EAP Index World: The Jungle Room Sessions (CD/LP

Title:

The Jungle Room Sessions

Label:

FTD [FTD 004] [74321 74931 2]

Format:

Number of tracks:

Running time:

72:00

Type of album:

Recording session

Linked to:

FTD discography

Year:

2000

Recording date:

February 2-8 & October 29-31, 1976

Release date:

April 2000

Singles:

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The Jungle Room Sessions was the fourth CD released by the Follow That Dream (FTD) label. It contains 16 of the best takes of the songs recorded in the Jungle Room at Graceland during the two 1976 sessions and the rare track of "Fire Down Below", a song for which Elvis never recorded vocals. The work is currently out of print.

Since 1972, Elvis had been finding it difficult to record in the studio. The material wasn't good enough, the sessions were rushed and extensive, and he himself was going through a difficult period in his personal life. That year, Elvis would only record seven songs.

1973 would not be much different. In fact, apart from the Aloha From Hawaii special, the singer would participate in only 13 recording sessions. Unsurprisingly, his divorce messed with the psyche and Elvis would have erratic reactions at several shows that year and 1974, in which he didn't record a single new track.

1975 arrived and RCA was begging for new material, but Elvis was totally indifferent. While preparing for that year's first season in Vegas, which would start on March 18th due to him not feeling well in January and having been admitted to the hospital due to an overdose of prescription drugs in February, Elvis was persuaded to enter the studio in Hollywood to record at least ten tracks for a new album. The record company sent more than 30 songs for evaluation, but Elvis was categorical in his choices - only 10 were recorded, all in the Country style.

As nothing was resolved and sessions were always turned down, Felton Jarvis came up with an idea that would surely work: Elvis had always wanted to have his own studio, so why not build it in Graceland? The mansion had a special room, very dark and close to the kitchen, where Elvis and his friends could relax and which, coincidentally, had great acoustics; known as "The Den" ("Jungle Room" was a name given long after Elvis' death), the area was perfect for a studio and was renovated for this use during the latter half of 1975.

The environment ended up pleasing the singer, having access to everything he needed and being close to his family at all times, and Elvis had his first session there on February 2, 1976. During the next five days, 12 songs were recorded, 10 of which were used in "From Elvis Presley Boulevard, Memphis, Tennessee"; "Moody Blue" was left over for an upcoming album and "America" was lost. Elvia would also have rehearsed or even recorded "Feelings", by Brazilian singer-songwriter Morris Albert.

The success of the album mentioned above was much greater than what Elvis was used to, but even that didn't encourage him to do more sessions. He would only return to Jungle Room from October 29 to 31 of that year - the last occasion on which he recorded new material - at the insistence of RCA, who needed at least nine more songs for the album that would later be titled "Moody Blue" and would be the last released during his lifetime.

Elvis ended up recording only four songs altogether, and a fifth, "Fire Down Below", written by Jerry Scheff, had a track recorded, but the singer never put his voice on it. Running out of options, RCA combined the five songs (including "Moody Blue") with five other live tracks to make the final album of his career. The track for "Fire Down Below" would only be made public on this FTD release.

Below is a review of the material available on the CD.

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- 1. Bitter They Are, Harder They Fall (Alternate Takes 2-5):"You guys don't desert me on the very first part, you know?", Elvis tells his backing singers early on as if he's unsure. The take starts well, but Elvis loses concentration when his phone rings. "Cut! Damn telephone. Turn that thing off. Shoot if off the wall!", he jokes. His dogs start barking and this sparks yet another joke: "Shoot the dogs and the phone! Hold it! Shoot the other dog!" After three interruptions, take 5 is finally complete.

- 2. She Thinks I Still Care (Alternate Takes 2 & 2A): After a brief restart, the harmony of the backing vocals leads to a wonderful take, but Elvis still seems not quite used to the notes that the song demands. Anyway, a version that could very well be released.

- 3. The Last Farewell (Alternate Take 2): The good mood of everyone in the session signals that Elvis is having a good day and that any song recorded would certainly be totally magical. The take is very good, despite easily forgettable small flaws.

- 4. Solitaire (Alternate Take 3): Neil Sedaka's 1975 hit takes on a new guise with Elvis and the song sounds deeper and sadder than it naturally is. At a time when the singer was reviewing his life and trying to forget the loneliness that being famous brought him, this is one of the most autobiographical songs he would record.

- 5. I'll Never Fall In Love Again (Alternate Take 5): The song best remembered in the voice of his friend Tom Jones, despite having become a hit with Dionne Warwick, is another that speaks volumes about Elvis' feelings at the time. It's pretty clear that he doesn't play around and puts his whole heart into this take.

- 6. Moody Blue (Alternate Takes 3 & 7): The song that would become the flagship of the last album released in his life features Elvis getting lost in a stanza and having to start over. "It's the Italian version," he says after making several onomatopoeic sounds. The next the take goes well, but Elvis seems to have lost some of his excitement after the mistake and mutters a few lines.

- 7. For the Heart (Alternate Takes 2 & 3): Elvis liked this song a lot, but it wasn't enough for him to want to make a masterpiece of it in the first few takes. Take 3 is the beginning of a work that would only have its Master on the sixth.

- 8 . Hurt (Alternate Takes 3 & 3A): Another song that Elvis takes seriously, despite getting his entry wrong on the first try. Shortly before, he had sung what he called "Take 69" during rehearsals.

- 9. Danny Boy (Alternate Take 8): Elvis had been singing the song since he first became aware of it. It was heard every time he got together with friends to play and sing, like the home recordings of 1959 and 1966. The singer only recorded his own version on this occasion, and not before for unknown reasons, but it is not exactly what Elvis expected, despite being extremely beautiful. The King of Rock wanted to do a duet with Sherrill Nielsen, but the backing singer was not aware of this intention because of the Colonel's habit of notifying about the sessions when they were about to start.

- 10. Never Again (Alternate Take 11): A sample of how Elvis progressed take after take, the song is well performed and would lead to the Master on number 14.

- 11. Love Coming Down (Alternate Take 2): A beautiful song is performed in a beautiful take. There's not much to say about this one, but Elvis still thinks it's "too slow".

- 12. Blue Eyes Crying In the Rain (Alternate Take 2): Often mistaken for "the last song Elvis ever recorded" (when, in fact, it's "He'll Have to Go"), it's a pretty common take with no appeal or demerits.

- 13. It's Easy For You (Alternate Take 1): Written by Andrew Lloyd Webber, creator of the modern opera "The Phantom of the Opera", especially for Elvis, the song is brought here in its first attempt at recording and it's already a delight. Being an extremely personal lyric at that moment in Elvis' life, he fills it with emotion and vocal quality to achieve one of the fastest Masters of his career - in Take 2. Rightly so, Elvis says right at the beginning of the take: "I get carried away very easily; I'm an emotional son of a bitch."

- 14. Way Down (Alternate Takes 2B & 2C - Undubbed Master): Elvis wanted to include this song in his concerts and it would certainly be welcome. JD's extremely low voice would bring an ingredient that would excite the audience and the King of Rock could feel more comfortable with the country style. The take is completed perfectly and becomes the Undubbed Master.

- 15. Pledging My Love (Take 6 - Unedited Master): James Burton's guitar comes through clearly at the start of the take. The energy is felt in the air and the harmony between voices and instruments suggests that this would be a winning take if finished. Fortunately, it is completed and becomes the Unedited Master.

- 16. He'll Have to Go (Take 2 - Rough Mix Master): Elvis was already familiar with this, which would become the last song he worked on in the studio, but he was not present when the instrumental was recorded. He makes a quick work on the take that would become the Rough Mix Master, and later the final Master, laying his voice over the track in the early hours of October 31, 1976.

- 17. Fire Down Below (Take 14 - Master): Written by Jerry Scheff for Elvis, the instrumental track was finished in an incredible 14 takes, a very high number for tracks without vocals. Elvis, for some unknown reason, never put his voice on it.

- 18. America the Beautiful: This extra track is hidden at the end of the previous one and is the only surviving excerpt from the original studio Master (Take 2).

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