In their opening words, authors John Townson and Gordon Minto write that the 78 RPM format is “redundant,” with production halted in 1958 in the United States and 1960 in the U.K. But are they correct? Because didn't we get re-issues of Elvis' five SUN singles as 78s on “Splash Sun” colored vinyl and even a Liquid Vinyl release of Elvis’ breakthrough hit, ‘That’s All Right,’ at 78 RPM earlier in 2024?
Reading the book, I learned that these new 78s don’t fit the official definition of a 78 as they are not pressed on the original shellac format. So, I learned something from the first pages, a good reason to dive in deeper!
Design
Behind the original and funny cover of this A4-sized softcover book the design follows the format used in the previous volumes in the ‘Elvis UK’ series. So, if you own one of those earlier titles, you know what you are getting. The book covers all possible bases needed to tell the complete story, and probably some more!
Where most discography books are (primarily) picture books, these authors stick with the format they developed 40 years ago as it works for these kinds of encyclopedic releases. That means that it contains lots of detail and information not found in other publications.
This does not mean that it is a plain textbook, as it is illustrated throughout with records and sleeves (all generic, unfortunately), a varied overview of original newspaper and magazine articles, adverts, and other relevant material. Some are just a few lines long, but how did they find those? It must have taken years of collecting and research to compile this wealth of information. And a reader with eye for detail may even stumble on some hidden jokes about taxes and patented jet boots.
We know Townson and Minto enjoy writing extensively about their investigative work on British releases, and it is thanks to their entertaining writing style that each chapter is an insightful and pleasant essay to read. That is a nice bonus for books like this.
Content
Like previous volumes in the ‘Elvis UK’ series, this book offers the complete package on the subject at hand, describing the origin of the format, the business and the customer’s side (these fragile discs were not kept in sturdy protective sleeves), and even the tax side, as that helped to date the different pressings.
The book discusses each Elvis release on 78 RPM individually, covering 28 discs on the His Master’s Voice and RCA record labels, with scans of every known label and sleeve variation. The book offers a detailed and forensic commentary on every release, while the extensive text is amply illustrated. Pretty much everything that happened between March 1956 and April 1960, the lifespan of Elvis Presley releases on 78 RPM in the United Kingdom, is placed in a historical context.
And although we know 78s are an old, almost forgotten format, we may not always realize that some of the (U.K.) Elvis releases were only available for a short period. The first Elvis Presley 78, ‘Heartbreak Hotel / I Was The One’ on the HMV label, was available from March 1956 to September 1958, while the last RCA release on the shellac format, ‘A Mess of Blues,’ could only be obtained if you specially ordered it, as the 45 RPM single format had taken over by then. And not everybody knew a 78 RPM version could be ordered, so some are hard to find.
Setting the scene for the Elvis 78s, the book details the history of 78 RPM releases - 78.26 RPM to be exact, as the book explains - in the U.K. generally, their popularity and importance for the musical revolution of the Rock and Roll generation, until the more durable 45 RPM format took over in just a couple of years. Reading this book I realize (or fantasize) that guys like John Lennon or Keith Richards may have heard Elvis first on the radio and later bought a shellac 78 RPM single to play on their parents' equipment!
The book chronicles their subsequent (and rapid) fall from favor. Reading the years and numbers, this change of format happened more quickly than the LP > CD > Digital Music revolution in the past 35 years.
After covering all the basics, the book goes into detail on each of the singles released on the 78 RPM format, delving deep into the history of the release. You could almost say that each record gets its own essay detailing its background, the chart positions, and the business side from both the record company’s and the customer’s perspectives in the context of the 1950s pop scene. I enjoyed the analysis by the authors of why ‘Heartbreak Hotel’ didn’t manage to hit the No. 1 spot in the United Kingdom. And where relevant, the authors make references to U.S. and other 78 releases.
The eye for detail is amazing, not only on the records but also on some of the other memorabilia presented on the pages of this book. For example, the authors tracked down the five Wertheimer and ‘Love Me Tender’ promotional pictures used for the 1958 ‘I’m Left, You’re Right, She’s Gone’ promo poster from His Master’s Voice.
Wouldn't it have been great if HMV or RCA had applied the same originality to the cover art of their record releases?
And while this is the slimmest volume in the ‘Elvis UK’ series at “just” 222 pages, there is too much content packed between the two flexible covers to cover in this review, and it would become repetitive with observations and compliments on the body of work by these two gentlemen. This is the kind of book you buy to learn and understand Elvis’s musical history, categorize your collection, or simply to enjoy sitting back and reading these well-written essays.
Conclusion
Like many discography works, this book may not be of interest to all fans, but it documents an important part of Elvis’s record history as it was, one of the, formats available when that young man from Memphis stepped into the musical spotlight and shook everything up. It is not only the kind of book you use as a reference when updating your collection but also a book to pick up every now and then for some educational reading because there is too much content to take in all in one read. The authors treated the subject of Elvis’s British 78 RPM releases seriously but made it an entertaining read at the same time.
And while many of us, owning the original 1987 edition of ‘Elvis UK,’ may think we’ve got our bases covered for collecting U.K. Elvis releases, we’re not. The original ‘Elvis UK’ book covered what was known and possible to publish almost 40 years ago. With each new volume in their ‘Elvis UK’ series, Townson and Minto extend the history of the format at hand considerably.
To summarize: a well-researched reference, providing an interesting and entertaining read, this book is the definitive record on Elvis’ British releases on the 78 RPM format. The format may be obsolete, this book surely isn't for collectors as it offers an in-depth and comprehensive look at this important piece of record history, preserving what otherwise might have been lost to history.
And this reminds me, where did I store those – obsolete- fragile discs with those blue-colored labels ...
