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In the beginning, there were only a select few who were cool,
who were doing the early rock and roll / rockabilly style with
ease and excellent swank, and yes kids,
Elvis with his backline of Scotty Moore and J.D. Fontana was
among those select few. Now suddenly, it's trendy to dig Elvis
again- maybe it's because it was his birthday this past week,
maybe it's because it's been 25 years since his death, or
maybe, just maybe, it's because people have finally realized
how shitty the current music waves really are. Whatever it is,
I'm just glad that it's happening. Which brings me to A Date
With Elvis. Released in 1959 / 1960, the album art
features Elvis decked out in his army regalia. Most
importantly, the album turns into a pin-up calendar for 1960,
therefore guaranteeing its presence in the bedroom of every
girl across the country at the time so they wouldn't 'forget'
Elvis. There are probably many that would look upon this album
as a bit of a filler album, as it consists of standards and
tracks from the movies Jailhouse Rock and Love Me
Tender, but it is, all judgements aside, one superb album
full of rockabilly rockers and a few ballads. In the rockabilly
/ jump numbers- Blue Moon of Kentucky, (You're So Square)
Baby I Don't Care, Milkcow Blues Boogie, Baby Let's Play House,
Good Rockin' Tonite, and We're Gonna Move- it's
impossible to overlook the presence of Scotty Moore. As the
session musician for many of the earlier Elvis recordings,
Moore not only paved the way for rock and roll solos, he gave
fingerpicking a breath of life that only a select few can do.
Elvis shows off with his vocal ease and finesse during the
tunes in fine fashion with a bit of a Buddy Holly tinge here
and there, but in my opinion, the guitar work on these tracks
far outshines the vocal work while still managing to remain
subtle. It's every guitarists' dream, and I'm floored
everytime I listen to the backing guitar of Moore. Good
Rockin' Tonite is definitely the stand-out masterpiece on
the record, with strong vocals that tease like crazy and
hip-cat guitar maneuvering that play off of each other
wonderfully. The ballads on the album, Young and Beautiful,
Is it So Strange, I Want to Be Free, and I Forgot to
Remember to Forget foreshadow the direction in which Elvis
was headed in his later years, and serve the purpose to show
off his voice in fine form. Young and Beautiful and
I Want to Be Free are backed by the Jordanaires and
have a bit more of a doo-wop feel (The Jordanaires also appear
on Robert Gordon albums and the more recent Sun Records
tribute album). While I'm not as much of a fan of Elvis'
mellower endeavors, the emotional intensity of the vocal
lyric is brought forth superbly throughout each of the songs,
and his voice really does manage to, for lack of a better word,
sparkle. I Forgot to Remember to Forget is THE ballad
of the album, with a bit more of a tropical feel to the guitar
work (something later seen in Harrison's solo on the Beatles'
Ballad of John and Yoko) and a loose, easy vocal line
by Elvis. An excellent way to close out the album if I do say
so myself. Check this puppy out.
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Elvis: A Date With Elvis