Elvis's 40 Year Reign (1969-70)

With the weight of Hollywood finally off his shoulders, Elvis turned his attention to Las Vegas and to what would be his first true live performance since 1961. The first show was set for July 31st, and while Elvis and his team discussed what kind of a set-list his show would have, the first LP from the American Sound session was released. From Elvis in Memphis was the title, fittingly, as it not only pointed to the city where the recording had taken place, and not only reminded people of the King’s hometown, but it also pointed out the musical style that the album would bring with it: True to rock’s roots and the menagerie of musical sensibilities that Memphis is known for (rock and roll, blues, R&B, country), Chips selected twelve highly varied cuts for Elvis’s big comeback album (it was his first traditional studio album since 1962’s Pot Luck). Key omissions were “Suspicious Minds” and “Kentucky Rain” and “Don’t Cry Daddy” since this was the era when singles and albums had separate tracks, although “In the Ghetto” was added after Chips insisted that the album needed a big seller to push it over the top (it was a shrewd move that helped make the album a hit).

Unfortunately, politics and pettiness reared their ugly heads and poisoned the oasis that had just been discovered at American.

From the beginning of the partnership, Chips Moman knew that his work with Elvis was one of mutual-desperation. The tiny Memphis studio had secured a few hits and was getting looks from people within the industry, but it was far from a big player. It lacked the resources to compete with the bigger names. Elvis chose to work there because he needed a new sound and fresh ears overseeing his work to bring out something that had been missing over the years. The partnership was a smashing success, but with it came the jealousy of Col. Parker (whom Moman had essentially cut out of the loop during Elvis’s two-months with him) and Elvis’s entrenched producer Felton Jarvis. Jarvis was malleable by Parker while Moman was not. Jarvis saw Elvis as his chief meal ticket; Moman saw Elvis as one great opportunity among what he hoped would be many. For Felton, Elvis was life. For Chips, Elvis was January. So when the time came to list the credits for the From Elvis in Memphis LP, there was no question in either party’s mind how things should go.

Chips expected to have his name and his studio listed as producer, while Parker expected that no one but Elvis be given credit (as had been custom over the years).

That was unacceptable to Moman. When it was pointed out that Felton Jarvis was a co-producer on the album and that he didn’t mind (as in the past) yielding his credit, Moman pointed out that Jarvis wasn’t running the studio and Jarvis didn’t handle the arrangements. Jarvis was a co-producer merely by association with RCA and Elvis. The album was Moman’s and Elvis’, and both should have been credited. Still, without proper credit, he was merely insulted, nothing more. However, when Moman found out he would also be denied the royalties expected of a record producer (but instead would be treated like an RCA subcontractor), things got very ugly. Moman went into a tirade and accused Parker of robbing him. In a heated phone call, he told Parker never to come back to his studio again.

That was the last time Elvis worked with any producer not named Felton Jarvis.

In fact, Felton was put in charge of arranging the final mixes of the American Sound recordings, and it was his idea to add a fake-fade out near the end of “Suspicious Minds” which Moman described as “a scar” left over from his once-pleasant work with Presley.

There was no time to dwell on hard feelings, however, as Elvis was soon in Las Vegas gearing up for his first show. The deal Parker secured for his client saw Elvis performing in a newly-built 2,000-seat venue inside the brand new International Hotel with an initial four-week engagement, constituting one show per evening on Tuesday-Thursday (getting Monday’s off) and two shows on Friday-Sunday, for a total of half a million dollars.

The deal was altered a few times along the way and by the time Elvis actually touched down in Las Vegas he was booked for two shows every night after opening night, with no days off. It would be brutal and in the end not even the enthused and easily-excitable Elvis could maintain the rigors of it, leading him to turn to medication to give him the extra pep in his step he needed during late-evening shows (and more medication to unwind him when it was time to sleep…in the middle of the day).

His Las Vegas attire would soon be defined with a very distinct look (white jumpsuit and tall collars) but for his first show, Elvis chose something a little more subtle. He wore a two-piece black suit with a big open front and an elaborate cloth belt that draped down his leg below the knot. It looked like a glorified Karate Gi. Neither it, nor the white variant he also wore, was anything close to the costumes he’d soon be sporting, but it was flashy enough for a debut engagement and perfectly highlighted his slim and tanned features.

When he took the stage, he exuded the magnetic charisma that had always been there (but which had been suppressed throughout the decade), despite admissions of nervousness. His charm was off the charts as he welcomed the crowd to his first live show in “nine” years live, before adding “I’ve appeared dead a few times, but this is my first live show…” After that, the ice was broken and the show went off without a hitch.

For the all-important setlist, Elvis and his handlers decided on a healthy mix of old favorites, newly recorded tracks, newly-written tracks, and personal favorites that would never be recorded in the studio due to licensing and rights-holding issues. Here at the beginning of what would be the rest of Elvis’s career, many of the future tropes that would define his live act were already solidified. He hadn’t quite settled on “See See Rider” as his opening number (or, for that matter, “Also Sprach Zarathustra”), but he did feature a medley of old hits halfway through, he did use “Love Me Tender” as an excuse to kiss every pretty girl who approached the stage, and he did end with a rousing rendition of “Suspicious Minds” and “Can’t Help Falling in Love.” Many of these first Vegas recordings would become staples of his 1970’s run but there were a few songs that never made it into the regular rotation.

“Are You Lonesome Tonight” was perhaps a bit too wordy to work as a live performance, which is why it was a rare treat in Las Vegas, but occasionally Elvis would bring the song out and serenade his audiences with it. Just as frequently, Elvis would play around with the lyrics, demonstrating a mild embarrassment at the words that were sincere in 1960 but were out of fashion in the more cynical late-60’s. One of the more famous alternate renditions of the song saw Elvis change the line “do you gaze at your doorstep and picture me there” with “do you gaze at your bald head and wish you had hair?” It was a change he made almost every time he played the song live, but on one occasion he happened to see in the audience a very stiff-looking man in a suit and a slick-bald head. A fit of laughter consumed the rest of the recording and has since become one of the best outtakes of the early Vegas years.

Please accept YouTube cookies to play this video. By accepting you will be accessing content from YouTube, a service provided by an external third party.

YouTube privacy policy