Elvis Blog Archives—June 2008
Entry #13: Posted June 5, 2008 One summer day in 1998, I was in a Tower Records store in Seattle browsing through their rack of Elvis CDs, when I noticed several Elvis magazines sitting on a ledge above the CDs. One caught my eye. It was a small publication, roughly 6 x 9 inches, with the name ELVIS: The Man and His Music. After a quick thumb-through revealed what appeared to be a lot of interesting articles, I paid the $2 asking price and took the magazine back to my hotel room. What I had purchased was an Elvis fan magazine published in the UK. That evening I read the forty-page publication from cover to cover. My favorite article in it was titled, “Follow That Dream – Revisited” by Bill Bram (more on Bill a little later). The author shared his findings while visiting many of the film’s Florida location shooting sites in 1986. I’ve always enjoyed reading articles that burrow into the details surrounding Presley’s career. Articles like Bram’s help me understand Elvis a little better. Over the last 10 years, because of its emphasis on Elvis history, ELVIS: The Man and His Music (EMM) has been my favorite Presley magazine. I’m sure there are some Elvis magazines out there that I haven’t seen, but of the ones I have, this is the best by far when it comes to quality articles about Elvis. The magazine contains a lot of photos as well, but the emphasis is clearly on the text. If you are a fan who loves to see pictures of Elvis, then there are better magazine choices for you than this one. Personally, I know what Elvis looked like, so I’m not particularly interested in viewing an endless stream of Presley photos. I’d rather read about the man. ELVIS: The Man and His Music is published quarterly by Now Dig This publications. Its long time editor and lead writer is Trevor Cajiao. As a commercial publication, it takes a much more balanced approach to all things Elvis than would a fan club publication. I would characterize Trevor and his cadre of regular contributors as “hard-core” Elvis fans. They definitely have strong opinions about what happens in the Elvis world, and they aren’t afraid to say what they think is good and what is bad. Personally, I enjoy the honesty they display. Issue number 80, dated June 2008, arrived in my mailbox earlier this week. I summary of its contents should provide an idea of what the magazine is all about. It begins inside the front cover with the editor’s “Find Out What’s Happening” column, a list of news items from the Elvis universe. It was here that I first learned of the recent passing of Todd Morgan, an Elvis Presley Enterprises executive who I had communicated with concerning my Elvis ’57 book. Other assorted Elvis facts are included, such as the use of Elvis’s version of “Hound Dog” behind the opening credits of the new Indiana Jones film. Next comes the magazine’s letters-from-readers column. Most of the letters comment on articles from the previous issue, but readers are allowed to vent their displeasure here as well. EMM regularly includes interviews with people connected with Elvis during his lifetime. Issue #80 contains two such interviews. The most interesting one is with Barbara Eden, Elvis’s co-star in Flaming Star back in 1960. Miss Eden is very complimentary of Elvis as an actor, calling him a “natural.” She also shares some interesting anecdotes about her work with Elvis in the film. As with all magazines, readers will find articles in ELVIS: The Man and His Music that are not their cup of tea. The current issue contains two articles that are for hard-core Elvis fans only. One is a fact-filled essay on the fallout from Elvis and the Colonel selling Elvis’s back record catalogue to RCA for $5 million in 1973. The other article is even more detailed. It tries to sort out the dates of dozens of Elvis live recordings from the 1970s that have appeared on various CDs. A regular feature of EMM that I find very useful is its reviews of recent Elvis CD and DVD releases, as well as of recently released books about Elvis. I purchase some of the Elvis CDs issued on the “Follow That Dream” label, but not all of them. At $30 a pop I like to know what I’m buying, and the detailed reviews in EMM help me decide which ones are worth it. EMM’s book reviews are also useful. With all the Elvis books that are published these days, it’s helpful to read an honest review of a particular volume before laying down the money to buy a copy. Here, as well, the EMM reviewers don’t pull punches. If they like a book, they say so; if not, they’re honest about it. One of the two books reviewed in EMM’s latest issue is Elvis: Frame by Frame, a study of nine Elvis movies, by Bill Bram. Yes, it’s the same Bill Bram who wrote the Follow That Dream article that so impressed me in that first EMM issue I saw 10 years ago. I had been wavering on purchasing Bill’s book due to the high price tag, but after reading Trevor’s review and his judgment that it is “one of the best Elvis books I’ve read in years,” I’m going to purchase a copy. A final regular feature of EMM is the reprinting of a vintage newspaper article following an Elvis concert appearance. The current issue reproduces an article from The Detroit News on April 7, 1972, about Presley’s show in that city the day before. As you can see, ELVIS: The Man and His Music has a lot to offer to Elvis fans interested in Presley history and current Elvis-related products and events. The only reservation I have about recommending the magazine is its relatively high cost at this time to U.S. Elvis fans. The current exchange rate makes the UK produced magazine expensive in U.S. dollars. EMM has no U.S. agent. Individual copies and subscriptions can only be purchased through the Now Dig This web site. Single copies mailed to the U.S. are £4.50, which translates to $8.80. A one-year (4 issue) U.S. subscription runs £17.00, or $33.25. Past issues are also available through the Now Dig This site. If your Elvis budget can handle the burden in these troubled economic times, I strongly recommend that you check out ELVIS: The Man and His Music. — Alan Hanson
Entry #14: Posted June 12, 2008 Hugh Jarrett died at age 78 in an Atlanta hospital on March 31. With his passing, another link to Elvis Presley’s spectacular career in the 1950s has been lost. As a member of the Jordanaires, Jarrett sang bass on many of Elvis’s biggest hits of the fifties, including “Hound Dog,” “Don’t Be Cruel,” “Teddy Bear,” “Jailhouse Rock,” and “Hard Headed Woman.” With the other Jordanaires, Hugh backed Elvis in many of his 1956 TV appearances, including all the Sullivan shows, and appeared in Presley movies Jailhouse Rock and King Creole. In addition, Jarrett witnessed Presleymania first hand on stage with Elvis for over 75 concerts from mid-1956 through the end of 1957. Despite all these contributions to the Presley legend, Hugh Jarrett remained virtually unknown to most Elvis fans through the intervening years. As a long time Elvis fan, I admit that I was unfamiliar with his name when I started the research for my Elvis ’57 book several years ago. But I soon learned that Hugh was one of the main players in the story I was trying to tell. Of the eight men on stage for all of Elvis’s 28 concerts in 1957, only four remained alive when I started my research in 2003. Elvis was gone, of course, as were bass player Bill Black and Jordanaires Hoyt Hawkins and Neal Matthews. That left just Scotty Moore, DJ Fontana, and the two surviving Jordanaires, Jarrett and Gordon Stoker, who could tell me what it was like during those boisterous Elvis concerts in 1957. I first established e-mail contact with Stoker, who got permission from Hugh for me to call him. And so, when I called Hugh at his home outside Atlanta on August 24, 2003, he was expecting my call. From the start he was very eager to talk about Elvis and his experiences as a Jordanaire. He was one of those guys who talked a mile-a-minute; ask him a question and he’d go on for 10 minutes answering it. It was a good thing I was prepared to record the call. Of course, the first question I asked was if it was all right with him if I recorded the call. He paused a second, and then said, “OK, but let’s not make anybody look bad.” I assured him that as an Elvis fan, I intended to treat Elvis and all those he worked with in 1957 with respect. I don’t have the space here to share all that we talked about that day. Much of it can be found in Elvis ’57. In general, though, Hugh had very fond memories of the Jordanaires’ relationship with Elvis. “We had a good time,” he recalled. “He always was nice to us, very complimentary. One time he made the statement, if there hadn’t been the Jordanaires, there wouldn’t be any Elvis. He obviously felt we added something to his performance. He always showed his appreciation for us. He referred to us as the ‘very wonderful Jordanaires.’ And we did the best we could, which was good enough, I guess.” When I was through with my questions, I got the feeling Hugh was a little disappointed. He was having such a good time talking about those memorable years, and he wanted to keep going. By the summer 2004 I had another set of questions for Hugh, and so I called him again. We had an even longer conversation that day, and I really felt like I was coming to know him well. So why do I refer to Hugh Jarrett as the “forgotten Jordanaire”? It’s because he mysteriously disappeared from the group in 1958 and has never received full credit for his contributions to the Presley legend. In a 2003 e-mail to me, Gordon Stoker wrote, “Hugh Jarrett was released from the Jordanaires in 1958. He was replaced by Ray Walker … a fact that Hugh has never gotten over, but we remain friends all these years.” In another e-mail in 2004, Gordon further explained, “Hugh Jarrett was released from the group in 1958, so he is not included in any of the festivities relating to Elvis.” Hugh's biggest disappointment must have come in 2004, when the Jordanaires were inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. Jarrett did not go in with them. The lineup of Gordon Stoker, Hoyt Hawkins, Neal Matthews, and Ray Walker was honored, in a large part, for the group’s backing of Presley through the years. Jarrett was not inducted, nor even invited to the ceremony, despite the fact that it was he, not Walker, who sang bass during the most spectacular part of Elvis’s career. In my second conversation with Hugh, I asked him why he left the Jordanaires in 1958. I was just curious. The events my book covered ended in November 1957, months before Jarrett’s removal from the Jordanaires, so the reason for it was beyond the scope of Elvis ’57. Hugh answered quickly and briefly. “That was something personal. I’d rather not talk about it.” I left it at that. I will say, though, that I heard no bitterness in his voice at any time during our two phone conservations. In the last decade, Hugh Jarrett had started to emerge again into the light of the Elvis universe. Others like me had begun seeking him out for interviews, which he was eager to give. He was finally invited to Graceland in 1997 to perform with the Jordanaires on the 20th anniversary of Elvis’s death. Just last summer I saw him on TV being interviewed along with Scotty, DJ, and Gordon—the last four men left standing who were on stage with Elvis in the fifties. He was finally being recognized for his role in a cultural phenomenon, the rise of Elvis Presley. I’m glad that late in his life he got the opportunity to share with us those glorious years of his youth. Farewell, Hugh. — Alan Hanson
Entry #15: Posted June 19, 2008 Earlier this week I watched Elvis’s 17th film, Girl Happy and then wrote and posted my review of the movie in the “Elvis Movies” section of Elvis-History-Blog.com. If you’ve been reading my Elvis movie reviews, then you know I’ve been reviewing Presley’s pictures in order of their original release. I’ve been adding one new review each week and intend to continue doing so until I’ve reviewed all 33 of Elvis’s movies, starting with Love Me Tender in 1956 and ending with That’s the Way It Is in 1972. This week it was Girl Happy’s turn. In the back of my mind as I sat down to begin writing the review was a series of three letters I had received several months ago from a fellow Elvis fan in Florida. These were real letters, snail mail, the like of which I see infrequently in this e-mail era. Knowing the thought and effort that went into these letters, I couldn’t bear to throw them away, and so I filed them, waiting for an appropriate time to share their content in my Elvis blog. The posting of my Girl Happy review made this the right time. I’ll explain the connection in a moment. First, though, you need to know that the letter-writer is a long-time fan of Elvis’s movies. He explained as follows: “I am not ashamed to say I have always been fascinated by Elvis’ films and soundtrack recordings. Most critics, however, do not echo my sentiments. And to be perfectly honest with you, it’s hard to argue with them, especially after watching insipid films like ‘Harum Scarum,’ ‘Double Trouble,’ and ‘Clambake.’ But what critics fail to realize is that all Elvis Presley movies were designed to do was entertain the viewer. And for the most part they did. Even though Elvis gave his best performances in his earlier films, when he was given credible storylines and ‘allowed’ to act, I prefer his films of the sixties—the ones where Elvis is singing everytime he turns around. I think he looked his best during this period.” His attachment to Elvis’s movies of the 1960s is undoubtedly due to the fact that he became a Presley fan during that era. In his first letter to me he revealed he was introduced to the King when he saw the movie Spinout in 1967 at age 10. Those of us who are old enough to have seen many of Elvis’s movies when they were originally released in theaters usually have treasured memories of those experiences. Personally, my fondest memory of seeing an Elvis movie in the sixties was of watching Follow That Dream at the Y Drive-in Theater on a warm summer night in Spokane. It was part of a triple-bill that evening, and since I hadn’t yet obtained a driver’s license, I talked a high school friend into going with me to the drive-in in his car. Well, wouldn’t you know that Follow That Dream would be the last of the three movies shown! It didn’t start until about midnight, and my friend, not an Elvis fan, refused to hang around for it. I was in a bit of a quandary. I really wanted to see that movie, but the drive-in was five miles from my home. For a devoted Elvis fan like I already was then, there was really only one choice. As my friend drove away, I walked toward the playground equipment up front. From a comfortable seat on the swing set, I watched Follow That Dream on the big, big screen towering above me. After the movie ended a little before 2 a.m., I ran the five miles home. Was it worth it? You bet! Today Follow That Dream is my favorite Elvis movie. The memory of that night when I first saw it nearly 45 years ago is one of the reasons why. Let’s get back to the Florida Elvis fan. In his second letter he explained that he had ranked all of Elvis’ movies (excluding the two documentaries) from “best to not so best,” using a point system he had devised. He awarded points to each film in the areas of “plot, Elvis’s appearance, leading ladies, cast members, soundtrack, and sentimentality to film and soundtrack.” The results: (1) Girl Happy, (2) Tickle Me, (3) It Happened At the World’s Fair, (4) Viva Las Vegas, (5) Spinout, (6) G.I. Blues, (7) Clambake, (8) Speedway, (9) Frankie and Johnny, (10) Change of Habit, (11) Kid Galahad, (12) Loving You,, (13) King Creole, (14) Fun in Acapulco, (15) Jailhouse Rock, (16) Paradise, Hawaiian Style, (17) Girls! Girls! Girls!, (18) Roustabout, (19) Follow That Dream, (20) Harum Scarum, (21) The Trouble With Girls, (22) Double Trouble, (23) Kissin’ Cousins, (24) Live a Little, Love a Little, (25) Blue Hawaii, (26) Easy Come, Easy Go, (27) Wild in the Country, (28) Love Me Tender, (29) Stay Away Joe, (30) Flaming Star, and (31) Charro! Now, I’m sure there aren’t many other Elvis fans who would rank Presley’s movies in anywhere near that order. I know I wouldn’t. When I answered the Florida fan’s letter, I listed a few Elvis movies that would be toward the top of my personal list and a few that would be near the bottom. As for Girl Happy, which ranked #1 on his list, I included the following remark, which I thought to be rather harmless: “I don’t think Girl Happy is one of Elvis’s better films.” In his next letter to me, my Elvis pen pal expressed his disappointment with my opinion of his favorite Elvis movie as follows: “I guess everyone is entitled to their opinion, but I hope you’ll forgive me if I skip your review. I get very emotional about that stuff.” I’ve been a loyal Elvis fan for 45 years, but I’ve learned how to have a sense of humor about my Elvis habit. (It’s been necessary to put up with the ribbing some of my friends have given me about Elvis over the years.) However, I’ve also learned that many Elvis fans have a personal relationship with Elvis, which they take very seriously. And so when I sat down to write my review of Girl Happy, I chose my words carefully. I still don’t think the movie was one of Elvis’s best, but I owed it to my Elvis friend in Florida to be as fair as possible in assessing his favorite movie. Actually, I think he’d like my overall judgment of the film. I’m going to mail him a copy. He might throw it away without looking at it, but, if he reads it, I’ll bet he’ll like my overall judgment of Girl Happy. — Alan Hanson
Entry #16: Posted June 26, 2008 Last weekend I got a chance to see the musical All Shook Up and I jumped at it. Most Elvis fans have heard of this Broadway production based on Elvis’s music, but relatively few of us have actually had the opportunity to see it. The musical first opened in Chicago for a two-month tryout period beginning in December 2004. It then opened on Broadway at the Palace Theatre on March 24, 2005. It closed six months later on September 25 after 213 performances. I believe the Broadway cast took the show on tour sometime later, but if you weren’t in Chicago or New York for All Shook Up’s original splash, or if the traveling show didn’t come to your town, odds are you’ll never get an opportunity to see this Presley-based musical. About the only chance you’ll have is if some local theatre group in your area decides to produce All Shook Up. That’s exactly how I got to see the show. Coeur d’Alene, a resort community in the Idaho panhandle, is only about 30 miles east of Spokane, where I live. The Coeur d’Alene Summer Theatre is a classy outfit that draws talented actors from around the country to perform in its series of summer stock productions. The theatre’s first offering this summer was All Shook Up. All Shook Up is what’s called a “jukebox musical,” since it utilizes a recording artist’s past popular music rather than original tunes. There have been several other attempts to make a musical out an artist’s music. Some have been very successful, most notably Mamma Mia (ABBA) and Jersey Boys (The Four Seasons). Moving Out (Billy Joel) has had some moderate success, as well, while Good Vibrations (The Beach Boys) lasted only seven weeks on Broadway. All Shook Up received mixed reviews during its Broadway run. The New York Times was moderately negative in its review after the show’s opening night: “[It’s] relative slickness only highlights the emptiness of “All Shook Up” … Were it staged in a pint-sized theater with cardboard scenery and a campy young cast, “All Shook Up” might be a moderate hoot. (Or it might have been about 30 years ago, anyway.) But inflated to the proportions demanded by a glamour barn like the Palace, it becomes a mind-numbing holler.” On the other hand, Curtain Up, an online review site, gave All Shook Up a “thumbs up”: “You’ll find this one a pleasant surprise. It’s like seeing one of Elvis’s own movies, but live and in living color. I think if he were alive he’d be in the audience applauding—though he’d be seventy (really!) and all those pelvic contortions might have him recovering from hip replacement surgery and unable to give a shake, rattle and roll standing ovation.” Of course, as an Elvis fan, I absolutely loved All Shook Up when I saw it in Coeur d’Alene last weekend. It’s crammed with Presley music—a whopping 24 musical numbers! One thing to understand from the start is that this show is not a showcase for an Elvis impersonator (or “Elvis Tribute Artist” for those who prefer the politically correct term). Chad, the lead character, is a sexually-charged, leather-jacketed motorcyclist, sort of a cross between Elvis and Marlon Brando. And while Chad does perform several Elvis rock ’n’ roll numbers, complete with guitar and pelvic movements, most of the Presley songs in the show are actually performed by 10 other cast members, half of them female. As I sat in the theatre, waiting for the curtain to rise, I glanced down the program’s list of Elvis tunes included in the production. It’s a diverse group, to be sure, nothing like an Elvis fan would expect. Of course, some of Presley’s biggest hits are included—“Jailhouse Rock,” “Heartbreak Hotel,” “Teddy Bear,” “It’s Now or Never,” “Love Me Tender,” “Can’t Help Falling in Love,” and “Burning Love.” Also there, however, are a number of Presley soundtrack songs that would be totally unfamiliar to non-Elvis fans, who comprised the vast majority of the audience—“Roustabout,” “C’mon Everybody,” “Follow That Dream,” and the obscure “I Don’t Want To,” from the Girls! Girls! Girls! soundtrack. Also used in the musical is another eclectic group of tunes from various Elvis LPs through the years. They include, “It Hurts Me,” “The Power of My Love,” “There’s Always Me,” and “Fools Fall in Love.” As the show moved along, it became clear why this unusual collection of Elvis songs had been chosen. The lyrics of each fit the dialogue required at certain points in the background story. As the reviewer above noted, watching All Shook Up really is like watching an Elvis movie in the sixties. The characters burst into song, sometimes for no apparent reason, but usually to express their amorous feelings in lyrics rather than dialogue. The background story is said to be based on Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night.” Chad blows into a small town to get his bike repaired. While there he shakes up the dreary lives of the town’s citizens, and soon most everybody is falling in love with someone who loves somebody else. Of course, all the couples get sorted out in time for the finale. So, why didn’t All Shook Up make it on Broadway? The reason is the same one that derailed Elvis Presley’s once promising acting career—too much music. When Elvis’s movie-going fans demanded that he sing often on the big screen, that was the end of his dream of becoming a dramatic actor. When the producers of All Shook Up overloaded it with 24 musical numbers, that left little time between songs to develop the storyline. In fact, most of the dialogue in All Shook Up seemingly serves only to set up the next musical sequence. All the music in the production is great for Elvis fans, but it’s too much for the general theatre audience. But, hey, if you’re an Elvis fan like me, don’t miss All Shook Up if it comes to a stage near you. It’s an affirmation of Elvis’s music. Not only is it great fun, but when you see how much the people around you are enjoying the music, you get to whisper to the cheering crowd, “I told you so.” — Alan Hanson Return to Current Blog
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