Summary
G.I. Blues is the third soundtrack album and seventh (overall) album by American singer and musician Elvis Presley, released by RCA Victor in mono and stereo, LPM/LSP 2256, in October 1960. It is the soundtrack to the 1960 film of the same name in which he starred. Recording sessions took place on April 27 and 28, and May 6, 1960, at RCA Victor Studio C and Radio Recorders in Hollywood, California. The album topped the Billboard Top Pop Album chart.[6] It was certified gold on March 13, 1963 and platinum on March 27, 1992 by the Recording Industry Association of America.[7] The album remained at the #1 spot for ten weeks.
| G.I. Blues | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Soundtrack album by | ||||
| Released | September 23, 1960 | |||
| Recorded | April 27 – May 6, 1960 | |||
| Studio | RCA (Hollywood) | |||
| Genre | Pop, rock and roll | |||
| Length | 26:35 | |||
| Label | RCA Victor | |||
| Elvis Presley chronology | ||||
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| Singles from G.I. Blues | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [3] |
| MusicHound | [4] |
| Rough Guides | [5] |
Content edit
Music on this album comprised songs that had appeared in the film of the same name. The song "Wooden Heart" was released as a single in the United Kingdom, where it was number one for six weeks. It also was number one in Australia. In the United States, Joe Dowell recorded a cover version of "Wooden Heart" that topped the Billboard Hot 100. RCA Victor later released "Wooden Heart" by Presley as the b-side of a single twice, once in 1964 on the back of a reissue of "Blue Christmas," and again on the flip side of a belated issue in 1965 of "Puppet on a String" from the film Girl Happy. Four songs from this album appear on the 1995 soundtrack compilation Command Performances: The Essential 60s Masters II: "G.I. Blues", "Wooden Heart", "Shoppin' Around", and "Doin' the Best I Can".
Due to copyright reasons, the European version of the soundtrack album and film substitutes the opening track "Tonight Is So Right for Love" with the song "Tonight's All Right for Love", adapted from a melody by 19th century waltz-king Johann Strauss II, Tales from the Vienna Woods. The melody for "Tonight Is So Right for Love" was taken directly from a barcarolle composed by Jacques Offenbach, one of Strauss's contemporaries. An American release of "Tonight's All Right for Love" did not occur until it appeared on the compilation album Elvis: A Legendary Performer Volume 1 in 1974. The version of "Blue Suede Shoes" used on the soundtrack is a new recording of the song Presley first recorded in 1956, and is one of only a few songs that Presley would re-record in a studio setting during his career, others being "Love Letters", "It Hurts Me" and "A Little Less Conversation".
The G.I. Blues soundtrack album was nominated for two Grammy Awards in 1960 in the categories Best Sound Track Album Or Recording Of Original Cast From A Motion Picture Or Television and Best Vocal Performance Album, Male.[8]
Reissues edit
On April 27, 1997, RCA remastered the album for compact disc, adding eight outtakes from the recording session as bonus tracks. Two songs were previously released, the acoustic version of "Big Boots" appearing on the posthumous 1978 album Elvis Sings for Children and Grown-Ups Too, and the substitute "Tonight's All Right For Love".[9] In 2012 G.I. Blues was released on the Follow That Dream label in a 7-inch digi-pack edition featuring a booklet and two CDs containing the original album tracks and numerous alternate takes.[10] A follow-up album, Café Europa, which also contained a booklet and two CDs was released in 2013. This album featured more alternate takes of the G.I. Blues soundtrack.[11]
Track listing edit
Original release edit
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recording date | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Tonight Is So Right for Love" | Abner Silver, Sid Wayne, Joe Lilley | April 27, 1960 | 2:14 |
| 2. | "What's She Really Like" | Abner Silver and Sid Wayne | April 28, 1960 | 2:17 |
| 3. | "Frankfort Special" | Sid Wayne and Sherman Edwards | May 6, 1960 | 2:58 |
| 4. | "Wooden Heart" | Ben Weisman, Fred Wise, Kay Twomey, Bert Kaempfert | April 28, 1960 | 2:03 |
| 5. | "G.I. Blues" | Sid Tepper and Roy C. Bennett | April 27, 1960 | 2:36 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recording date | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Pocketful of Rainbows" | Ben Weisman and Fred Wise | May 6, 1960 | 2:35 |
| 2. | "Shoppin' Around" | Aaron Schroeder, Sid Tepper, Roy C. Bennett | May 6, 1960 | 2:24 |
| 3. | "Big Boots" | Sid Wayne and Sherman Edwards | May 6, 1960 | 1:31 |
| 4. | "Didja' Ever" | Sid Wayne and Sherman Edwards | April 27, 1960 | 2:36 |
| 5. | "Blue Suede Shoes" | Carl Perkins | April 28, 1960 | 2:07 |
| 6. | "Doin' the Best I Can" | Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman | April 27, 1960 | 3:10 |
1997 CD reissue bonus tracks edit
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recording date | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Tonight's All Right For Love" | Sid Wayne, Abner Silver, Johann Strauss II | May 6, 1960 | 1:21 |
| 13. | "Big Boots" (fast version) | Sid Wayne and Sherman Edwards | May 6, 1960 | 1:14 |
| 14. | "Shoppin' Around" (alternate take 11) | Aaron Schroeder, Sid Tepper, Roy C. Bennett | April 27, 1960 | 2:15 |
| 15. | "Frankfort Special" (fast version take 2) | Sid Wayne and Sherman Edwards | April 27, 1960 | 2:25 |
| 16. | "Pocketful of Rainbows" (alternate take 2) | Ben Weisman and Fred Wise | April 28, 1960 | 2:47 |
| 17. | "Didja' Ever" (alternate take 1) | Sid Wayne and Sherman Edwards | April 27, 1960 | 2:42 |
| 18. | "Big Boots" (acoustic version) | Sid Wayne and Sherman Edwards | May 6, 1960 | 0:58 |
| 19. | "What's She Really Like" (alternate take 7) | Abner Silver and Sid Wayne | April 28, 1960 | 2:24 |
| 20. | "Doin' the Best I Can" (alternate take 9) | Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman | April 27, 1960 | 3:17 |
2012 Follow That Dream release edit
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2013 Café Europa Follow That Dream release edit
| Disc 1 | Disc 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Personnel edit
- Elvis Presley – vocals, acoustic rhythm guitar on "Shoppin' Around" (alt. version recorded April 27)
- The Jordanaires – backing vocals
- Scotty Moore – rhythm guitar, lead guitar on "Frankfort Special"
- Tiny Timbrell – lead guitar, mandolin
- Neal Matthews Jr. – electric bass, guitar
- Jimmie Haskell – accordion
- Hoyt Hawkins – tambourine
- Dudley Brooks – piano
- Ray Siegel – double bass, tuba
- D. J. Fontana – drums
- Frank Bode – drums on April 27 and April 28
- Bernie Mattinson – drums on May 6
Chart positions edit
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | Billboard Pop Albums (Billboard 200) (mono and stereo) | 1 |
| 1961 | UK Albums Chart[12] | 1 |
| Chart (1977) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[13] | 71 |
Certifications edit
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[14] | Silver | 250,000[14] |
| United States (RIAA)[15] | Platinum | 1,000,000^ |
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^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
References edit
- ^ "Elvis Presley With The Jordanaires - G. I. Blues". Retrieved 24 January 2019.
- ^ "Elvis Presley - Wooden Heart". Retrieved 24 January 2019.
- ^ AllMusic review
- ^ Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel, eds. (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink Press. p. 892. ISBN 1-57859-061-2.
- ^ Simpson, Paul (2004). The Rough Guide to Elvis. London: Rough Guides. p. 121. ISBN 1-84353-417-7.
- ^ "Pop Albums". Elvis Presley: The Official Site of the King of Rock 'n' Roll. Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc. 2013. Archived from the original on May 20, 2013. Retrieved May 20, 2013.
- ^ "Searchable datebase". RIAA. 2013. Retrieved May 17, 2013. Note: Enter search for "Presley, Elvis"
- ^ "Grammy Awards 1961". Award Shows. Awards and Shows. Retrieved January 17, 2015. The winner was Ray Charles for The Genius of Ray Charles. Other nominees were Harry Belafonte for Belafonte Returns to Carnegie Hall, Frank Sinatra for Nice 'n' Easy and Nat King Cole for Wild Is Love.
- ^ Sources:
- Presley, Elvis (1997), G.I. Blues (CD), RCA Records, 07862-66960-2
- Elvis Sings for Children and Grown-Ups Too at AllMusic
- ^ "Released : G.I. Blues FTD 2 CD Special Edition Classic Album [Vol. 1]". Elvis Australia. July 11, 2012. Retrieved January 17, 2015.
- ^ Sources:
- "Follow That Dream releases". Elvis Australia. Archived from the original on March 13, 2019. Retrieved January 17, 2015.
- "Café Europa". Elvis Australia. Retrieved January 17, 2015.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "The Official Charts Company - Elvis Presley - G.I. Blues". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 June 2011.
- ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 282. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ a b Coryton, Demitri (1990). Hits of the 60's:The Million Sellers. London: Batsford. p. 256. ISBN 9780713458510.
- ^ "American album certifications – Elvis Presley – G.I. Blues". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved November 27, 2023.
External links edit
- G.I. Blues at Discogs (list of releases)
- LPM-2256 G.I. Blues Guide (monaural) part of The Elvis Presley Record Research Database
- LSP-2256 G.I. Blues Guide (stereo) part of The Elvis Presley Record Research Database