EAP Index World: Clambake (Single/LP

Title:
Clambake
Label:
RCA Victor [LSP 3893]
Format:
LP
Number of tracks:
12
Running time:
30:00
Type of album:
Soundtrack
Linked to:
Official discography; Clambake, 1967

year:
1967

Recording date:
February 21 - September 11, 1967

Release date:
October 23, 1967

Singles:

"Big Boss Man / You Don't Know Me" (Sept. 23, 1967)

Clambake is Elvis' twenty-fifth soundtrack album and his 55th audiophonic work (including EPs and singles). The album contains the songs heard in the film of the same name, recorded at RCA Studio B in Nashville on February 21 to 23, 1967, plus four extra tracks recorded in September of that same year at Radio Recorders in Hollywood.

By the end of 1966, Elvis was no longer enjoying the same level of sales or artistic respect that he had enjoyed during the first ten years of his career. His enthusiasm for more soundtrack sessions for projects that were already doomed to failure before they began was almost nil. As a result, the recordings for "Clambake", the first made in 1967, were a complete failure; of the eight songs recorded, two were omitted from the film, and even with "How Can You Lose What You Never Had" included on the soundtrack, the finished album had only seven songs and was less than 20 minutes long, making it impossible to create and sell in LP format.

The good news is that this work would prove to be a turning point in Elvis' career. After many years of producing forgettable songs for forgettable movies, he was clearly past his prime and all the realms of popular music had completely ignored him while he was "lost in Hollywood." So Presley decided to start recording songs written by talented songwriters, and a session for this purpose was scheduled for August 1967 at Radio Recorders in Hollywood, but was canceled and rescheduled for September at RCA Studio B in Nashville.

Disregarding RCA's editorial control, Elvis chose songs that appealed to him personally, including Eddy Arnold's 1956 country hit "You Don't Know Me" and Jimmy Reed's 1960 R&B hit "Big Boss Man". Both selections were released as singles in late September before being added to the soundtrack album, with the A-side only reaching the Top 40.

Presley also wanted to record another Jerry Reed song that he had heard on the radio in Los Angeles, inviting Reed to double the distinctive acoustic guitar part on "Guitar Man". After the recording, Reed refused to give the usual publishing percentages to Freddy Bienstock, another attack on the formula that had existed throughout the decade. In total, five songs from this session were selected to bring the album to a total of twelve tracks and a running time of over 20 minutes, a requirement for an LP.

Including this work, of his fifteen albums since "Pot Luck with Elvis" in 1962, only three had not been soundtracks: one (Elvis 'Golden Records Volume 3) was a collection of hit singles, another (Elvis for Everyone!) a compilation of leftovers from a ten-year period of recording sessions, and the third a bona fide Gospel studio album,"How Great Thou Art".

Even with five recent songs, including a hit single, "Clambake" sold less than 200,000 copies, worse than its predecessor, "Double Trouble," which had been its lowest point to date.

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RECORDING SESSIONS

Dates:

February 21 - September 11, 1967

Studio:

RCA Studio B

Location:

Nashville, Tennessee

Musicians:

Voice: Elvis Presley
Acoustic guitar: Elvis Presley, Jerry Reed
Electric guitar: Scotty Moore, Hilmer J. Timbrell, Charlie McCoy, Peter Drake, Harold Bradley, Jerry Reed
Bass: Bobby Moore
Drums: DJ Fontana, Murray Harman
Piano: Floyd Cramer, Elvis Presley
Harmonica: Charlie McCoy
Organ: Charlie McCoy, Hoyt Hawkins
Saxophone: Homer Randolph, Norman Ray
Backing Vocals: The Jordanaires, Millie Kirkham, Elvis Presley

Sound Engineer:

Jim Malloy, Dave Wiechman, Aaron Rochin, Lyle Burbridge

FEBRUARY 21, 1967
Guitar Man
Guitar Man (Overdub) UPA4 2765
Big Boss Man UPA4 2766-11
Mine
Mine (Vocal Replacement) UPA4 2767-NA
Singing Tree UPA4 2768-13
Just Call Me Lonesome UPA4 2769-01

FEBRUARY 22, 1967
Who Needs Money? (Track)
Confidence (Track)
Hey, Hey, Hey (Track)
Clambake (Track)

FEBRUARY 23, 1967
Hey, Hey, Hey (Vocal Overdub) UPA3 8446-13
Clambake (Vocal Overdub) UPA3 8443-10
Who Needs Money? (Ray Walker - Duet Vocal Overdub)
Who Needs Money? (Vocal Overdub - Movie Version)
Who Needs Money? (Cue - Vocal Overdub)
Confidence (Vocal Overdub)
Clambake (Reprise) WPA5 2554-04

SEPTEMBER 10, 1967
Guitar Man
Guitar Man (Overdub) UPA4 2765
Big Boss Man UPA4 2766-11
Mine
Mine (Vocal Replacement) UPA4 2767-NA
Singing Tree UPA4 2768-13
Just Call Me Lonesome UPA4 2769-01

SEPTEMBER 11, 1967
Hi-Heel Sneakers UPA4 2770-07
You Don't Know Me (Remake) UPA4 2771-01
We Call On Him UPA4 2772-09
You'll Never Walk Alone UPA4 2773-SP
Singing Tree (Remake)
Singing Tree (Harmony Vocal Overdub) UPA4 2774-NA

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SESSION LOGS

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RELATED LP AND SINGLES TRACKS (RCA, 1967)

BIG BOSS MAN (SINGLE)

September 23, 1967

1. Big Boss Man

2. You Don't Know Me

CLAMBAKE (LP)

October 23, 1967

1. Guitar Man

2. Clambake

3. Who Needs Money

4. A House That Has Everything

5. Confidence

6. Hey, Hey, Hey

7. You Don't Know Me

8. The Girl I Never Loved

9. How Can You Lose What You Never Had

10. Big Boss Man

11. Singing Tree

12. Just Call Me Lonesome

GUITAR MAN (SINGLE)

January 3, 1968

1. Guitar Man

2. Hi-Heel Sneakers

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FTD VERSION

Title:
Clambake
Label:
FTD [FTD 056] [82876 76964 2]
Format:
CD
Number of tracks:
25
Running time:
77:00
Type of album:
Soundtrack / Recording session
Linked to:
FTD discography

Year:
2006

Recording date:
February 21 - September 11, 1967

Release date:
Julhy 2006

Singles:

---

Although FTD had its hands on material more worthy of Elvis' quality, recorded at Nashville's famous RCA Studio B, the label made a few mistakes in its release of the soundtrack. The echo added to some tracks, especially the outtakes, makes everything sound flatter, lacking the feeling of intimacy of the original recording; it is not known why it was decided to make this addition, since the echo is not present on the original tapes. Besides that, more time could have been spent choosing the material available.

To finish the work, FTD brings a 12-page booklet with memorabilia, album covers from around the world, information about the behind-the-scenes of the film and the recording sessions, as well as one of the most iconic photos of Elvis' wedding to Priscilla, on May 1, 1967, where he appears simultaneously happy and disillusioned.

The work includes the following tracks:

ORIGINAL ALBUM

1. Guitar Man

2. Clambake

3. Who Needs Money

4. A House That Has Everything

5. Confidence

6. Hey, Hey, Hey

7. You Don't Know Me

8. The Girl I Never Loved

9. How Can You Lose What You Never Had

10. Big Boss Man