Wednesday 12 June 2013

Singing Tree

Elvis' face seen in tree!

The Scotsman reports the rather fantastical apparition of Elvis' sylvan silhouette. Jon Rowley snapped the bequiffed arboreal one in a field in Glewstone, Herefordshire. Beautifully styled by the Roving Wind?
Ah see trees of green
Singing Tree (from Clambake)

Saturday 19 January 2013

Feliz Navidad

I wrote this post in September for Christmas. Because my own Elvis died in November, I have been a little out of the spirit. But I post for a traditional 40 days of Christmas. 

I have a favourite Elvis song. From From Elvis in Memphis it is the widely ignored Wearin' That Loved On Look. Back in undergrad days it was a favourite pastime in the Pen digs to dress up as Elvis and sing this loudly. I like to think my flatmates enjoyed the experience. I never thought it was Christmassy until I discovered that the Colombian Elvis is a rockabilly star called Marco T and he recorded a slightly adapted version for his Christmas album. The original song was written by Dallas and Owens, Nashville songwriters, and was track 1 on the Memphis album, which rescued Elvis from awful-movie obscurity. Recorded at American Sound Studios by Chips Moman in 1969 (in the same year the studio put out possibly the best and certainly the sexiest album ever, Dusty in Memphis), it was the first time Elvis had recorded in Memphis since he left Sun. (Dusty hated it and did most of the recording to massive backing tracks in New York.)
In Elvis's version,

I had to leave town for a little while, 
You said you'd be good while I'm gone,
But that look in your eye done told me you told a lie.
I know there's been some carrying on....

while in Marco T's,

Ya se con la Navidad
Y tu no estas aqui
Es como un rana que me que falla (?)

Porque falta tu corazon

Baby otra navidad sin tu amor 
(shoop shoop)
Baby otra navidad sin tu amor.

Elvis screams above the overdubbed backing singers. Marco T is altogether less dirty. The pics in the vid show Marco T, suitably toned down but effortlessly Elvisy, chatting to a beautiful woman with, oh my, is that Marilyn coming between them?

Anyhow people,

Feliz navidad to you all, the El Vez way. There is only a thin line between an Elvis jumpsuit and a Mexican wrestling onesie.

Thanks: Ana Di Rana for translation.