Elvis rehearsing in 1970 (credit: MGM)
So, it’s been awhile since I posted anything of substance here on The Mystery Train. I’ve started a number of posts but never finished them. Perhaps this will be one of those. Or maybe this one will actually make it to you, dear reader – whoever you are.
As I started this post, Elvis was singing, “Yes, Jesus knows just what I need.” I’m glad He does, because I sure don’t sometimes.
It’s a random playlist. Now Elvis is singing, “Do you know who I am, or have you forgot about me?” A good question, too!
I’ve not been writing about Elvis, but I still listen. I’ve also been trying to read more – in general, not about Elvis. I have been trying to write other things, more of a fictional nature, with varying degrees of success.
“This could be the kiss to unlock Heaven’s door,” Elvis is singing now. That one’s not a gospel — just one of those boring early 60s love songs from his repetitive movies.
The Elvis.com and Graceland.com shops have been reminding me over and over that Elvis Week is coming up. Elvis Week – where us fans will observe the 48th anniversary of the loss of our hero.
Elvis has been dead for 96% of my life. The longer I live, the larger that percentage will become. Yet, his music has been along with me for this ride the whole time. I’m grateful for that.
The playlist seems stuck on the movie tunes. Probably because I don’t play them very often on my own.
Oh wait, here’s something different – “I awaken this morning, I was filled with despair, all my dreams turned to ashes and gone.” Memphis. 1969. The sessions when he proved to the naysayers that he still had it.
Oh, they happily tore his artistry down again soon enough. I guess people just wanted him to stagnate in the 1950s style like so many others of his generation did.
While I love his 1950s music, I’m glad he didn’t stop there. His best work, the work that touched me the most, was still to come.
“Put on your red dress, baby, ’cause we’re goin’ out tonight,” Elvis is singing now. The near-cheesey background of this song take away from his raw vocals. Then again, the song is a little tongue-in-cheek anyway. This was before the comeback special. A lot of people missed it. That Elvis was back.
What am I trying to say in this post? I don’t know. Another movie tune is on now. Poor Elvis. I know how it is, though. You get caught up doing stuff you don’t want to do, and before you know it, you’ve been doing it for years.
I’ve been in jobs I’ve mostly disliked for 25 years now. It’s not that they were “bad” jobs – they just don’t inspire me. But they have paid the bills. But… it’s a lot of wasted time.
And though I’m surely no Elvis, maybe I, too, could have made a change and found something more fulfilling to do. In fact, I gotta give Elvis credit. He had his “comeback” only after about 8 or 9 years of those spirit-draining movies. At least he did something. Did he soon get into another rut? Maybe. But it happens. That’s life.
And yet another movie tune is on now. Poor Elvis. And yet, here I am listening to it 62 years after he recorded it and still getting some enjoyment out of it. Thank you, Elvis.
Okay, time to try a different random Elvis playlist.
1970. That’s more like it. “Change your ways today, or with us you will ride trying to catch the devil’s herd across these endless skies,” Elvis sings, nearly off-microphone. Too bad he never did a formal version of the song – it certainly would have been a change of pace from his normal image.
Ohhh, here’s one of my very favorites. A sad one. “If I could never see you, if I could never hold you, if I could never touch your face or feel your warm embrace, I’d still remember…” This is Take 1, released in 2005. I love it.
Hey, what’s this? It shows I have only rated the track 4 out of 5 stars. Well, I just fixed it. 5 out of 5 now.
So, that was 1975. Only 2 years before his death. He still had it. People miss out on so much when they dismiss his post-1969 music (or, for some people, post-1958 or even post-1955).
AND another movie tune. At least this one is upbeat and fun, though. Ohhh, and it’s a remix version, too. From that Viva Elvis album that everyone but me hated. People take this stuff way too seriously. (Of course I do, too, sometimes.)
Another remix is up… this one from the soundtrack of the 2022 ELVIS movie. Wow, has it really been 3 years since that movie came out? I’ve still only seen it the one time. It was pretty good – certainly the best dramatic movie ever made about Elvis.
“So if an old friend I know drops by to say ‘hello,’ would I still see suspicion in your eyes?” Elvis is saying as the bass THUMPS my sub. Awesome. And now here comes parts of “Any Day Now.” Really cool concept. What did I rate this one? 3 stars! Whoah, I must have been cranky that day. It could be the little bells or whatever they are in the background that annoyed me. But I will bump it up to a 4 today. At least it is giving the sub a workout.
“But why do they have to change the music?” people whine. The originals are still there. It’s interesting to hear something different or to hear how Elvis might have sounded with modern production techniques.
Now it’s a 1975 informal runthrough, probably a warmup. Elvis is singing, “Yeah, I get up on a mountain and I call my bear cat back.” This one… I actually don’t like it that much. I realize it was never intended for release. The live versions are much better. Sorry, Elvis. Let’s see, I’ve got it at 2 stars. That’s about right.
He’s on to the next one because I take too long to type. “You’re asking me will our love grow? I don’t know. I don’t know,” he sings. This is a 1970 rehearsal at RCA’s Hollywood studio. I got it from a massively overpriced FTD release a few years ago, but it’s out again this month on only a slightly overpriced Sony release. Coming soon to a record store near you. Well… more like, coming soon to an Amazon near you.
Elvis is now singing in Charlotte, North Carolina. He has less than 6 months to live. “We’ve been together so long, to have to separate this way,” he sings in this blues number. I have this rated at 5 stars. Sure, I grade with my heart. But he does sound good.
So, is this what this post is? Just me typing out random Elvis lyrics as I hear them? With all that is going on this world, is there anything else to say?
Here’s another live song. This one rewinds about 20 years. 20 years in Elvis time is a LOT. It’s practically his entire career. “I’ll be yours through all the years, ’til the end of time,” he sings. Prophetic words?
Here we are, still talking about him. At least some of us are. I won’t forget you, Elvis. “I’ll be with you even then, deep within your heart” – Elvis throwing in some lyrics that weren’t on the single. I wonder if even one person in the audience noticed?
“When your heart gets weary, time to sing a song,” he sings now. A movie tune, but one of the better ones. I first heard this song on the first Elvis album I ever owned. I actually won it off the radio, back in 1987. This is Take 3, though; a stereo version.
We are living in horrible times. Horrible things that I never thought would occur in my lifetime are happening. The country I once loved is being destroyed from within by power- and money-hungry racists. The so-called “checks and balances of power” that I was taught about endlessly during my school years has absolutely failed.
“Zekiel went down in the middle of the field, he saw an angel working on the chariot wheel…” sings Elvis. Perfect timing, Elvis. I need some spiritual music. Now more than ever.
Up now is another favorite. From the August 12, 1970, Midnight Show – possibly the greatest concert he ever gave. Though that’s a tough call. It’s certainly my personal favorite.
“If I only had the wings of a little angel, don’t you know I’d fly to the top of the mountain, and I’d cry…” Okay, it’s one of his best concerts, but I do wish he hadn’t shortened this song. But, he had to fit a lot in.
It’s been quoted many times, in and out of context, but I am led to end this post with Elvis quoting “Luke the Drifter” (Hank Williams, Sr.).
“There was a guy who said one time, he said, ‘You never stood in that man’s shoes or saw things through his eyes. Or stood and watched with helpless hands while the heart inside you dies. So, help your brother along the way, no matter where he starts. For the same God that made you made him, too – these men with broken hearts.'”
Elvis Presley, August 11, 1970
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