Elvis Today Blog

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On The Elvis Beat: From Elvis In Memphis/A Life In 57 Albums/John Walker Ross

Welcome to the first edition of On The Elvis Beat, a new, continuing series on The Mystery Train Blog. On The Elvis Beat will feature a short roundup of interesting tidbits from around the online Elvis world.

Friends,

As of late, one of my favorite posts to write was “Blogs! Blogs! Blogs!” where I pointed you to various other Elvis sites. In that spirit, On The Elvis Beat begins.

Thomas Melin over at The Elvis Today Blog continues to post must-read content. After reviewing the new 33 1/3: From Elvis In Memphis book (“From Elvis In Memphis Revisited“), he interviewed the author, Eric Wolfson (“From Elvis In Memphis: The Eric Wolfson Interview [Part 1]“). I enjoyed Thomas’ review so much that I immediately ordered the book. It is now in a very large pile, waiting for me to have time enough at last to read them all.

Howard Jackson is 19 albums deep into a 57 album look at Elvis’ life and times that began back in November with his debut album, Elvis Presley (“Elvis Presley — A Life In 57 Record Albums 1: Elvis Presley“). What I enjoy about Howard’s series is that he intermingles in-depth looks at the albums with personal reflections. The Elvis portion of his site can be found in the Music, Stuff and Elvis section.

Finally, Neal Umphred on his Elvis — A Touch of Gold site provided a worthy tribute to his friend and collaborator John Walker Ross, AKA “Nondisposable Johnny” of The Round Place in the Middle, who passed away last month (“John Walker Ross — Rest in peace, my friend“). While I unfortunately never got to know Nondisposable Johnny personally, I enjoyed reading his blog over the years. He also commented here on The Mystery Train about a dozen times. Back in 2012, I asked readers what Elvis event they would record with an audio time machine. Here is Nondisposable Johnny’s response:

“I want the recorder to be trained on Elvis at the moment when they came and got him out of the theater the night ‘That’s Alright Mama’ was first played on the radio. Love to see his expression at the very first moment when he might have had some inkling that there was a public out there that might actually respond to what was in his head.”

He’ll be missed. I’m praying for his family and friends to have strength and peace.

Blessings,
TY

“My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever.”
Psalm 73:26

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Blogs! Blogs! Blogs!

Today, The Mystery Train’s spotlight shines on some of the other Elvis Presley blogs out there in Internetland.

First up, I want to acknowledge a milestone over at ElvisBlog. Phil Arnold today published his 1,000th post! ElvisBlog began back in 2005, and Phil has really kept up with his writing since then. Lately, he has been thinking about retiring from his blog, but I’m happy to report that he still plans to post on occasion for at least the next year or so. Phil was once a contributing writer to the now-defunct Elvis International Forum magazine. He also wrote the foreword to Alfred Wertheimer’s 2010 photography book Elvis: The Early Years. In 2015, Phil published Big E and the Santa Man: A Rock & Roll Christmas Fantasy, a novel about a rock ‘n’ roll singer who gives up his former life and joins Santa Claus at the North Pole. Check out ElvisBlog #1000. Congratulations to Phil.

Speaking of books, Kees Mouwen last month released Elvis Day By Day 2020: The Year In Review, which compiles last year’s Elvis news stories from his Elvis Day By Day Blog as well as features additional content from Elvis Information Network and other Elvis fans worldwide. It is a follow-up to his first book, which covered 2019. Kees was one of the founders of what is now the ElvisNews.com site back in 1999. In 2010, Kees branched off to create the Elvis Day By Day Blog. Since that time, he has published over 3,370 blog posts about Elvis! 2020 ties with 2010 for his highest number of posts at 352. That’s almost one post a day, and it should certainly make for a fantastic read. Congratulations to Kees on his latest book. Find out more over on Elvis Day By Day.

ELVIS DAY BY DAY 2020 (Poplar Tunes Publishing and the Memphis Mansion, 2021) | Click image for full-color version | Original image credit: Kees Mouwen

Incidentally, I am honored to have contributed in a small way to Kees’ book. While some of my past posts have appeared in other Elvis books over the years, this is the first book to include an original piece from me. Thank you to Kees for the opportunity.

Finally, I want to say a hearty “Welcome back!” to Thomas Melin over at Elvis Today Blog. Last month, he quietly returned to blogging after an absence of more than three years. So quiet that I totally missed it until he recently emailed me. Thomas began the Elvis Today Blog back in 2007. By 2012, he had amassed over 500 posts. Though he’s slowed down since then due to other priorities, he says he plans to continue writing a post now and then. That’s the way to do it, and I’m definitely glad to hear he’ll still be around. Thomas published compilations of his first 500 posts on Elvis Today Blog in book form back in 2011 and 2012. Congratulations to Thomas on his return.

I don’t know about you, but I’m impressed by all three of these fellow Elvis fans. Keep up the good work, gentlemen!

Your conductor,
TY

“Pride ends in humiliation, while humility brings honor.”
Proverb 29:23

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The Elvis Today Blog Volume 2 author talks to The Mystery Train

Last month, Thomas Melin released a new book, The Elvis Today Blog: Volume 2. Available from Blurb, the paperback compiles 230 more Elvis Today Blog posts. It also features a foreword by Michael Jarrett, writer of “I’ll Be Home On Christmas Day” and “I’m Leavin'”, as well as a previously unreleased interview with DJ Fontana, Elvis’ first drummer. Melin recently took the time to chat about Elvis and the 328-page volume.

The Elvis Today Blog, Volume 2

Cover of The Elvis Today Blog, Volume 2

“Since the first time I heard Elvis, when I was nine or ten years old, I’ve been a fan,” said Melin. “I became really dedicated a short while later when I borrowed a bunch of Elvis albums from a classmate.” The titles included Elvis In Concert, A Canadian Tribute, and C’mon Everybody.

Melin, who lives in Sweden and is now 45, notes that it has always been Elvis’ music and variety of singing styles that have drawn him in. “Being a fan for me also means trying to learn more about the man that was Elvis Presley by listening to alternate takes, reading books, talking to his musicians, and watching documentaries,” he said.

He began blogging about Elvis on August 16, 2007. Five years worth of posts later, he is not sure if it has changed his perspective on the singer, but feels that it has enriched his life as a fan. “I’ve been able to share my ‘Elvis experiences’ with other fans,” Melin said, pointing out that the blog has helped him get to know other Elvis fans around the world.

The Elvis Today Blog: Volume 2 picks up right where the first volume ended. It collects all of the posts from January 8, 2010, through August 16, 2012. “I think it’s nice to have them all in one place, so to speak, and to be able to leaf through the pages and read a bit more thorough when something catches your eye,” said Melin.

“The kind of posts I’ve always loved to write the most has been […] ‘Special Moments With FTD,’ where I, with the help of an alternate take, some studio banter, information in books, and last, but not least, some imagination, try to describe what was going on in the studio or on stage when the recording equipment caught Elvis in his line of work. In my second book, the one that I’m the most satisfied with is the ‘Special Moments With FTD 11’ post, describing the recording of the song ‘Guitar Man’ on September 10, 1967,” he said. The post was inspired by the 2011 FTD release Elvis Sings Guitar Man.

As mentioned, one of the special bonuses this time around is a foreword by Michael Jarrett. “It all started in December 2008 when I wrote about one of the biggest daily newspapers in Sweden ranking Elvis’ ‘I’ll Be Home On Christmas Day’ as the second best Christmas song ever,” he said. Jarrett subsequently got in touch to thank him for mentioning his song.

“From there on we have stayed in contact, and I’m honored to have Michael Jarrett among my readers, which obviously means a lot. When I asked him if he would write the foreword and he accepted, I was thrilled,” he said.

The other special bonus, of course, is Melin’s interview with drummer DJ Fontana. In April 2006, Fontana was touring Sweden as part of a Swedish group called The Cadillac Band. At that time, Melin was working as a reporter at a radio station, where he also produced a one-hour program about Elvis’ religious music. He says he “begged” his news editor to let him interview the drummer when The Cadillac Band came to town. Melin said, “I found DJ Fontana very friendly, and he seemed to enjoy talking about his time with Elvis.”

Blurb specializes in self-publishing and provided the platform for both books based on Elvis Today Blog. “What you need is a PDF version of the book to upload on Blurb, and I’m lucky to have a brother who is very, very good when it comes to design and page layout,” he said. He explains that Staffan Melin used the Adobe Suite (Illustrator, Photoshop and Indesign) on the first volume, but decided to try open source software (Scribus, Inkscape and GIMP) on the latest volume.

“This book is actually part of [Staffan’s] master’s thesis in media technology, where he examines if free software can be used for book and magazine production. Obviously, it can,” said Melin.

Elvis Today Blog celebrated its 500th post on August 16, 2012, which was also the cutoff date for the new book. Since that time, Melin has been in semi-retirement from blogging. “When I decided to take an indefinite break from blogging, it was because so much was going on in my life, mainly due to my two-year-old daughter. I just didn’t have the time or energy to write about Elvis anymore. I still don’t,” he explained.

“I still listen to Elvis all the time, and my daughter seems to like his music, too, but I would be lying if I said I didn’t miss blogging at times. That’s why I’ve written one or two posts since ‘retiring,’ and I guess it will continue that way,” Melin said.

“For now, I’m satisfied with my 500 posts and two books. Every time I look at them sitting in the shelf I feel a bit proud, thinking in my own small way, I’ve done something to keep Elvis’ memory alive,” he said. “It’s been a fun ride!”

Order The Elvis Today Blog: Volume 2 over at Blurb.

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“I just can’t believe it’s me.”

Elvis talks to the media, 1969

Elvis talks to the media, 1969

“Sometimes when I walk into a room at home and see all those gold records hanging round the walls, I think they must belong to another person. Not me. I just can’t believe it’s me.” –Elvis Presley, 1969

Elvis rarely talked about his success. I was inspired to dig this quote up, one of my favorites, based on a twitter conversation I was having this morning with Sheila O’Malley (of the thought-provoking Sheila Variations Blog).

The source of this quote is from a 1969 interview with Elvis by Ray Connolly for the London Evening Standard on the occasion of Elvis’ return to live performances. You can read the full article over on Connolly’s site.

[I do not, however, agree with Connolly’s post-script that Elvis did little but disappoint after 1969. Thomas Melin over at the Elvis Today Blog has previously addressed a similar dismissal by Connolly – and, ironically, pointed to the same Sheila Variations post that helped spark my quote search this morning. The circle continues!]

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No particular place to go

All right, this will be one of those off-the-top-of-my-head posts – so who knows what you’re gonna get out of reading this.

I’m just sitting here on a rainy Saturday afternoon listening to Elvis.

Blue HawaiiI’m getting back into vinyl after pretty much being all CDs all the time for the last twenty years. I pulled out my old collection, and the first one I played was Blue Hawaii.

I couldn’t believe how incredible it sounded on record. I sense a new obsession coming on.

The good thing is, I already have about 25 LPs and 25 45s from the old days before I had a CD player, so those should tide me over for awhile.

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So, there were a bunch of great posts around the web for Elvis Week 2012. My favorite was probably Indisposable Johnny’s “When Elvis Moved On” over on The Round Place In The Middle blog. If you haven’t already, be sure to read it.

One post that I didn’t want to read because I knew what was coming was “Treat Me Nice”, a farewell of sorts by Thomas Melin over on his Elvis Today Blog. After five years and 500 posts, he’s taking an indefinite break from blogging about Elvis in order to spend more time with his family. It’s hard to fault him for that. I’m sure gonna miss his posts, though. Best wishes to Thomas.

While Thomas’ absence leaves a huge void, all is not lost. For instance, Sheila O’Malley continues her excellent series of Elvis Essays on The Sheila Variations blog. Meanwhile, artist Joe Petruccio just began a brand new blog called My Elvis Journal. Petruccio’s unique posts are definitely worth checking out.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

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August 28 Update: I’ve just found that there is yet another new Elvis blog, and it’s one I definitely want to mention. Elvis audio expert and frequent For Elvis CD Collectors Forum poster elvissessions recently began elvissessions.net, which will cover “Elvis Presley in the studio — and beyond.”

I love his informative FECC posts, so I’m looking forward to following elvissessions’ blog. Here’s a recent entry about obtaining Ernst Jorgensen’s autograph on his copy of A Boy From Tupelo during Elvis Week 2012.

Speaking of FTD’s mammoth SUN project, my copy will supposedly be in the mail this week. No autographs, though. I guess that’s one of the many perks of being in Memphis during Elvis Week. Either way, I can hardly wait for this release.

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Guest Blog #6: From Hawaii To The Rest Of The World (The Edge Of Reality #7)

What if the previously unreleased cassette recording of Elvis rehearsing the day before his opening show at the Las Vegas Hilton on January 26, 1973, had been a rehearsal for an upcoming world tour instead? In an alternate universe, a review of the recently released From Hawaii To Las Vegas album from FTD would have sounded a bit different…. You’ve just crossed over into… the edge of reality.

The Edge Of Reality

[Read the full post by Thomas Melin over on Elvis Today Blog.]

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Elvis Today Blog reviews Elvis Today album

Mike Hermenet, who contributed a guest post here on The Mystery Train Blog just a few weeks ago with a very popular review of FTD’s Promised Land, has now offered up another fine piece of writing. This time, he’s guest blogging over at Elvis Today Blog.

Elvis TodayAfter nearly five years, isn’t it about time that the Elvis Today Blog reviewed the Elvis Today album?

Mike has stepped up and done just that. Check it out over on Elvis Today Blog: Bringing It Back.

Fantastic work, Mike.