Does Elvis Still Matter?

"No Elvis, probably no Beatles, no Rolling Stones, no Bowie, no U2, no T Rex. I doubt even guys like Jerry Lee Lewis, Bo Diddley, and Chuck Berry would have ever had the high-profile careers they had without Elvis crashing the party.

Would most of us even care who Bill Monroe is without Elvis' cover of "Blue Moon of Kentucky"? He may not have invented rock and roll, but he was the first guy to break the sound barrier, and he is still sending a sonic boom through our society that will never be reversed. And they didn't film him originally from the waist up only for nothing!"

- William Michael Smith, Houston Press.

Statue In Tupelo

When four of us visited the US for the first time in 2007, Tupelo was one of the stops. Of course. At the time there was a wonderfully done statue of Elvis as a boy of about 11, at The Birthplace, you've all seen it.

Looks like it has been upgraded or these ones added? We look forward to visit there again in 2017. I know, it's been 10 years. Too long. But what can you do when you reside at the most southern part of Africa?

In 2005, during our (also only) trip to London we were fortunate to have been guests of the accomplished Elvis author, Julie Yeardye, and her husband Trevor, when we visited with them for a few days in the country side of Tring.

At the time we were amazed to hear them talk about attending Elvis weekends and events all over the place, from the UK to Spain to the US. How fortunate you guys are in countries with a great number of Elvis fans. You have awesome opportunities and singers of Elvis music. I hope you cherish and support them as much as you can.

Tupelo, Memphis, Nashville, et al, we will see you again, shortly.

If I Can Dream

Sony Legacy Recordings will bring us a new collaboration between Elvis and The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra with the imminent "If I Can Dream" CD, scheduled for release on 31 October 2015.

Interestingly the lineup includes five songs from the 70s, eight from the 60s (amongst them a possible hidden gem - for the mainstream public, that is) and one 50s song. Elvis sang most of these on stage during his concert years, so I wonder if the live or studio versions will be used (where applicable). I suspect the latter.

At least it's a different concept, with a duet or more incorporated. Elvis' voice, the best ever, together with arguably the best ever orchestra - it just might turn out to be a pretty cool fusion. Hopefully Classical fans might love it, too. Let's wait and see, or rather, hear.

A single, If I Can Dream, b/w Bridge Over Troubled Water, will accompany the album. It seems as if Sony will back this release with a bit of promotion. It all depends who/what else is released at the same time. If the album (or single) makes a splash, it can take Elvis to the charts again. I think if there is one country that can make it happen, it might be the UK. Those guys are so devoted when it gets to Elvis releases. As such I will get my copy from them.

You can reserve a copy at Amazon US, or UK (with the different cover to the left), or Essential Elvis. I tried the online shops Loot and Takelot, without any luck ... get with the program, you guys. I guess they will have the new CD in stock towards November, as might Musica (hopefully).