1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die - #152. Elvis Presley - From Elvis in Memphis (1969)

#152. Elvis Presley - From Elvis in Memphis (1969)

Label – RCA
Producer – Chips Moman
Art Direction – Jacqueline Murphy
Nationality – USA
Running Time – 37:08

Track Listing (standout tracks listed in bold)

1. Wearin' That Loved On Look
2. Only The Strong Survive
3. I'll Hold You In My Heart (Till I Can Hold You In My Arms)
4. Long Black Limousine
5. It Keeps Right On Hurtin'
6. I'm Movin' On
7. Power Of My Love
8. Gentle On My Mind
9. After Loving You
10. True Love Travels On A Gravel Road
11. Any Day Now
12. In The Ghetto

This is perhaps Elvis at his finest! (it is at least on par with his RCA debut LP from early 1956). When “From Elvis in Memphis” was released in June 1969. it was the thirty-fifth album by Elvis Presley, released on RCA!! To be fair – the last six years he had been making dreadful soundtrack albums and thankfully - none of this record resembled any of that less than stellar material the King had been cutting.
Relying only on producer Chips Moman to shape the project, and recording at American Sound Studio in Memphis, the results were stunning, and what resulted is one of the greatest soul albums ever recorded. There are some shifts into country, pop, and blues as well, but Elvis delivers the material with a fire that had been missing since he was drafted into the Army. It didn’t hurt that he's backed by the best playing and backup singing of the era.
These sessions were very productive and non album tracks produced include the singles "Don't Cry Daddy," "Kentucky Rain" and the smash "Suspicious Minds".
The single that was on the record - "In the Ghetto," released as the lead single two months before the album hit the stores, went to #3 on the singles chart, his first top ten single since 1965.
The record when releases peaked at #13 on the Billboard 200, and has been certified a gold album by the RIAA. In 2003, the album was ranked number 190 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.
It is HIGHLY recommended.


You can purchase the CD here, the vinyl here