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Big Mama Thorton, Budddy Guy, Hound Dog
“Hound Dog” is one of the greatest blues rock songs of all time, so it should come as no surprise that this is the third instance of me posting a version of it. The other two occasions involved the King Elvis Presley, but for this time, I have the superior version. Its Big Mama Thorton…
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56th Anniversary of Elvis Presley's Immortal Apperance on the Milton Berle Show
On June 5th 1956, a 21 year old Elvis Presley strutted onto the set of the Milton Berle show. When Milty introduced Elvis, the future King of Rock and Roll exploded into “Hound Dog.” Its a performance that changed America. It helped usher in the sexual revolution, the rock and roll revolution, and launched Elvis…
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Greatest Rock Vocalists #3, Elvis Presley, Heart Break Hotel, Hound Dog
Elvis was simply great, like a human tornado of cool, and one of the most original Americans in history. Was he musically original? Not exactly, but his instinct for sexing up rock and roll was brilliant. His originality was mainly found in his person, the archetype of the post World War II teenager; rebellious, greasy…
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RIP Nick Ashford and Jerry Leiber
Two songwriting icons passed away yesterday, and ironically, both were halves of legendary songwriting teams. Nick Ashford, legendary Motown songwriter, who was paired with his wife Valerie Simpson, died at 70 in Manhattan. Jerry Leiber, partnered with Mike Stoller, co-wrote some of Elvis Presley’s greatest hits, died at 78 in Los Angeles. Among Ashford’s greatest…