Elvis Presley - The Albums and Singles Thread pt2 The Sixties

I'm not sure how much significance we can read into the strings as far as artistic intent. They were overdubbed on the movie soundstage several months after the track was recorded. It seems like this is simply a case where an overdubbed "movie version" wound up getting stuck on the LP for no particular reason, or perhaps even by mistake.

 

True. I meant their association with Elvis as a team was done after Double Trouble, but I should have made that more clear.

 

Same here. It's better than the ballads on the previous two soundtracks, but not by much.

I do like Never Say Yes, though, and it might even be my favourite song on the album. Sure, the lyrics are your standard "Elvis refuses to settle down, and he's proud of it" soundtrack fare, but apart from that, the tune and beat are catchy, and it's performed well.

 

I agree, and in fact Elvis was a little late to the game regarding the use of a significant string section on his records, which I am sure many of his more rock oriented fans are more than happy about. I of course love the whole spectrum of Elvis's sound, from sparse and gritty in the Sun and early RCA days to the more complicated orchestral flourishes that were interwoven in the later Memphis recordings and 1970's recordings. I do sometimes wonder what some of his mid 60's Nashville cut records would have sounded like with the occasional use of a string section, a la Roy Orbison's great records from this time period. I for one do not think the use or non use of an orchestra makes a record better or worse by itself, it is a matter to me of whether the additional laying of strings or brass can bring out something in the lyrics or melody that gets enhanced or underscored by their use. I am thinking of the use of cellos on In The Ghetto that arranger Green Spreen and Mike Leech used to bring out some of the darker and passionate themes of the song. I cannot even imagine hearing the great King Creole soundtrack without the use of the great brass section on Trouble or Hard Headed Woman. I also cannot imagine Suspicious Minds or Kentucky Rain sounding better without those glorious string and brass arrangements. I know not everyone feels this way as many fans love the more sparse production technique used on many of his great songs, but I judge their use on a song by song basis. I know Elvis was very enamored with that type of fuller sound the first time he really worked with a large orchestra on the 68 Comeback Special, according to arranger Billy Goldenberg.

 

"All That I Am" is a definite keeper. The arrangement has a slightly anachronistic sound for 1966 but it's gentle, catchy, and inviting in a low-key way. Furthermore, Elvis sings with the grace and intimacy that characterize his better ballads. I'm not sure how the song could be called "smarmy," since it's a quiet and convincing pledge of commitment. Will Friedwald, in his notable American Heritage article on Elvis, writes that "It’s easy to single out the inferior songs in Presley’s films, but there are just as many minor classics, like 'All That I Am.'"
I think "minor classic" is an apt description.

 

It just sounds too 'lounge-y' for my tastes. I guess that's more due to the instrumentation and the samba beat than vocals. But considering the soundtrack songs I do like I'm no purveyor of good taste!

 

While certainly not favorites, I find both these tunes (All That I Am, Never Say Yes) inoffensive though obviously middling numbers. I even find myself humming along if I'm just casually listening. That's how I feel about the worst on this soundtrack - they're not great, but they're not bad either. Kind of similar to how I felt about Roustabout's tunes. Plus, like I said before I enjoy the film. In that same kind of way.

 

Have to say, it fascinates me how often our tastes are 180 degrees apart, both in terms of likes and dislikes. It's something I've particularly noticed when we've been slogging through the down years. I wonder if it will remain the case when we get back into the really good stuff?

 

Kudos to @Tord for catching up 100 pages.

 

Probably to some degree, but it will be back in full force when we are slogging through the 1970’s.

 

I really like the Spinout soundtrack. Heck, I even like the movie. Sure it's a formula "Elvis Movie" but I like it better than Viva Las Vegas or Fun In Acapulco. The movie songs are good on the soundtrack and the bonus songs definitely put it over the top. We all know that Elvis on his worst day could take any mediocre ballad and make sound special, but with a great ballad like "I'll Remember You", he goes above and beyond! Elvis is making a great recording of "I'll Remember You" following the "less is more" school of singing. It's one of his best from any era in his career! This LP was the turning point IMO. This is where the "comeback" started. Hindsight being 20/20, I even think of the song "I'll Be Back" as prophetic. It points to some great things to come!

 

From my listens so far, the seventies won't be a slog for me.

 

Am I Ready
Written By :
Roy C. Bennett & Sid Tepper

Recorded :
Radio Recorders, Hollywood, February 16-17, 1966 : February 16, 1966. take 7

This track has a pretty standard kind of piano arpeggio setting that Elvis puts a sweet semi-crooners voice onto. It is a delicate vocal that works for me.
We get a nice little modulation in pitch near the halfway mark.
I have no problem with this song at all. Really nice little reserved ballad/love song.

 

Beach Shack
Written By :
Bill Giant, Bernie Baum & Florence Kaye

Recorded :
Radio Recorders, Hollywood, February 16-17, 1966 : February 16, 1966. take 4

The title sends a few shivers down the spine in light of where we have just been, but it isn't as scary as it might be.
This is a fairly generic uptempo fun song. Nothing to be taken too seriously. I don't find it cringe-worthy, but yes, it certainly isn't in Elvis top recordings.

 

I sometimes get Am I Ready? and All That I Am mixed up; they're both slow, somewhat dull songs that start with "A." I'm not trying to be facetious with that last part; this isn't the only album in my collection where I think of two songs as being interchangeable because they have similar feels and vaguely similar titles. Anyway, it's pleasant enough to listen to, but it's far from a favourite.

As for Beach Shack, what can I say? I like dumb beach songs. For connoisseurs of the genre (should such people exist in this thread other than me), I highly recommend a CD called Summer Beach Party (Various - Summer Beach Party ). It's forty minutes' worth of 60s trash, and it's fantastic.

 

I agree. As I said above, while not the greatest movie ever made, this is easily the most watchable Elvis movie since Viva Las Vegas, there’s a general sense of everyone involved trying harder, and the closing trilogy of “Tomorrow Is A Long Time,” “Down In The Alley,” and “I’ll Remember You,” while doubtless unheard or ignored by 99% of the music fans of 1966, show that Elvis still had 100% of his talent intact.

 

Am I Ready is more generic. All That I Am is quite better. Beach Shack is fun, no problem with it.

 

I was thinking the same thing about "I'll Be Back" when I listened to this album yesterday. Elvis is going to go a long way, from being nearly forgotten in the mid-60s, to the successes of '68-'73.

Thanks, I'll give it a spin. I just requested it from my local library.

 

While there are certainly some wonderful performances from 1970, many fans find the decade pretty uneven.

 

Yes I suspect the 70s will be the most controversial.

 

That's fair.
I would be lying if I said he picked all songs I would hope for him to play, but by the same token, there is very little that I actively dislike (if anything)
I guess from many people's perspective he made too much M.O.R. but even though that is not my primary love in music, it generally seems to work for him and the albums.
Not being contentious, just saying how I see it. We are getting there fairly quickly, and I am looking forward to it.
I have been itching to get to the American Sound albums, because I love them. I also recently discovered that I absolutely love How Great Thou Art .. what a wonderful album.

 

And it will likely result in some unintended fireworks because some fans become very defensive about the era and critical analysis is viewed as an attack on their listening preferences.

I think the issue with Elvis' foray into MOR has more to do with the quality of the material, not that it is MOR. Elvis had been attracted to ballads and had recorded ballads and softer material from the very beginning. Most critics of his 1970's period are typically not caught up with the notion that Elvis needed to be a hip rocker -- far from it. Most Elvis enthusiasts understand and appreciate Elvis the artist in a much deeper way. Again, a lot of 1970's era criticism is about the quality of material (or lack thereof) and Elvis' uneven vocal work, not that some of the recordings went down the MOR route.

 

Ahhhmen, Ahhhmen, Amen, Amen!

 

I really think Elvis's 70's period went highly underrated for years, both while he was alive and to some degree, for many years after his death. Ironically, it seems like his 70's period has been given a much kinder critical appraisal in recent years, particularly with Sony Legacy putting some of his best albums together in a more coherent fashion than how they were put together in their original incarnation. I am thinking of the Walk A Mile In My Shoes box set, which really shows you the overall quality of some of his best work in the 70's. I also think Elvis At Stax and Way Down In The Jungle Room put those studio sessions in a more logical sequence than the original releases.

Now having said the above, I also think if you take his best albums of the 70's on their own merit, they are superior in almost every way to most or all of his 60's movie soundtracks and almost the equal of his best studio albums of the 1960's, minus perhaps Elvis Is Back! or From Elvis In Memphis. Some of my favorite Elvis albums from this period include Elvis That'sThe Way It Is, Elvis Country, Promised Land, Today, and perhaps most surprising to many Elvis fans, From Elvis Presley Boulevard. I think if you judge the 70's albums on their own merits and you do not get caught up with the downhill trajectory of what was going on in Elvis's personal life, it can be a very rewarding listening experience. Elvis was largely recording material he really liked from an array of fascinating and legendary songwriters, whether it was original material provided by Mark James (Suspicious Minds, Always On My Mind, Moody Blue), Dennis Linde ( Burning Love, I Got A Feeling In My Body, For The Heart) or great covers, Mickey Newbury (American Trilogy), Tony Joe White ( Polk Salad Annie, For Ol' Times Sake, I've Got A Thing About You Baby), as well as gems written by Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson. Elvis was largely following his own musical muse during this time, other than being pitched the occasional original song. I do wish Elvis had opened himself up to working with some other producers during the 1970's, but what he did record is highly enjoyable for me, although there is some hastily thrown together work as well (Elvis Now comes quickly to mind).

 

As I am not really as fluent in the seventies work as all you guys it is a little difficult to pinpoint. I have listened to it enough to know that the albums you mention are great albums.
I am a big fan of From Elvis Presley Blvd. I really like Country, I just wish they hadn't done that cut up of I Was Born.... but even so, it is a great album. I very much like That's the Way It Is, and the bluray is a revelation. I know I like a lot of the others, but having consumed so many in such a short period of time, I will need to get to the breakdown to be precise about what is where.