The Elvis Presley Page
July 27, 2018Elvis Presley Love Me Tender
Movie Music The song "Love Me Tender' is based on the tune to the 1861 Civil War song “Aura Lee.” The version by Elvis and Ken Darby (credited as Vera Matson, which was his wife's name) has some new words and was part of the soundtrack to Elvis' movie…
July 1, 2018Blue Moon of Kentucky by Elvis Presley
Rockabilly In the early days of his career, Elvis Presley did a lot of experimenting at Sun Studio in Memphis. "Blue Moon of Kentucky" was one of the results. In 1954, Elvis, Scotty Moore, and Bill Black tried to find a B-Side to the single “That’s All Right Mama.”…
May 17, 2018Jailhouse Rock by Elvis Presley
The film Jailhouse Rock premiered on October 17, 1957, in Memphis, Tennesse. The movie went nationwide a little bit later on November 8, 1957. However, the single of Elvis Presley singing "Jailhouse Rock" came out a little bit earlier on September 24, 1957, to build excitement. The song “Jailhouse Rock” was…
April 15, 2018All Shook Up by Elvis Presley
Rock and Roll The song “All Shook Up” was written by Otis Blackwell. One of the owners of Blackwell's publishing company Shalamar Music was urging Blackwell to write a follow-up hit to "Don't Be Cruel." The story behind the song goes something like this. One day around this time, Black…
March 4, 2018Elvis Presley His Latest Flame
Rockin and Rollin Rock and roll has many story-songs about fickle girlfriends. Ah, love can be so unkind. The song was written by the team of Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman,who during the 1950s and 1960s composed more than 500 songs for artists. (For example, a very short list includes…
February 19, 2018Don’t Be Cruel by Elvis Presley
Rock and Roll The year is 1956. “Don’t Be Cruel” was written by Otis Blackwell, who was having success at the time with Little Willie John’s “Fever.” Elvis Presley recorded the song at the RCA studios in New York City. The story goes that there were 28 takes that…
February 5, 2018Treat Me Nice by Elvis Presley
The selection for this week's Flip-Side Monday is "Treat Me Nice" by Elvis Presley. The song, which was written and produced by the famous duo of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, was the B-Side to "Jailhouse Rock." The song "Treat Me Nice" was also featured in the 1957 film Jailhouse…
January 8, 2018Elvis Presley Heartbreak Hotel
Rock and Roll And then there's the King of Rock and Roll, whose songs are perennials and always fresh more so than golden oldies. “Heartbreak Hotel” was Elvis Presley's his first #1 hit on the Billboard Top 100 Pop Chart and his first hit for his new label RCA…
December 7, 2017Elvis Presley’s Blue Christmas and a White Tree
Christmas Music Thanks to the king of rock and roll Elvis’ Christmas Album of 1957, “Blue Christmas” became a rock and roll Christmas standard. The tune had been around since 1948 and was popularized by others (for example, Russ Morgan, Hugo Winterhalter, Ernest Tubb, and Billy Eckstine), but Elvis rocked…
November 8, 2017Elvis Presley Little Sister
Rock n Roll The song was written by Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman. Elvis recorded it at the RCA Nashville, Tennessee, studio in 1961. On the recording were Elvis, of course, Scotty Moore (acoustic guitar), Hank Garland (electric guitar), Bob Moore (bass), D.J. Fontana and Buddy Harmon (drums), Floyd…
May 28, 2017Elvis Presley Peace in the Valley
Gospel Music Elvis was the King of Rock and Roll, but gospel music always stayed close to his heart throughout his career. He grew up listening to it and would often play it with his musicians after a concert. In 1957, Elvis released Thomas A. Dorsey’s “Peace in the Valley”…
March 3, 2016Golden Oldies Playlist for 1957
Golden Oldies Music The year was 1957. Sputnik orbited the earth. Federal troops integrated Arkansas schools. These were 24 of the top-charting popular songs in the U.S. for 1957. Sometimes seeing them all together takes you back to that year.
The golden oldies in this YouTube playlist are…