Elvis – Memories: The ’68 Comeback Special

Fuck yeah!

This is the way I want to remember the King! If you only own one Elvis CD in your collection, then you need to buy this one too.  Screw the greatest hits.  This is prime Elvis.  And you know what?  If I ever have to make a comeback, I hope to do it in a black leather jumpsuit too.

The sixties were not so kind to Mr Presley. The times had changed, the music had changed, America had changed…just not Elvis.  On the verge of dropping off into obscurity, he set up this special for NBC.  A two hour extravaganza featuring a Broadway opening, and a then an intimate sit down session that put everyone on notice that there was only one King.

The first half runs very smoothly, based around the songs ‘Trouble’ and ‘Guitar Man’ before sliding into hits like ’Jailhouse Rock’ and ‘Hound Dog.’  I think the Gospel Medley may be the high point here, it truly makes me want to raise my hands and get all Jesus’ed up (note: I’m pretty sure Jesus’ed up isn’t grammatically correct, but I don’t care).  If you get the chance to see the original video I highly recommend it.  Elvis goes from city to city…always seeming to end up in a whore house.

Then then comes the kung-fu.  (I shit you not!)

The second disc has Elvis performing before a select audience.  It’s a loose set, sloppy, staggered…and absolutely electric.  This was the world’s last chance to see Elvis as he was meant to be seen: washing away the memories of his awful movies, but before fat Vegas Elvis moved in.

AMAZON!

Bohannon – Stop and Go

When I was growing up, my exposure to music was pretty limited.  I think my first two records were Steve Martin’s  ”King Tut” and the theme song to “The Greatest American Hero,” both on 45, and a Weird Al LP.

That was it.

For years that was all I had, with my sister occasionally letting me listen to Queen’s “News of the World” or her KISS album.   In high school I did manage to branch out to include Led Zeppelin and Garth Brooks.

God it was a sad little world back then.

Then I hit college and discovered The Funk.  This is mostly thanks to my good friend Farmer Dave, a great musician in his own right, who set me on a path of funky discovery.   It was from this genre that my explorations of all other genres began…and on one such digging mission that I discovered Bohannon.  Actually I only discovered one song from this album…Save Their Souls, but what a song it is.  It was my friend Andrew who hunted down the source album, and thank God he did.

Waaaayy back in 1972, Hamilton Bohannon released this almost completely instrumental piece of brilliance called “Stop and Go.“  Far different from the disco Bohannon that would emerge later in the decade, this recording has some amazing drum work, thick bass and some filthy wah wah guitar.  There is no filler here.  None.

I wish I could tell you that you could go pick this up at a store, but I don’t think they ever bothered to reissue it on CD.  So you either got to dig hard at your local vinyl shop or hook up some P2P action to get a feeling for what I’m putting down here…and if you’re listening to the majestic “singing a Song for my Mother’ above,  I think you do.

Yeah, just get it off the net…it’s so much easier.