Elvis Presley – Elvis Is Back (1960/2015)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 32:17 minutes | 702 MB | Genre: Rock
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © RCA – Legacy
Elvis Is Back! is the eighth studio album by Elvis Presley. It was released on RCA Victor Records in mono and stereo in April 1960. Recorded over two sessions in March and April, the album marked Presley’s return to recording after his discharge from the U.S. Army.
In 1957, as Presley’s fame was soaring, he received a draft notice from the Memphis Draft Board, but was given a deferment so he could finish his latest film production, King Creole. During Presley’s two-year military service in Germany, RCA Victor and Paramount Pictures progressively released material he had completed prior to enlistment. During his last months in the Army, Presley experimented with new sounds and worked on further improving his performance. He also prepared material for his first session in Nashville, which was scheduled to take place upon his return. Presley returned to the United States on March 2, 1960. The singer reunited with his original band The Blue Moon Boys, excepting bassist Bill Black. The first session was held on March 20–21 and the second session was held on April 3–4, completing the album.
Elvis Is Back! was released on April 8, 1960. The album topped the UK Albums Chart and reached number two in Billboard’s Top Selling LP’s. Initially, the release received mixed reviews. Throughout the years the album’s critical reception became progressively more positive, while it was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America in 1999.
Although they have common recording origins, two of the three singles, “It’s Now or Never” and “Are You Lonesome Tonight,” were very quirky by the standards of Elvis songs at the time — the former inspired by Elvis’s admiration for Tony Martin’s 1949 hit “There’s No Tomorrow,” while the latter was recorded at the request of Col. Parker as a favor to his wife. They add to the diversity of sounds on this record, which shows a mature Elvis Presley. “Dirty, Dirty Feeling” and “It Feels So Right” showed he could still rock out and challenge authority and propriety, while “Reconsider Baby” and “Like a Baby” offer some of his best blues performances; but “The Thrill of Your Love” (a very gospel-tinged number), “Soldier Boy,” “Girl of My Best Friend,” and “Girl Next Door Went a’ Walking,” also displayed the rich, deep vocalizing that would challenge critics’ expectations of Elvis Presley playing rhythm guitar throughout. He also comes off better than on any of his other albums since arriving at RCA, as a musician as much as a “star” (he’d always had a lot more to say about running his sessions than the critics who loathed his RCA years indicated). –Bruce Eder
Tracklist:
01. Elvis Presley – Make Me Know It (02:02)
02. Elvis Presley – Fever (03:35)
03. Elvis Presley – The Girl of My Best Friend (02:25)
04. Elvis Presley – I Will Be Home Again (02:36)
05. Elvis Presley – Dirty, Dirty Feeling (01:36)
06. Elvis Presley – Thrill of Your Love (03:03)
07. Elvis Presley – Soldier Boy (03:07)
08. Elvis Presley – Such a Night (03:01)
09. Elvis Presley – It Feels So Right (02:11)
10. Elvis Presley – The Girl Next Door Went A’Walking (02:15)
11. Elvis Presley – Like a Baby (02:41)
12. Elvis Presley – Reconsider Baby (03:39)
