Yellow Submarine

[I. Spaceman]

Wait'll you see him do Something in Mad Dogs. Woah, man. You can see why George wrote it for him.

[Jeff Mason]

I'd have liked to hear Let it Be sung by Elvis.

Wow, I never thought of that before.  Elvis would have mopped the floor with Macca's relatively weak vocal.  Great song but a little limited by the performance.

[Matinee Idyll]

George wrote it for him?  Didn't know that...

I like the version on the best of CD I have... But I've never been terribly partial to that song, doesn't cut my mustard.

Am I the only person who digs what he did with "With a Little Help From My Friends"?, I thought he whooped the original... awesome organ/guitar interplay.

[I. Spaceman]

Ahh, who needs it though, when we have Bridge Over Troubled Water. Same thought, way better song.

Matinee, I believe Cocker SAVED that piece of garbage. Great version, with Jimmy Page on guitar. The Woodstock version is the best thing from that festival.

[Matinee Idyll]

Lookit, thar's another raggedy, salty bastard whose voice I love.  He got kicked out of Australia for drug posession... 

Bridge Over Troubled Water - same as Something or Let It Be?  I have trouble with that song too, it has the nice emotional peaks in "I will lay me down", but I don't know... doesn't quite get over the line for me...  (this is based on S&G, a fucking awful version in a school talent show and a whole bunch of shitty "Australian Idol" versions...)

Though, I ain't heard Elvis do it...  if he did, that'd be worth reevaluating it.

[Jeff Mason]

Elvis wrings every ounce of passion he can from BOTW.  Great track.

[Matinee Idyll]

Mmm, Elvis and Cocker were great reinterpretors of other peoples tunes... Most always improving them.

I think I like their covers more than the ones that were written by/for them.

I mean, Cocker's "The Letter"... FOOK!

[I. Spaceman]

I couldn't agree more about The Letter.
You must hear Elvis do bridge. it'll blow your mind.

[Matinee Idyll]

I'll get downloadin'  now... Onya mate.

[Matinee Idyll]

Yup, listening to big E doing Bridge now...

Just fantastic... I love when his voice breaks, beautiful sound.

[I. Spaceman]

 

[Matinee Idyll]

The one I got is from "The Gospel Music of Elvis Disc 2", is this the best version Ian?  The one you and Jeff were talking about?

[Joel5001]

Which version of E doing BOTW?  I only have the one from the "That's The Way it Is" 3 disc set.  Is there a studio version as well?

Edit: Matinee, looks like I posted at the same time you did.

[I. Spaceman]

There's 2 versions on TTWII. One is studio with applause dubbed onto the end. That's the one from the original album.
On the 2nd disc there's a live take.
On the 70's box set, there's the studio take sans applause.

[Jeff Mason]

Plus there are other live versions on FTD releases, but you won't be too likely to see those.  You can pretty easily tell which version is which on TTWII.

[Joel5001]

The one I've been listening to is from disc 2.  Don't recall the Disc One version, I'll have to pull the disc out.

[I. Spaceman]

Track 12! 

[onkster]

I will speak up in praise of "Let It Be", with qualifications:

I really like the 2 Beatles versions the best, and I think Mac's vocal doesn't suffer from lack of 'passion'.  When I think of latter-day Elvis doing it, I can only imagine him OVERdoing it.  More power doesn't necessarily equal more passion, or at least an appropriate rendering of passion.

For a while, Paul was just killing this song (in a bad way) in live concerts by adding this very false showbizzy 'passion' to it--which it absolutely doesn't need.  This was a serious song in which he describes a spiritual visitation from his mother, for God's sake!  A holy event.
Quieter, seriouser, seem to be the way to go.  Certain things take restraint in order to get the perfect balance of elements.  (I just about cringed recently when a coworker recently said to someone, "What if Elvis sang REAL rock and roll?"  Meaning:  like Metallica.  Yikes.  Define real, guys.  There seem to be 2 minds in the world:  the More/Harder/Faster Is Better vs. the Interesting/Surprising/Different Is Better...)

Anyway, somehow he's figured it out and his more recent versions of LIB and Jude sound more sincere again.  Now if only he could find a drummer who doesn't feel the need to just bludgeon the hell out of every ballad...

[I. Spaceman]

Are you one of those people who does not like 70's Elvis?

[b.dfzo]

Are you one of those people who does not like 70's Elvis?

That sounds famililar...

...for the same reason people hate on late 70s Elvis, people hate on late 70s Dylan...

...but I like "Yellow Submarine"!  It's their Goon Show infuence worn proudly on their sleeves.  See also: "You Know My Name (Look Up The Number)".  Now THERE is a song that lets it ALL out!

[I. Spaceman]

Right on, man.

[b.dfzo]

You know my name...look up the number...YOU, KNOW, MY NAAAAAAMME!!!!!  LOOK UP DA NUMBAHH!  YOU -- YOU KNOW---YOU KNOW MY NAAAAAAAAAMME!!!

[I. Spaceman]

"Hey RINGO, Hey RINGO! Let's hear it for Dennis! Ha HEY!".

[b.dfzo]

If ever there were an underrated, underheard Beatles song, "You Know My Name" would be it...I mean, it's the B-Side of "Let It Be"!!!

(...and "The Inner Light", probably the prettiest Eastern pastische George ever came up with.  Practically no one outside of voracious Beatles fans have had the chance to hear this.)

[I. Spaceman]

Yeah, I like Inner Light. That and Love You Too are the only Indian things George did that I really dig.