real Elvis in the 1961 movie Wild In The Country, portrays Gladys Presley.

Besides St. Gerard, two other actors bear strong resemblance to their real-life counterparts: Jordan Williams plays Sam Phillips and Jesse Dabson plays Scotty Moore.

Blake Gibbons brings humor to the show as Bill Black. Finally, the talented and beautiful Kelli Williams plays Matti Walker.

The entire cast does a fine job, which is rare for a fictional production about Elvis, since most have featured some of the worst actors and actresses ever seen.

Unfortunately, Elvis: The Early Years has no conclusion since the 1990 Elvis series was never completed.

Songs include:

  • “All Shook Up”
  • “Harbor Lights”
  • “That’s All Right”
  • “That’s When Your Heartaches Begin”
  • “Good Rockin’ Tonight”
  • “Since I Met You Baby”
  • “Milkcow Blues Boogie”
  • “Tryin’ To Get To You”
  • “So Glad You’re Mine”
  • “Mystery Train”
  • “Lawdy, Miss Clawdy”
  • “Baby, Let’s Play House”
  • “I Got A Woman”
  • “I’m Walkin’ The Floor Over You”
  • “Blue Moon Of Kentucky”
  • “I’ll Never Let You Go”
  • “Blue Moon”
  • “You Belong To Me”
  • “Satisfied”
  • “Shake, Rattle, and Roll”
  • “Tweedlee Dee”
  • “The Mess Around”
  • “Pledging My Love”

Rating: 8 out of 10

Review: AS RECORDED AT MADISON SQUARE GARDEN CD [The Elvis Beat newsletter]

/ TY

I was 18 when I wrote this review back in 1993 for The Elvis Beat #4, my official Elvis Presley Fan Club newsletter.

As Recorded At Madison Square Garden (RCA), recorded by Elvis Presley, produced by Felton Jarvis. Recorded June 10, 1972, Madison Square Garden (New York). Released: June 1972. Re-released: 1992 (CD).

As Recorded At Madison Square Garden was Elvis’ first live album to consist of one complete concert, instead of songs excerpted from several different shows. This was also his first live album not recorded at the Las Vegas International Hotel. The result is a front row seat for the listener to hear Elvis in concert at Madison Square Garden.

From the rumblings of “Also Sprach Zarathustra” (the theme from 2001: A Space Odyssey) that opens the album to the announcement that Elvis has left the building that closes it, listeners are taken on a journey back to 1972 to witness Elvis at his near best.

He performs his standard hits (as usual a little different than previous versions) and a variety of new songs as well, the best of which is “The Impossible Dream.”

Songs:

  1. “Also Sprach Zarathustra”
  2. “That’s All Right”
  3. “Proud Mary”
  4. “Never Been To Spain”
  5. “You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me”
  6. “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin'”
  7. “Polk Salad Annie”
  8. “Love Me”
  9. “All Shook Up”
  10. “Heartbreak Hotel”
  11. “Teddy Bear/Don’t Be Cruel”
  12. “Love Me Tender”
  13. “The Impossible Dream”
  14. “Introductions By Elvis”
  15. “Hound Dog”
  16. “Suspicious Minds”
  17. “For The Good Times”
  18. “American Trilogy”
  19. “Funny How Time Slips Away”
  20. “I Can’t Stop Loving You”
  21. “Can’t Help Falling In Love”
  22. “End Theme”

Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Review: LOVE LETTERS FROM ELVIS CD [The Elvis Beat newsletter]

/ TY

I was 18 when I wrote this review back in 1993 for The Elvis Beat #4, my official Elvis Presley Fan Club newsletter.

Love Letters From Elvis (RCA), recorded by Elvis Presley, produced by Felton Jarvis. Recorded June 4-8, 1970, RCA Studios (Nashville). Released: May 1971. Re-released: 1992 (CD).

Despite the fact that Love Letters From Elvis was billed as an album of romantic songs, this is not “Love Me Tender” to the 12 power. In fact, along with the ballads, there are two religious songs and three up-tempo songs that are delivered equally as well as the love songs.

“Love Letters” is a re-recording of his 1966 single and is superior to that version. By far, the best song on this album is “This Is Our Dance,” which is very different from Elvis’ post-1971 ballads which tend to be sentimental pieces reflecting his problems with Priscilla.

Elvis picks up the pace with “Cindy, Cindy,” a song previously recorded with slightly different lyrics by Ricky Nelson under the title “Get Along Home, Cindy.”

The album concludes with “Life,” a song that manages to tell the complete story of the universe in under four minutes.

Love Letters From Elvis suffers from overpowering instrumentation on many tracks, a problem which was corrected for the most part on his future albums.

Songs:

  1. “Love Letters”
  2. “When I’m Over You”
  3. “If I Were You”
  4. “Keep Your Hands Off Her/Got My Mojo Working”
  5. “Heart Of Rome”
  6. “Only Believe”
  7. “This Is Our Dance”
  8. “Cindy, Cindy”
  9. “I’ll Never Know”
  10. “It Ain’t No Big Thing”
  11. “Life”

Rating: 7.5 out of 10