Fun and Optimism at Stax Studios
"Talk About The Good Times" Elvis Presley
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The song "Talk About The Good Times" composed by Jerry Reed, would be the only song that was recorded on December 14, 1973 at Stax Studios.
A country-gospel song, happy and fun, that Elvis surely enjoyed recording it a lot, because there were really few songs in this tone that he would record at the time. With an accompaniment also at a good pace and supported by the musicians, the result would be optimal and strong.
The lyrics were a review of the past, the good times, friends, when you shake hands with someone. But above all what he transmitted was the joy and enjoyment of thinking about good and happy moments, with a positive and optimistic thought in the Elvis version.
The song is evidently based on that of its composer Jerry Reed, but really the instrumentation and the tone of it change compared to that of its author. Reed sings flat and leans on the strings with his country-style instrumentation transparent. Elvis's includes some embellishment and improvisation on the part of the piano as well as the strings that give it a different air and his richer voice in intonation, which is reinforced by the accompaniment of the choir, this gives it more verve and makes it different from that of the composer.
It was recorded at Stax Studios in Memphis on December 14, 1973. It would be published on the album "Good Times" and later on "Walk a Mile in my Shoes", the 2000 reissue of "Promised Land", "The Country Side of Elvis", etc. An alternate version was published in "Essential Elvis Vol.5", etc.
Songwriter Jerry Reed, who had previously worked with Elvis, was a country singer, guitarist and songwriter, as well as an actor in several films.
His song "Guitar Man" fascinated Elvis while he was listening to the radio and was recorded in 1968 for the NBC TV show Comeback. He had also recorded Jerry's song "U.S Mail" and later a very different type of song "A Thing Called Love". In addition to being a composer that Elvis clearly liked, his hoarse voice and his type of interpretation would attract a lot of attention for what would receive a curious influence at this time in the interpretations he made in 1968. Elvis would always try new things and at that time he made some songs with a more torn tone of voice than usual, possibly due to this influence. Jerry would also record as a session musician with his guitar for Elvis.
Jerry Reed had great admiration for Elvis, because he always considered that when he appeared in the middle, he totally changed music forever, for this he called him "King of the world". He said that characters like Elvis only appear once a millennium and he was obviously right.
About his composition "Talk About The Good Times", Jerry would say that it was just a memory of his youth, of the old days and how simple life was then. As a child he lived in a foster home and often visited a small Methodist church in the wild woods. There he listened to this type of singing and shared with other families the dinners in which everyone contributed their prepared dishes.
The song in Elvis's version has an accelerated rhythm and with great force, the air is a little faster than the author's, everyone seems to be having fun singing this song and this shows in the result. The curiosity is that in the final publication of it, half a minute was reduced compared to the recordings, this gives the impression of falling short compared to the original shots.
The important thing was the fun and happy tone with which he had started this day of recording, which promised to be productive. But at break time Elvis asked what they had brought to eat and someone had forgotten to do his job, that is, to ask for food, this would bother him a lot to the point of getting angry and leaving the studio.
When Elvis felt offended or disappointed, he took it very seriously, because obviously food and being stocked were important to him because you never knew when they left the studio, this made him go home and not come back until the next day .
A failure that could not be allowed before the King!. Elvis, genius and figure.
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