Elvis Presley's Pot Luck Lp-why that title?

Most Elvis LP titles, while unimaginative (movie titles, TV special titles, hit single titles, Elvis's name, some kind of time context-Elvis Now, Elvis Today- location -From Elvis Presley Blvd.) made some kind of sense. But why Pot Luck? It usually means different people bringing different food to a party. What relation does it have to the album concept-if there was one- or contents? The variety of the type of songs, maybe?

 

I think i've read somewhere that they considered the album had a lot of different styles, and that's the reason of the name. I don't remember exactly the 12 songs included but i remember Kiss Me Quick, Fountain Of Love, That's Someone You Never Forget. I dont think this album was neccesarily more varied, or more "pot luck" than Elvis Is Back or Something For Everybody (well, this last title also implies different styles).

What is sad , is that for seven years he would enter the studio only to record songs destined to sountracks with the exception of th ocassional single and of course How Great Thou Art. But no secular, non-movie sountrack album untill 1969. Elvis For Everyone was really a compilation of old recordings.

 

One time there was a gap of over 2 years and nothing but soundtracks ... kills me what he could have done in that time.

 

Any of them could have been called "Mixed Bag" instead.

 

My guess is that the titles of both Something for Everybody and Pot Luck were intended to try to broaden his audience: "he's not just doing rock and roll" in other words. Both are more pop (even MOR) oriented than previous records.

 

It's kind of funny . I looked at an online dictionary for the definition of "pot luck" to confirm my recollection of the term :

used in reference to a situation in which one must take a chance that whatever is available will prove to be good or acceptable.

Heh. So RCA was telling potential customers , you pay your money you take your chances on this release.

 

A little research will show it was The Colonel just being honest...here's some leftover crap, for me to make more $$$ off of.

http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threa...d-reissues-part4.356858/page-21#post-11054981

In my family, Pot Luck meant eating all the leftovers and calling it a dinner.
.

 

"Elvis for Everyone" consisted of leftovers. "Pot Luck" was not leftovers, for the most part. All but two of the tracks were specifically recorded for an album project at two different sessions (June 25, 1961 and March 18-19, 1962). The songwriting was perhaps slightly weaker than the previous album ("Something for Everybody") but I wouldn't call it crap.

 

Yeah, some of the material on Pot Luck becomes questionable, but the vocal work is very strong. Pot Luck is a very nice release.

 

I think That's Someone You Never Forget is beautiful, one of his best recordings. Words and music by EP & Red West. I believe EP came up with the concept, in tribute to his mom, and Red West wrote it. It's one of the closest times we get to EP actually writing a song. The production is great too.

 

Yes, and besides being one of his compositions, i think it's the best track in the album and IMO, even a strange song for this period. It's a kind of relaxing song, different from everything else on the album (that's your pot luck). I've heard that Elvis showed it to Priscilla, proud of he had written a song, and she says something like meh, its OK, no big deal and that kind of dissinterest on her part, was the reason that Elvis didn't try again so much. I think he co-wrote a song or two after that, but clearly the Priscilla comment made him to be dissinterested as well.

 

Too bad it was released in 1962.

 

I got it mixed up with another album

 

The title is fine, why that COVER is more perplexing...

 

Actually, Priscilla commented on the song You'll Be Gone, a song for which Elvis had even more writing input. Maybe his discouragement led to it being initially released only as a soundtrack bonus song. IIRC, Priscilla's reaction was that she wished it was more rock 'n roll, and his angry reaction immediately led her to regret the opinion she expressed.

 

The cover shot is from FOLLOW THAT DREAM ... sadly the last time HANK GARLAND would share a studio with EP.

 

Totally agree...even his hair didn't look very good on it.

 

I love this album though...some weak material but as Pacific Ocean Blue mentioned above, the vocal work is really strong still.

 

It was a bonus track to Girl Happy, right?
So Priscilla was in tune with the Beatles thoughts of Elvis music around this time.

Beatles on Juke Box Jury: 12-07-1963 (transcripted from: http://www.beatlesinterviews.org/)

Song heard: Kiss Me Quick - Elvis Presley
PAUL: "The only thing I don't like about Elvis now is the songs. You know, I love his voice. I used to love all the records like 'Blue Suede Shoes' and 'Heartbreak Hotel,' lovely. But I don't like the songs now. And Kiss Me Quick, it sounds like Blackpool on a sunny day."

(laughter, followed by applause)

RINGO: "I didn't like it at all, no."

GEORGE: "I must admit I didn't like it very much. Not at all. It's an old track. And I think, seeing as they're releasing old stuff, if they release something like 'My Baby Left Me' it'd be number one. Because Elvis is definitely still popular, it's just the song's a load of rubbish. I mean, Elvis is great. He's fine. But it's not for me."

JOHN: "Well, I think it'll be a hit because it's Elvis, like people said. But I don't think it'll be very great. (comically) I like those hats, though, with 'Kiss Me Quick' on it!"

(laughter)

(Beatles vote by holding up cards. Consensus: HIT)

 

If only Elvis had more of this feedback from peers in the business. As one can see, there is still great respect for Elvis, but there is disappointment with the material he is recording. Not that Elvis was ever going to be destined to record mostly blues/R&B covers and 50's oriented rockabilly numbers, but the sentiment by The Beatles does suggest that he was alienating some of his audience and perhaps more importantly, compromising his artistic standards. The reality is that the sound, approach, and arrangements one hears on Elvis Is Back! was a very calculated development. When Elvis was in Germany during his final months in the Army, Elvis was putting great deal of thought and focus into how he wanted his music to evolve. He was as inventive as ever back in 1960. This overall vision was impacted by his publishing companies and soundtrack demands.

 

That's one thing that kind of bothers me about how the Fabs view Elvis. I remember reading a remark from Harrison about how he wanted to tell Elvis to slip into some jeans and sing the Sun sides (paraphrasing). How would these fine musicians have taken some younger guy walking up to them and say " hey man, put on a collarless suit and sing "She Loves You"?

Sorry for the threadcrap!

On topic, I do agree with the general consensus that Elvis was recording a lot of cr** around this time, no thanks to the songs being submitted for the movies.

 

You make a great point. The key distinction (as you also pointed out) is that Harrison and the others were not producing substandard soundtrack recordings 8 years after "She Loves You." If The Beatles were relegated to singing "El Toro" in a lightweight musical, fellow musicians may have longed for the days of "She Loves You" when the band inspired them and set the world on fire. I do think Elvis' evolution and vision for his music that was initially showcased was tremendous and showed a lot of positive growth. Unfortunately, his business obligations and arrangements derailed the artistic ambitions he had.

 

But i think that his 3 early 60's albums (Elvis Is Back, Something For Everybody and Pot Luck) are pretty good for this time. Obviously Is Back is superior, but the other two are appropiate for 1961 and 1962. There's a difference for me between Put The Blame On Me and The Bullfighter Was A Lady or between Suspicion and How Would You Like To Be. The problem was the soundtracks IMO, and even in those cases i also think there are some good songs in the earlier ones (G.I. Blues, Wild In The Country, Blue Hawaii) and the last ones (especially Live A Little, Love A Little, Charro! and Change Of Habit). Aside from that, some of his mid-60's singles (It Hurts Me, Love Letters) and some bonus songs on the otherwise lame soundtracks (Down In The Alley, I'll Remember You) were pretty good also. And of course, there was How Great Thou Art in 1967. So it's not a case that everything from 1963 to 1968 was crap.

 

No matter what steaming pile of **** Elvis was given he always did his best vocally, that's another thing the soundtrack songs have going for them. I could easily pick out 40 great to good songs cut for the movies between 1960-1969, the problem is he recorded over 120 of those POS.