The first run limited edition of The Complete Elvis Presley Masters sold out before its release earlier this month. For those who missed out, Sony is now taking pre-orders for a second run – which will be identical to the first, except it will not be numbered. The set will ship in January 2011. See the official Complete Elvis Presley Masters site for more details.
The Mystery Train 1.0
A selection of my writings from the original run of The Mystery Train, published online between 2010 and 2014, preserved as part of the site’s early history.
Introducing a new page: Elvis Presley Master Recordings
I’ve added a new reference page to The Mystery Train Elvis Blog, Elvis Presley Master Recordings. Inspired by the two recent complete Elvis masters releases, it lists and explains what I consider the 710 Elvis master recordings released during his lifetime.
View The Mystery Train Elvis Blog’s Elvis Presley Master Recordings page. You can also access it using the tab at the top of the page.
Stop Where You Are
The Elvis Information Network today posted a spotlight on Elvis statues and memorials across the globe. I loved seeing the different interpretations and tributes.
My favorite, by far, is the statue currently on display at the Tennessee Welcome Center on Interstate 40 (labeled as “Mud Island, Memphis, Tennessee” on the EIN page; you can also see some detailed close-up shots of it near the top of their page).
This bronze statue by sculptor Eric Parks actually stood on Beale Street from 1980 to 1994. Though it was only ten years old by the time I saw it in 1990, it had already significantly deteriorated due to weather erosion and fan graffiti.
In 1994, the statue was removed for restoration. It was replaced by the rather bland but weather-resistant Elvis statue that still resides on Beale Street today (labeled as “The iconic Elvis statue on Beale Street, Memphis Tennessee” on the EIN page).
The original Parks statue, refurbished to its former glory, made its return in 1997, this time inside the visitor center – safe from weather and overzealous fans.
I hope to return to Memphis within the next few years, and the former “Elvis On Beale” statue at the Tennessee Welcome Center is definitely on my list of must-sees.
Be sure to check out EIN’s Elvis Statues & Memorials page.
Update on Sweet Inspiration Myrna Smith
Elvis Unlimited yesterday posted an update on Myrna Smith, who provided backing vocals for Elvis from 1969 to 1977 as a member of the Sweet Inspirations. “Myrna continues to be very weak, her health is not good, & she sleeps most of the time. She is still getting dialysis three times a week,” reports the site.
For more information, read the full update on Myrna at Elvis Unlimited.
I’ve been listening to Myrna for as long as I’ve been listening to Elvis – basically my whole life. I wish her well.
Some thoughts on “It’s Still Here” and Elvis In Nashville
Thomas over at the Elvis Today blog has written a great review of the latest FTD classic album release, 1973’s Elvis (Fool). “Of the three ‘Elvis at the piano’ songs, my favorite has always been ‘It’s Still Here,'” he says.
“It’s Still Here” is definitely my favorite as well, by a long shot over “I’ll Take You Home Again, Kathleen” and “I Will Be True.” I first heard “It’s Still Here” on a 1988 compilation album called Elvis In Nashville. I remember listening to that record over and over, and particularly loving that song because it featured Elvis on piano. It’s one of those sad “Always On My Mind” style songs that I gravitate towards, anyway. Wonderful performance.
I just pulled out Elvis In Nashville from my record collection and decided to give it a spin. I haven’t played it in years. Wow, what a track listing! While it may just have been a compilation of previously released songs, it was my first exposure to many of them.
Side A
I Got A Woman
A Big Hunk O’ Love
Working On The Building
Judy
Anything That’s Part Of You
Night Rider
Where No One Stands Alone
Side B
Just Call Me Lonesome
Guitar Man
Little Cabin Home On The Hill
It’s Your Baby, You Rock It
Early Mornin’ Rain
It’s Still Here
I, John
This album made for a fascinating listening experience, showing how Elvis music from various time periods really blended much better together than some people would have you believe.
I also remember that “Night Rider” always skipped at a certain point of the song, even the first time I played the record. It wasn’t until I obtained ELVIS: From Nashville To Memphis-The Essential 60s Masters I several years later on CD that I was finally able to hear the song without the skip. As much as I love my old records, I can still pull out From Nashville To Memphis on CD and the sound quality is as perfect as the day I bought it. I do miss the pops and crackles of the record sound sometimes, though. Elvis In Nashville has a lot of that. I must’ve really played the heck out of this one back then.
Anyway, be sure to check out Thomas’ review of Elvis (Fool), which also features “It’s Still Here,” over on Elvis Today.
Read Phil Arnold’s foreword to Elvis: The Early Years
ElvisBlog‘s Phil Arnold has released online the full text of his foreword to the latest Alfred Wertheimer photography book, Elvis: The Early Years. The cover of this 120-page hardbound volume from earBOOKS features an iconic 1956 image of Elvis on his Harley.
Phil’s well-written essay for the October 2010 book explores the details behind Wertheimer’s various experiences with Elvis in 1956-1958, illuminating how he was able to gain closer access to the singer than any other photographer.
While other sources have indicated that Wertheimer took nearly 4,000 photographs of Elvis, Phil reveals that this number is exaggerated. “After culling out the unusable shots (too dark, out of focus, etc.), Wertheimer says he has around 2000 commercially viable photos to license for future ventures,” he notes in the foreword. Elvis: The Early Years contains 96 of those images.
The book, available in the United Kingdom, also includes 3 CDs of Elvis music from the same time period.
Read Phil Arnold’s foreword to Elvis: The Early Years over at ElvisBlog.
Rolling Stone misses the point in review of The Complete Elvis Presley Masters
Rolling Stone magazine stopped being relevant a long time ago, but I do occasionally find their music reviews interesting – when the publication bothers to cover music, that is. Their October 26 online review of Sony’s The Complete Elvis Presley Masters is an interesting study in absurdity. The point of this release, as indicated by the title, is to collect all of Elvis’ masters into one collection. Here’s what reviewer Anthony DeCurtis had to say:
[T]he later tracks in particular could use some cherry-picking: You shouldn’t have to hear his deeply moving gospel recordings and hits like 1969’s ‘Suspicious Minds’ in the context of his long, dispiriting downward spiral.”
Besides the all-too-typical jab at his later years, this is just about the most idiotic statement I’ve ever read in a professional review. DeCurtis would prefer a Complete Elvis Presley Masters collection that is incomplete in order to satisfy his warped image of who Elvis really was? He should stick with compilations like Elv1s 30 #1 Hits, then, and leave the deep catalog diving to people who actually want to study and understand the real Elvis.
Of course, idiotic statements are unfortunately not confined to Rolling Stone. I’ve also read fan reviews in more than one place lately that criticize the top-notch Viva Elvis: The Album release for having an overblown Vegas sound. That release is the soundtrack to a Las Vegas show – what exactly did they expect? Elvis unplugged?
The Mystery Train 