Sunday, July 11, 2010

0002. Elvis Presley - Elvis Presley (1956)


Here he comes! That greasy, sweaty hunk’a man-meat! He swaggers up to the mic and BLAM! he’s makin’ us all swoon and drool. Do I love Elvis? Well, maybe. He is full of sex, no doubt. The music is catchy as hell. And his voice goes down like a warm cup of milk. His lactation has flowed its way into our collective unconscious in a way that (arguably) no other artist has done before or since. And that might be the problem. There is so much baggage attached to the King that it’s tough to listen with fresh ears. His voice is an A&R man’s wet dream, but it’s difficult to evaluate his music objectively. Actually, I’m not sure we can evaluate ANY work of art objectively; we all come with our own personal experiences/expectations/bullshit, etc. Objectivity becomes especially hard, though, when the artist in question is so strongly associated with things like Las Vegas, cheap busts, terrible impersonators, uh… basically everything kitschy. So I had to put my pre-conceived notions aside for at least a couple days so I could experience the Gyrating Hips in their purest form.

“I’ve been traveling over mountains / Even through the valleys, too / I’ve been traveling night and day / I’ve been running all the way / Baby, trying to get to you.”* I quote this passage not to delve deeply into its philosophical implications, but to talk about the way Elvis can transform seemingly trite notions into something far more powerful. Give these words to just any ol’ crooner and they will be delivered D.O.A. Elvis hiccups these words into my heart. That’s his true gift: the ability to breathe life into the songs he performs no matter how cliché and boring they may appear on paper. There are some serious duds on this album, certainly, but when the man is working his magic it is a measurable experience. It is easy to write an artist off for not creating his/her own material... but it takes genuine talent to make a song spring to life. This is why Elvis is a legend.

The duds I speak of are mainly the Tropical, margarita-drenched numbers that plod along at a frustratingly leisurely pace (see: “I love you, Because” and “I’ll Never Let you Go”). I love Elvis when he's outta control… the obvious example is “Blue Suede Shoes”, but I love it when he gets all flip on “Just Because”: “Well, I’m telling you I’m through with you / Because, well well, just because.” Maaan, if I tried using that line to end a relationship it simply would not fly. I would end up having to sit down and describe exactly WHY it was that I no longer wanted to be with that person… break-ups get sloppy. But he can do what he wants because he’s fucking ELVIS! AND HE’S TOO BUSY ROCKIN’ OUT TO DEAL WITH YO’ PRETTY LIL’ HEAD. That’s when Elvis really kills.

Overall, this is a messy affair. The album is a stitch-up of two separate sessions that were recorded six months apart. But Elvis isn't an album's man, and I didn't expect a true album out of him. All I wanted was Elvis to get buck wild. And that's what he did. Mostly.

* This is from "Trying To Get To You", easily my favourite track on the album.

Friday, July 9, 2010

0001. Frank Sinatra - In The Wee Small Hours (1955)



Sad music. This is musky, cigarette smoke, records on the floor, your girl is gone and you know she’ll never come back music. The terrifying sensation that you may never find another quite as perfect as the one who is no longer there. “I get along without you very well… of course I do. Except when soft rains fall and drip from leaves then I recall the thrill of being sheltered in your arms. Of course I do.” That shit will make a grown man weep. The record will suffocate you if you aren’t careful. There are certain albums that are ONLY to be listened to when you are caught in the grips of heartbreak… this is one of those records. I can relate, I have been there. I think anyone who has ever dated anyone has been there. However, I am currently not locked in my house with the blankets over my head while eating cereal (comfort food), so I am not in the right state of mind to properly digest this music. There is a wonderful catharsis that comes with listening to devastating music while devastated… it beats the hell out of “it will be alright, man” or “there are plenty of dem fishies in da sea” type garbage spewing from your well-intentioned friends… SHIT IS TERRIBLE… THE WORLD IS ENDING! DON’T TELL ME OTHERWISE OR I’LL SQUEEZE YOUR EYEBALLS UNTIL THEY EXPLODE!

The bottom line is that you should not play this record during a game of Twister with friends.

Now, with that disclaimer behind us, let’s discuss the album: Frankie just broke up with his lady Ava Gardner and he decides to take all that angst he feels bubbling below his baby blue eyes and use it to create a masterpiece. He didn’t write the material… but that doesn’t matter. He feels it; he feels he could have written it, he feels anyone could have written it. And I’m not about to disagree with him. All of his emotion is laid bare for the world to see. The strings & piano are beautiful. In fact, the production is amazing. For an album made over fifty years ago, this still sounds fresh. Prediction: in a hundred years from now (if we don’t succumb to the zombie apocalypse), people will still be crying along to this album.

“In The Wee Small Hours” basically set the blueprint for what is now known as the “album”. I have a stormy relationship with albums. Of course, I love them. I love an album that KNOWS it’s an album and is able to maintain cohesiveness (without, hopefully, getting repetitive). The problem is that I have the attention span of a beetle. Thus, I have a lot of trouble getting through something longer than forty minutes. During a movie, I will take approximately ten breaks just so I can get through the damn thing… and a lot of the time I don’t make it. I’m not sure if this is because I spent my childhood glued to the TV set for eight hours a day, or if I was just born out-of-my-mind ADD. Either way, this is partially why I decided to tackle this project. I want to train myself to truly enjoy an album start to finish. This will be a huge challenge for me… but I am up for it.

So, go ahead and follow along, or just read my scribbles, or never come back to this site again… any of those are fine by me. Bye!