Roustabout (album)

Last updated
Roustabout
Roustabout.jpg
Soundtrack album / Studio album by Elvis Presley
Released October 20, 1964
Recorded March 2 & 3, April 29, 1964
Genre Pop
Length20:05
Label RCA Victor
Producer Joseph Lilley
Elvis Presley chronology
Kissin' Cousins
(1964) Kissin' Cousins1964		Roustabout
(1964)		 Girl Happy
(1965) Girl Happy1965
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [1]

Roustabout is the twenty-first album by American singer and musician Elvis Presley, released on RCA Victor Records in mono and stereo, LPM/LSP 2999, in October 1964. It is the soundtrack to the 1964 film of the same name starring Presley. Recording sessions took place at Radio Recorders in Hollywood, California, on March 2 and 3, and April 29, 1964. It peaked at number one on the Billboard Top LP's chart. [2] It was certified Gold on May 20, 1988 by the Recording Industry Association of America. [3] The album would be Presley's final soundtrack to reach number one and his last number one album until 1973's Aloha From Hawaii: Via Satellite . [2]

Elvis Presley American singer and actor

Elvis Aaron Presley was an American singer and actor. Regarded as one of the most significant cultural icons of the 20th century, he is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King".

Monaural sound intended to be heard as if it were emanating from one position

Monaural or monophonic sound reproduction is sound intended to be heard as if it were emanating from one position. This contrasts with stereophonic sound or stereo, which uses two separate audio channels to reproduce sound from two microphones on the right and left side, which is reproduced with two separate loudspeakers to give a sense of the direction of sound sources. In mono, only one loudspeaker is necessary, but, when played through multiple loudspeakers or headphones, identical signals are fed to each speaker, resulting in the perception of one-channel sound "imaging" in one sonic space between the speakers. Monaural recordings, like stereo ones, typically use multiple microphones fed into multiple channels on a recording console, but each channel is "panned" to the center. In the final stage, the various center-panned signal paths are usually mixed down to two identical tracks, which, because they are identical, are perceived upon playback as representing a single unified signal at a single place in the soundstage. In some cases, multitrack sources are mixed to a one-track tape, thus becoming one signal. In the mastering stage, particularly in the days of mono records, the one- or two-track mono master tape was then transferred to a one-track lathe intended to be used in the pressing of a monophonic record. Today, however, monaural recordings are usually mastered to be played on stereo and multi-track formats, yet retain their center-panned mono soundstage characteristics.

<i>Roustabout</i> (film) 1964 musical feature film starring Elvis Presley directed by John Rich

Roustabout is a 1964 American musical feature film starring Elvis Presley as a singer who takes a job working with a struggling carnival. The film was produced by Hal Wallis and directed by John Rich from a screenplay by Anthony Lawrence and Allan Weiss. The screenplay was nominated for a Writers Guild of America award for best written American musical although Roustabout received a lukewarm review in Variety. The film's soundtrack album was one of Elvis Presley's most successful, reaching no. 1 on the Billboard Album Chart.

Contents

Content

Payments to Presley for each film amounted to between $225,000 to $1,000,000 up front, often half the budget for production, with a 50% share of the profits. [4] These movies were being shot in sometimes as little as three weeks, with the complete scoring and recording of the soundtrack albums taking no more than two weeks. [4] It fell to Freddy Bienstock, the assistant of Presley's manager, Colonel Tom Parker, to ensure that the soundtrack songs fit into the profit equation with the publishing controlled by Elvis Presley Music or Gladys Music, the Hill and Range Publishing companies owned by Presley and Parker. As a result, successful writers such as Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman, Otis Blackwell and Winfield Scott, and Don Robertson lost interest in adhering to the needs of the grind. [4] It was interlocking self-promotion, causing one MGM employee to remark that the movies "didn't need titles. They could be numbered. They would still sell". [4]

A soundtrack, also written sound track, can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film, video, or television presentation; or the physical area of a film that contains the synchronized recorded sound.

Freddy Bienstock was an American music publisher who built his career in music by being the person responsible for soliciting and selecting songs for Elvis Presley's early albums and films.

Colonel Tom Parker Dutch entertainment impresario

Thomas Andrew "Colonel Tom" Parker was the Dutch-born manager of Elvis Presley. Their partnership was uniquely successful, Elvis being an entirely new force in popular music, and Parker an entrepreneurial genius able to market him.

Blackwell and Scott in fact submitted a candidate for the title track, "I'm a Roustabout" recorded on March 3, only to find it substituted by a song from a different team of writers. [5] This recording was eventually released by RCA on the 2003 compilation 2nd to None . [6]

<i>2nd to None</i> album by Elvis Presley

2nd to None is a collection of songs by American rock and roll musician Elvis Presley. The album was released by on October 7, 2003 by RCA Records as the sequel to the previous year's highly successful ELV1S: 30 #1 Hits.

Presley and his coterie of top session musicians gamely plowed through all of this, and eleven songs were recorded for the twenty-minute soundtrack LP. Four songs from this album appeared on the 1995 soundtrack compilation, The Essential 60s Masters II : "Roustabout", "Little Egypt", "Poison Ivy League", and "There's a Brand New Day on the Horizon". [7]

Session musician profession; musician hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances

Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. Session musicians are usually not permanent members of a musical ensemble or band. They work behind the scenes and rarely achieve individual fame in their own right as soloists or bandleaders. However, top session musicians are well known within the music industry, and some have become publicly recognized, such as the Wrecking Crew and Motown's The Funk Brothers.

<i>Command Performances: The Essential 60s Masters II</i> compilation album

Command Performances: The Essential 60s Masters II is a two-disc compilation of studio master recordings by American singer and musician Elvis Presley during the decade of the 1960s, released in 1995 on RCA Records, catalogue number 66601-2. It also includes a booklet with session details and an essay by Susan M. Doll.

"Little Egypt (Ying-Yang)" is a 1961 rock song written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller and was recorded by The Coasters for their 1962 album, Coast Along with the Coasters. The song reached #16 on the R&B chart and #23 on The Billboard Hot 100 in 1961.

Track listing

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Recording dateLength
1."Roustabout" Bernie Baum, Bill Giant, Florence Kaye April 29, 19641:56
2."Little Egypt" Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller March 2, 19642:15
3."Poison Ivy League"Bernie Baum, Bill Giant, Florence KayeMarch 2, 19642:02
4."Hard Knocks" Joy Byers March 2, 19641:42
5."It's a Wonderful World" Sid Tepper and Roy C. Bennett March 2, 19641:48
6."Big Love Big Heartache" Dolores Fuller, Lee Morris, Sonny HendrixMarch 3, 19641:57
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Recording dateLength
1."One Track Heart"Bernie Baum, Bill Giant, Florence KayeMarch 3, 19642:15
2."It's Carnival Time" Ben Weisman and Sid Wayne March 3, 19641:32
3."Carny Town" Fred Wise and Randy Starr March 3, 19641:19
4."There's a Brand New Day on the Horizon"Joy ByersMarch 3, 19642:00
5."Wheels on My Heels"Sid Tepper and Roy C. BennettMarch 3, 19641:19

Personnel

The Jordanaires American band

The Jordanaires were an American vocal quartet that formed as a gospel group in 1948. They are known for providing background vocals for Elvis Presley, in live appearances and recordings from 1956 to 1972. The group has also worked in the recording studio, on stage, and on television with many other country and rock and roll artists.

Boots Randolph American musician

Homer Louis "Boots" Randolph III was an American musician best known for his 1963 saxophone hit "Yakety Sax". Randolph was a major part of the "Nashville sound" for most of his professional career.

Saxophone type of musical instrument of the woodwind family

The saxophone is a family of woodwind instruments. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. Like the clarinet, saxophones have holes in the instrument which the player closes using a system of key mechanisms. When the player presses a key, a pad either covers a hole or lifts off a hole, lowering or raising the pitch, respectively.

Charts

Chart (1965)Peak
position
Billboard Pop Albums1

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/Sales
United States (RIAA) [8] Gold500,000^

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References

  1. ↑ Allmusic review
  2. 1 2 "Pop Albums". Elvis Presley: Official Site of the King of Rock 'n' Roll. Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc. 2013. Archived from the original on October 26, 2014. Retrieved May 21, 2013.
  3. ↑ "Searchable database". RIAA. Recording Industry Association of America. 2013. Retrieved May 21, 2013. Note: Enter search for "Roustabout"
  4. 1 2 3 4 Jorgensen, Ernst. Elvis Presley A Life in Music: The Complete Recording Sessions. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1998; p. 198.
  5. ↑ Jorgensen, op. cit., pp. 198-199.
  6. ↑ "Events in Memphis - Elvis Presley News - Memphis, Tennessee". Elvis.com. Retrieved 2012-01-07.
  7. ↑ Command Performances: The Essential 60s Masters II at AllMusic
  8. ↑ "American album certifications – Elvis Presley – Roustabout". Recording Industry Association of America.If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
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