September 14 - Elvis On Tour 1970

Due for pre-order is "Elvis On Tour 1970 Volume 2" from Kieran Davis. According to the site it is a "comprehensive review of the November tour of 1970. With140 pages, many new and unpublished photographs, and new fan stories".

From the website:
Elvis On Tour 1970 Volume 2' is in the final proofing stage and will be available shortly. If you would like to place an order for this book then be sure to let us know as once 
again the initial print run will be limited to less than 500 copies.

The book is the same length and format as On Tour November 1971 (140 pages) and all our other books, with the same quality printing and contents. If you have our other books you know exactly what to expect. There are new photos and new stories, plus a great 'California Adventure' describing the quest to get tickets and see all of Elvis' shows that were held in California in November of 1970.

Contract For Sale

Up for auction from "Got To have It" auctions is the contract used in the purchase of the Graceland Mansion. 

From the site:
This original contract used in the purchase of Graceland, is signed by Elvis Presley's father Vernon Presley. The original contract was created to acknowlege the use of two brokers, each is named on the contract. Each page measures 8 X 14. 

The agreement shows that Elvis (Vernon) put down a $1000.00 deposit on the purchase of Graceland, and that the purchase price was a total of $102,500.00. This was ultimately made up of a $10,000.00 cash payment, the trade of the Presley’s Audubon Drive home for $55,000.00, and a mortgage over Graceland. 

On Saturday, March 17, 1957, Vernon Presley called local Memphis real estate agent, Virginia Grant, and asked her what properties she had that they could look at to purchase on behalf of their son, Elvis Presley. Grant wasted no time, and showed them two properties that day, leaving Graceland to last. By 6pm, she had drawn up a provisional sales agreement for Vernon to sign and the deal was put in place for what has become as much a part of Elvis as anything else you will see.

More Auctions

Julien's announced the exclusive fall online Entertainment Auction 2014. The catalogue features Elvis Presley on the cover. 

Synopsis:

Julien’s Auctions presents a unique online only entertainment auction that will occur twice a year in the Spring and Fall prior to our premier live auctions. This timed auction will run from Friday, September 5th through Monday, September 22nd, 2014. This wide-ranging sale includes items from vintage and contemporary Hollywood, Rock n’ Roll, and everything Entertainment! You will have an opportunity to bid on Marilyn Monroe photographs, Phyllis Diller original artwork, Michael Jackson signed memorabilia, Jackson 5ive, Elvis Presley, David Hasselhoff, Debbie Reynolds, Cyd Charisse, Greta Garbo personal and professional items, Rick Griffin artwork, Frank Sinatra, Fran Drescher, and much more!

(Source: FECC / The Elvis Presley Show / ElvisMatters / Gotta Have It / Julien's)

September 13 - Weekend Charts

Elvis Presley is listed two times with his "Heart And Soul" compilation on the US Billboard Charts for the week ending September 20, 2014. The album climbs from #118 to #110 on the Album Top 200 and drops one spot, from #13 to #14, on the Top Catalog chart.

The hit-compilation "ELV1S 30 #1 Hits" re-entered the Irish Album chart at #60 this week.

The 8-CD / 2-DVD Box "Elvis – That’s The Way It Is – Deluxe Edition" is listed at #76, dropping from #61 last week.

The DVD "The King Of Rock ’n’ Roll" re-entered the Australian Music DVD chart at #33.

(Source: FECC / The King's World)

September 12 - Released!

The earlier announced Straight Arrow import CD releases “Adios Lincoln” and “Rattling Plates, Aces'n'Eights” are now out!

The vinyl re-issue of “That’s The Way It Is” was re-issued by the Music On Vinyl label. 

Follow That Error


The latest Follow That Dream release "The Best Of British - The RCA Years" contains an error. The CD-label should read "The RCA Years" but actually reads "The HMV years". 

Fake track 


The promotional blurb for the recent FTD book 'Best Of British – The RCA Years 1957-1958' noted in part, "This is Elvis, with the continuation of the British story now detailing his RCA releases from 1957 - 1958. The CD included with this book features many first-time officially released Elvis tracks. Here, amongst his classic songs, are the songwriters’ demo recordings as Elvis first heard them, plus the message he recorded on his home answer machine!" Unfortunately it has now been revealed that Elvis' answering-machine message is a fake, edited together from The Truth About Me interview outtakes of August 22 1956. It isn't an answer phone message at all!.

Strange Track

The label of the "Elvis For Everyone" CD contains a strange track. It reads "Forgive me Never'' instead of ''Forget Me Never''.

Young Man With The Big Beat

The budget re-issue of the box-set "Young Man With The Big Beat" has been released by Sony Legacy.

(Source: FECC / Elvis Aktuell)

September 11 - Richard Kiel Passed Away

Most news papers worldwide will report the passing away of the James Bond actor Richard Kiel. Although Richard Kiel, 74, was best known for his acting in the 007 movies where he portrayed the character of 'Jaws', most Elvis fans will remember him from the 1964 movie Roustabout. Elvis was quite impressed by the 7 feet tall actor. Richard Kiel never said one bad word about Elvis, in fact he went to see the King live in Las Vegas several times, in the early seventies.

(Source: ElvisMatters)

September 10 - Elvis Is Alive

Adventures Unlimited Press has announced a new book written by Xaviant Haze; "Elvis Is Alive: The Complete Conspiracy". Due for release February 12, 2015.

From the Publisher: 
Oh Elvis, where art thou? Living on the Moon? Witness Protection? Kalamazoo? For more than 35 years Elvis lovers have been asking themselves this question, desperately wanting to believe their musical hero is still alive. Seeking to finally put the matter to rest, Xaviant Haze blows the Elvis conspiracies vault wide open with the first book dedicated solely to the mysteries surrounding the King of Rock n’ Roll. 

While giving an accurate and concise history of the King's life, he also illustrates how Elvis's talent was seized and controlled by the darker forces within the entertainment industry. The rise of an artist to celebrity status, his work while a mind control victim and his (or her) ultimate self-destruction has become an all-too-familiar story in pop culture, so frequently seen it can hardly be considered a coincidence. 
But Elvis was no manufactured Disney creation, he was a true one-of-a-kind talent rising from epic poverty to become one of the most iconic entertainers the world has ever seen. His was a tale of screaming fans, groundbreaking music, untold riches, dizzying fame and a spectacular free fall into obliteration. 
It was also a tale of UFO encounters, zany fake funerals, studies in metaphysics, numerology, occult theology—and a strange connection with Michael Jackson. An infamous pill addiction led the King to an early “death” and in the aftermath a pop culture phenomenon was born, enabling Elvis to sustain a famous afterlife thanks to over three decades of conspiracy theories. It’s time to reexamine these theories and put to rest once and for all the notion that Elvis could have faked his own death. If we can…

(Source: Elvis And His Music)

September 08 - Flaming Blu-Ray

The 1960 movie "Flaming Star" was released on blu-ray for the first time by Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment.

(Source: Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, Amazon)

September 07 - Can I Get A Witness

A new book by John Gibbs Rockwood, entitled "Can I Get A Witness" is due from the University of Toledo Press. It contains some unreleased images of Elvis Presley performing at the Centennial Hall, Toledo, OH. on April 23, 1977. 

From the press-release:
All John Gibbs Rockwood really wanted was a concert ticket and a backstage pass. He came of age in rock and roll’s prime, drawn to the music’s seductive pull by watching Elvis and The Beatles and the Rolling Stones make the girls scream on The Ed Sullivan Show. Now, more than 26,000 pictures later, the 65-year-old retired worker is basking in the publication of Can I Get A Witness (162 pages, University of Toledo Press, $22.95), which collects more than 150 of his photos in a handsome presentation that captures the grit, passion, and grind of an era of music that will never happen again.

Artists featured in the book include Elvis Presley, Lou Reed, David Bowie, Bonnie Raitt, Frank Zappa, the J. Geils Band, Humble Pie, Bad Company, the Stones, Jimmy Reed, Ritchie Havens (the cover shot), and Toledoans such as Art and Roman Griswold. The unseen Elvis pictures all date from April 23rd, 1977 when the King performed at the Centennial Hall, Toledo, OH.

Rock 'n' Roll Album

Another "witness", Terry O´Neill, re-issued his 300 page book "Rock ´n´ Roll Album" containing his life shots of Elvis.

From the publisher:
"Terry O'Neill is one of the world's most celebrated and collected photographers. No one has captured the frontline of fame so broadly - and for so long.

Terry O'Neill's Rock 'n' Roll Album contains some of the most famous and powerful music photographs of all time. At the same time the book includes many intimate personal photos taken 'behind the scenes' and at private functions. Terry O'Neill photographed the giants of the music world - both on and off stage.

For more than fifty years he captured those on the frontline of fame in public and in private. David Bowie, Elton John, Led Zepplin, Amy Winehouse, Dean Martin, The Who, Janis Joplin, AC/DC, Eric Clapton, Sammy Davis Jnr., The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, Chuck Berry and The Beatles - to name only a few. O' Neill spent more than 30 years photographing Frank Sinatra as his personal photographer with unprecedented access to the star.

(Source: Toledo Blade / ElvisMatters / Photo: John Gibbs Rockwood / Elvis Club Berlin)

September 05 - Elvis For Sale

A Palm Springs home once owned by Elvis Presley is back on the market for $3 million and could go up for public auction in October. The 1946 home originally asked for $4 million in February. An open house drew large crowds hoping for a glimpse of the rock icon’s former digs, but no successful buyer. The famous home at 845 W. Chino Canyon (picture) was quietly slipped back onto the market in early August. Palm Desert-based listing agent Jeff Egan said the home will go up for an on-site public auction in late October if it hasn’t been sold by then. An exact date has not been set.

The Palm Springs property has sat vacant for months. Court documents show that US Bank National Association bought the foreclosed property at a Sept. 17 public auction for $1.7 million. Elvis Presley bought the four-bedroom, seven-bathroom, home in 1970 for $105,000 and owned the property for seven years. The 5,040-square-foot house was one of the few Spanish colonial homes designed by famed architect Albert Frey, who is known much more for his modernist designs. After Presley died, Frankie Valli of The Four Seasons bought the expansive 1.75-acre estate and home.

Another Palm Springs property associated with The King is also on the market. In 1966, Presley leased a 1960 midcentury modern house at 1350 Ladera Circle for about a year for $21,000. He and then-wife Priscilla honeymooned at the hideaway after their May 1967 wedding in Las Vegas. The estate is now on the market for $9.5 million.

Elvis' 1967 Cadillac Coupe De Ville For Auction

The final Barrett-Jackson event of the year and what better way to kick it off than with a Cadillac? Not just any Cadillac, mind you, but the very one that Elvis and Priscilla Presley honeymooned in late in 1967.

Here is the description from the Barrett-Jackson docket:
“Elvis Presley's 1967 Cadillac Coupe De Ville has been a part of Mike L. Moon's private collection since 1979 and has been on display at the Elvis Presley Museums in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee and Niagara Falls, Canada ever since.
“This red Caddy purchased by Elvis on September 15, 1967 had become widely known as ‘The Honeymoon Cadillac’ as he and Priscilla were often seen driving it around Memphis and to his Circle G ranch shortly after they were married. (EIN notes, that is odd as they were married in back in May '67!) 

“Documentation includes copies of the original Bill of Sale and title as well as the original Protect-O-Plate showing the name Elvis Presley and listing the address of Graceland. Also included are newspaper clippings and a copy of the book ‘Hurry Home Elvis’ in which the Cadillac is mentioned on page 118."
The Barrett-Jackson Las Vegas auction takes place Sept. 25-27 in Sin City. 

Charts

• The compilation "Heart & Soul" dropped from #115 to #118 on the Billboard Album chart. The CD remained steady at #13 on the Top Catalog Album chart
• The set "Elvis – That’s The Way It Is" climbed 20 spots on the Flamish Album chart in Belgium, from #81 to #61. On the Wallonian Album chart in Belgium the set entered the charts at #96 .
• The compilation "The Real... Elvis" dropped off the Italian Album chart. 
• The DVD "Elvis – The King Of Rock ’n’ Roll" dropped off the Australian Music DVD chart. 

Follow Those Releases

The Follow That Dream releases "The Best Of British, Vol. 2 – The RCA Years 1957 - 1959" by Trevor Simpson, the double CD "Elvis For Everyone" re-issue in the "Classic Album Series" and the vinyl re-issue of the August 25, 1969 concert as "Hot August Night". 

Elvis For Sale

Whom would you prefer to live with, Elvis Presley or Marlon Brando? For $140 million, you might have them both! 

Two seminal paintings by Andy Warhol from the 1960s “Triple Elvis [Ferus Type]” from 1963 and “Four Marlons” from 1966, will be put up for sale at Christie’s Rockefeller Center auction house on Nov. 12. While Brett Gorvy, Christie’s worldwide chairman of postwar and contemporary art, is cautiously estimating the paintings could bring $140 million together, he added that each has the potential to top the $100 million mark, perhaps even outperforming Warhol’s “Silver Car Crash (Double Disaster),” a two-panel painting from 1963, which brought $104.5 million at Sotheby’s in November.

Of the two, “Marlon speaks to a younger audience, because there is a very raw sexuality to the image,” Mr. Gorvy said. “He’s the person every young actor wants to be.”

For years, dealers and auction house experts have courted officials at WestSpiel, the German casino company that owned the paintings. Controlled by the German government, WestSpiel runs six casinos; the paintings had been hanging in its casino in Aachen since the late 1970s. “They were originally purchased for the décor of the casino,” Lothar Dunkel, WestSpiel’s managing director, said in a telephone interview.

Five years ago, when officials realized just how valuable the paintings were, they came down off the walls and were placed in storage for safekeeping.
“We have thought about this long and hard and believe now is the time to sell,” Mr. Dunkel said. The art market’s strength is one reason.

Thomas Ammann, a Swiss art dealer who died in 1993, sold both paintings to WestSpiel in the late ’70s. The company paid around $85,000 for the Presley and about $100,000 for the Brando, according to Mr. Gorvy.

The paintings have never been at auction before, but among Pop Art images, they are about as celebrated as any. “Four Marlons,” based on a film still from the 1953 movie “The Wild One,” shows Brando in a leather jacket leaning forward on his motorcycle looking cool and seductively composed.

“Triple Elvis [Ferus Type]” shows the singer in three overlapping images — Warhol’s way of creating the feeling of movement — taken from a publicity shot for his 1960 movie “Flaming Star,” with his legs apart, pointing a gun at the viewer. Nearly 7 feet tall and 6 feet wide, it was an impressive presence when first shown at Warhol’s 1963 solo show at the Ferus Gallery in Los Angeles.

(Source: ElvisMatters / Elvis Information Network / The King's World / Elvis Information Network)

September 04 - Elvis Profile

A new CD is due in the "Profile" series adding Elvis Presley to the series on two CDs. This CD from the "Profile Series" label is due for release on October 20, 2014.

(Source: Elvis Club Berlin)

September 03 - A Rocket In My Pocket

Serpent's Tail has announced the (re)release of the book written by Max Décharné; "A Rocket In My Pocket: The Hipster's Guide To Rockabilly Music". The book, containing 336 pages, is due for release on November 6, 2014.

From the Publisher:
Rockabilly had its roots in country, blues, folk, hillbilly, R&B, boogie-woogie and most other indigenous Deep South forms of popular song that you could strum three chords along to or howl down a cheap microphone.

It was young people's music, made almost entirely by the first wave of teenagers, despised by adults in general and the country music establishment in particular. Its pioneer exponent, Elvis, eventually become respectable in the eyes of straight society but he was the exception.

1950s rockabilly was a spontaneous outburst of spirited three-chord songs, tiny record labels, primitive studios, fiercely partisan audiences and wild-eyed, driven performers who weren't even sure that their musical careers would last the week.

The book charts the rise (and fall) of the original 50s wave of rockabillies. It will also follow the progress of the music, in clubs, on radio, TV and film, pinpointing the key record labels and important regional centres, showing how fashions eventually changed and left rockabilly high and dry, far too wild and primitive in an era of smoother sounds. Décharnétraces the music to its Memphis roots.

Collecting Elvis

Volume 70 in the German "Elvis Sammlung" was released by De' Agostini. This volume contains the usual magazine, memorabilia reproductions and a mini-poster. 

(Source: Elvis And His Music)