Christmas music

“BAM!” Wellsy unscrambles the Christmas spirit in Elvis Trivialities

/ TY / 1 Comment

Elvis' Christmas AlbumFirst-time winner Wellsy has proven victorious in the Christmas edition of Elvis Trivialities.

Wellsy receives a stocking full of bragging rights, just in time for Christmas.

Plus, he becomes a member of The Mystery Train’s Night Riders.

And the answer is…

1.) “Santa Bring My Baby Back”
2.) “Peace In The Valley”
3.) “White Christmas”
4.) “Take My Hand, Precious Lord”
5.) “I’ll Be Home For Christmas”
6.) “It Is No Secret”
7.) “Here Comes Santa Claus”
8.) “I Believe”
9.) “O Little Town Of Bethlehem”
10.) “Silent Night”
11.) “Santa Claus Is Back In Town”
12.) “Blue Christmas”

are the Elvis songs represented by the following scrambled letters:

1.) YAANIAGBBABYKBCRTNSM
2.) TYEEEENLAVAIHCLP
3.) TREHSWHMCIITAS
4.) OETLRDODINMEAURPKSHCAY
5.) ISIORMRLAHEFOMSHCTLEB
6.) SEIONCITTRES
7.) EOAAMCTCASNLSEUHRSE
8.) BVLIEIEE
9.) OOMENLLBTHEETFTOIWTLEH
10.) IGTSHLNIENT
11.) USSCAWNNLISATAONTCAKBI
12.) LASRUCSETBMIH

* * *

The next question could come at any time. Be ready to jump on it by subscribing to The Mystery Train Blog using the feature in the menu bar to the right. That way, you’ll be emailed whenever a new post appears.

Once again, congratulations to Wellsy!

The Mystery Train’s Night Riders

  • December 21, 2011: Wellsy (2:37)
  • October 31, 2011: Thomas (Elvis Today) (17:32)
  • October 1, 2011: Anton Jeldres Tiselj (Jimmy Cool) (1:01)
  • September 9, 2011: Steve Brogdon (0:17) <— Record time
  • August 6, 2011: Thomas (Elvis Today) (2:26)
  • July 9, 2011: Thomas (Elvis Today) (5:26)
  • June 23, 2011: Fred Wolfe (0:18)
  • June 22, 2011: Ty stumps the train (no winner)

Elvis Trivialities Is Back In Town

/ TY / 5 Comments

As you finish up last minute preparations for Christmas, take a moment to relax and try your hand at today’s Elvis challenge.

Elvis' Scrambled Christmas Album

Can you be the first to unscramble the Elvis songs?

Name the Elvis songs represented by the following scrambled letters:

1.) YAANIAGBBABYKBCRTNSM
2.) TYEEEENLAVAIHCLP
3.) TREHSWHMCIITAS
4.) OETLRDODINMEAURPKSHCAY
5.) ISIORMRLAHEFOMSHCTLEB
6.) SEIONCITTRES
7.) EOAAMCTCASNLSEUHRSE
8.) BVLIEIEE
9.) OOMENLLBTHEETFTOIWTLEH
10.) IGTSHLNIENT
11.) USSCAWNNLISATAONTCAKBI
12.) LASRUCSETBMIH

The first person to get all twelve right in the comments below receives a stocking full of enough bragging rights to carry her or him well into the new year.

Good luck!

Elvis 1967: Season’s Greetings From Elvis

/ TY / 4 Comments

As part of The Mystery Train Blog’s year-long celebration of 1967, below is a repost of a feature I wrote last year about Elvis’ first Christmas special.

While Elvis’ 1968 Christmas special is legendary, nearly lost to time is Elvis’ Christmas special from the previous year. His 1967 Christmas special no doubt inspired the original concept of the ELVIS (’68 Comeback) special.

Exactly 44 years ago today, on Sunday, December 3, 1967, a special called Season’s Greetings From Elvis aired on over 2,000 stations across the United States. Why is it mostly forgotten? Season’s Greetings From Elvis was a radio special.

Season's Greetings From Elvis flyer (1967)

Season's Greetings From Elvis flyer (1967)

The special contained no new numbers by Elvis, but instead featured previously released Christmas and religious music. The songs in the half-hour show included:

  • Here Comes Santa Claus (1957)
  • Blue Christmas (1957)
  • O Little Town Of Bethlehem (1957)
  • Silent Night (1957)
  • I’ll Be Home For Christmas (1957)
  • I Believe (1957)
  • If Every Day Was Like Christmas (1966)
  • How Great Thou Art (1966)
  • His Hand In Mine (1960)
  • I’ll Be Home For Christmas (1957)

The special’s finale, “I’ll Be Home For Christmas,” contained a new voice-over by Elvis: “Thank you for listening. I’d like to wish you a merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year.” Oddly, this 1967 audio was later placed on top of “Silent Night” on 1982’s Memories Of Christmas and re-released on 1994’s If Every Day Was Like Christmas. However, the beginning music of “I’ll Be Home For Christmas” and not “Silent Night” can still be heard in the background on those releases as Elvis speaks the lines.

Exactly one year later, on December 3, 1968, the more famous Elvis Christmas special aired for the first time. Colonel Tom Parker’s original concept for the ’68 special sounded like little more than a TV version of Season’s Greetings From Elvis. The eventual show turned out much different, of course, and changed everything.

Image Source
Thank you to Holger Bock at Rare Elvis for providing the original image of an RCA promotional flyer for the 1967 radio special. Please do not reproduce this image without obtaining permission of Holger at Rare Elvis.

Research Sources

  • Careless Love: The Unmaking Of Elvis Presley by Peter Guralnick, Little, Brown And Company, Boston, 1999 (page 282).
  • Season’s Greetings From Elvis, Elvis In Norway, 2010.
  • Elvis: Word For Word by Jerry Osborne, Harmony Books, New York, 2000 (page 204).
  • Elvis: The Biography by Jerry Hopkins, Plexus, London, 2007 (page 205).
  • ELVIS: His Life From A To Z by Fred Worth and Steve Tamerius, Wings Books, New York, 1992 (page 560).

Throughout 2011, The Mystery Train Blog has been commemorating the 44th anniversary of 1967. Find out why here. Surf in again next week for the exciting conclusion to this series.

Christmas Dreams 2011: An Elvis Playlist for the Holiday Season (Playlist Recipes #4)

/ TY / 6 Comments

Nearly every year since I was about 13, I’ve made some form of an Elvis “Christmas mix” for my own personal use. This started out in the late 1980s on cassette tapes. I eventually graduated to CD-Rs in the late 1990s. The present incarnation of this concept is, of course, in the form of iPod playlists. It sure is much easier to perfect the sequencing on a playlist than it is on a tape, let me tell you.

As you might imagine, in many ways, this is simply a reshuffling of the same couple of dozen songs every year. Why bother when I could just reuse a previous year’s compilation? The main reason is that I have so much fun putting this together. It’s how I kick off the Christmas season.

This year, I thought I would share my Elvis Christmas playlist sequence with you in case you would like to try it out on your own.

Elvis: Christmas Dreams (2011)

Elvis: Christmas Dreams (2011)

  • Santa Claus Is Back In Town/Blue Christmas (Live) [Tiger Man]
  • I’ll Be Home On Christmas Day (Alternate) [Today, Tomorrow & Forever]
  • Holly Leaves and Christmas Trees (Alternate) [If Every Day Was Like Christmas]
  • It Won’t Seem Like Christmas (Alternate) [If Every Day Was Like Christmas]
  • If Every Day Was Like Christmas [Elvis’ Christmas Album (1970 Edition)]
  • Santa Bring My Baby Back [Elvis’ Christmas Album]
  • Here Comes Santa Claus [Elvis’ Christmas Album]
  • Silver Bells [Elvis Sings The Wonderful World Of Christmas]
  • White Christmas [Elvis’ Christmas Album]
  • Winter Wonderland [Elvis Sings The Wonderful World Of Christmas]
  • I’ll Be Home For Christmas [Elvis’ Christmas Album]
  • If I Get Home On Christmas Day [Elvis Sings The Wonderful World Of Christmas]
  • I’ll Be Home On Christmas Day [Elvis Sings The Wonderful World Of Christmas]
  • Blue Christmas [Elvis’ Christmas Album]
  • It Won’t Seem Like Christmas [Elvis Sings The Wonderful World Of Christmas]
  • Holly Leaves and Christmas Trees [Elvis Sings The Wonderful World Of Christmas]
  • O Little Town of Bethlehem [Elvis’ Christmas Album]
  • On A Snowy Christmas Night [Elvis Sings The Wonderful World Of Christmas]
  • The First Noel [Elvis Sings The Wonderful World Of Christmas]
  • O Come All Ye Faithful (Alternate) [Memories Of Christmas]
  • Silent Night [Elvis’ Christmas Album]
  • Santa Lucia [Elvis For Everyone]
  • The Wonderful World Of Christmas [Elvis Sings The Wonderful World Of Christmas]
  • Santa Claus Is Back In Town [Elvis’ Christmas Album]
  • I’ll Be Home On Christmas Day (Alternate) [Memories Of Christmas]
  • Blue Christmas (Rehearsal) [Let Yourself Go! (Track 25, “Blue Christmas” portion only)]
  • Merry Christmas Baby [Elvis Sings The Wonderful World Of Christmas]

For those in the US, I also published a variant of this playlist on iTunes as Elvis: Christmas Dreams (2011).

Happy holidays, everyone!

Would the world of Christmas be as wonderful in January?

/ TY / 7 Comments

In addition to Promised Land, Follow That Dream is also releasing 1971’s Elvis Sings The Wonderful World Of Christmas as part of its Classic Album series in December. That’s right, two of his best albums are being released as deluxe editions in the same month.

The 2-CD release will contain the original album, which made its debut 40 years ago this month, as well as a ton of merry outtakes, alternates, and studio banter. The only problem for those of us in the United States is that it usually takes two to three weeks after the release date for FTD’s CDs to arrive here, since they ship from Denmark.

If Elvis Sings The Wonderful World Of Christmas is released in early December, Americans should have a decent chance of getting it before Christmas. If not, well . . . I, for one, plan to enjoy the wonderful world of Christmas in January, if necessary.

Elvis Sings The Wonderful World Of Christmas album cover

Elvis Sings The Wonderful World Of Christmas album cover

Also coming in December from FTD is The Elvis Is Back! Sessions on vinyl and a photo book covering 1956.

EPE sues Spankox over unauthorized Christmas Remixes album

/ TY / 2 Comments

I remember being slightly surprised last year that Elvis Presley Enterprises had authorized Christmas Remixes, containing dance remixes by DJ Spankox of 1957’s entire Elvis’ Christmas Album. Sure, I could point to the rubber duckies or the potato heads as other examples of severe lapses in judgment when it comes to protecting Elvis’ legacy, but a dance remix version of Elvis’ Christmas Album? Really?

Turns out that EPE may have been just as surprised as I was to hear about the release of the album. In a lawsuit for which they recently won a summary judgment, EPE alleges they gave no such authorization to Spankox (Spankox Sued By EPE – ElvisNews.com).

EPE previously worked with Spankox in an authorized fashion on Re:Versions (2008) and Re:Mixes (2010). Re:Versions had uneven results, though I did enjoy the new take on “Too Much.” The Re:Mixes follow-up was rather poor, with few real highlights – perhaps, only “Hound Dog” (but it is, after all, the power of Elvis’ performance shining through and not the remix itself that makes that one compelling).

Compared to the stellar remix efforts by others on 2010’s Viva Elvis: The Album, 2002’s “A Little Less Conversation,” and 2003’s “Rubberneckin,'” Spankox’s attempts seemed insignificant and worn out. I never bothered to seek out his Christmas Remixes album, and it turns out that I made the right choice. Allegedly attempting to pass off something like that as being an authorized product just isn’t cool.

February 7 Update: The official Elvis.com site has posted an item about winning the Spankox lawsuit.

Elvis’ Christmas special

/ TY / 2 Comments

For today’s Christmas edition of The Mystery Train Elvis Blog, I originally planned to write a short retrospective of the 1982 album Memories Of Christmas. Last week, I browsed over to the Elvis Today blog and found that Thomas had just written almost the exact same “Memories Of Christmas” post I had planned (even down to beginning with a reference to 1994’s If Every Day Was Like Christmas album). Hey Thomas, get out of my head, man!

In all seriousness, Thomas and I have very similar views and approaches when it comes to Elvis, so these things happen to us from time-to-time. There was one small element of Memories Of Christmas that he did not mention in that particular post, however, so I decided to use that as a springboard to a new idea. This time, I ran it past him first to make sure he did not already have it in the works for this week.

Thomas gave me the all clear, so today I’m going to talk about Elvis’ 1967 Christmas special.

Wait, wait, wait. Don’t fire off a correction message to me just yet.

Yes, I said 1967 Christmas special. That was not a typo.

While Elvis’ 1968 Christmas special is legendary, nearly lost to time is Elvis’ Christmas special from the previous year. His 1967 Christmas special no doubt inspired the original concept of the ELVIS (’68 Comeback) special.

Season's Greetings From Elvis flyer (1967)

Season’s Greetings From Elvis flyer (1967)

On Sunday, December 3, 1967, a special called Season’s Greetings From Elvis aired on over 2,000 stations across the United States. Why is it mostly forgotten? Season’s Greetings From Elvis was a radio special.

The special contained no new numbers by Elvis, but instead featured previously released Christmas and religious music. The songs in the half-hour show included:

  • Here Comes Santa Claus (1957)
  • Blue Christmas (1957)
  • O Little Town Of Bethlehem (1957)
  • Silent Night (1957)
  • I’ll Be Home For Christmas (1957)
  • I Believe (1957)
  • If Every Day Was Like Christmas (1966)
  • How Great Thou Art (1966)
  • His Hand In Mine (1960)
  • I’ll Be Home For Christmas (1957)

The special’s finale, “I’ll Be Home For Christmas,” contained a new voice-over by Elvis: “Thank you for listening. I’d like to wish you a merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year.” Oddly, this 1967 audio was later placed on top of “Silent Night” on Memories Of Christmas (and re-released on 1994’s If Every Day Was Like Christmas). However, the beginning music of “I’ll Be Home For Christmas” and not “Silent Night” can still be heard in the background on those releases as Elvis speaks the lines.

Exactly one year later, on December 3, 1968, the more famous Elvis Christmas special aired for the first time. Colonel Tom Parker’s original concept for the ’68 special sounded like little more than a TV version of Season’s Greetings From Elvis. The eventual show turned out much different, of course, and changed everything.

To fellow Elvis fans across the world, I’d like to wish you and your families a wonderful Christmas.

* * *

Image Source
Thank you to Holger Bock at Rare Elvis for providing the original image of an RCA promotional flyer for the 1967 radio special. Please do not reproduce this image without obtaining permission of Holger at Rare Elvis.

Research Sources

  • Careless Love: The Unmaking Of Elvis Presley by Peter Guralnick, Little, Brown And Company, Boston, 1999 (page 282).
  • Season’s Greetings From Elvis, Elvis In Norway, 2010.
  • Elvis: Word For Word by Jerry Osborne, Harmony Books, New York, 2000 (page 204).
  • Elvis: The Biography by Jerry Hopkins, Plexus, London, 2007 (page 205).
  • ELVIS: His Life From A To Z by Fred Worth and Steve Tamerius, Wings Books, New York, 1992 (page 560).