On the death anniversary, friend Matt dug up one of his favorite Elvis stories tonight. That find sent me looking for one of my own favorites. I ran across this interview a few years back in Peter Guralnick's fantastic Last Train to Memphis. Even if you're not an Elvis fan, it's worth a read.

Before a 1956 show, Elvis sits in a darkened Cadillac with Bea Ramirez, a seemingly young reporter with the Waco News Tribune. Ramirez puts the interview in a far more raw format than you read in entertainment reporting at the time. (You can read the full version here.) The result:

"What do you want to know about me, honey?"

"Elvis, have you any idea at all about just what it was that started the girls going crazy over you?"

"No, I don't. I guess it’s just some thing God gave me. I believe that, you know. Know what I mean, honey? And I am grateful. Only I’m afraid. I'm afraid I’ll go out like a light, just like I came on. Know what l mean, honey?"

Presley has a way with that "honey" business. When he talks, he looks straight ahead, or sort of dreamy like in no direction at all. Then he turns with that "know what I mean, honey?" His face is close, real close. Right in your face — almost.

…

"Elvis, I hear you walk in your sleep."

"Well, I have nightmares."

"What kind?"

"I dream I'm about to fight somebody or about to be in a car wreck or that I'm breaking things. Know what I mean, honey?" (I don’t have any idea what he means).

"Where are you from?"

"From Memphis, Tenn."

"Oh, yes, that’s where all the hillbilly singers come from, isn’t it?"

"Maybe so, but I’m no hillbilly singer."

"Well, have you typed yourself. . . I mean your type of singing?"

"No, I don't dare."

"Cause I’m scared, know what I mean, honey? Real scared."

"What of?"

"I don’t know. . . I don't know. Know what I mean, honey?"

At this point I thanked him for his time and started to make a beeline for the door. He grabbed my hand, sat there looking sleepy-eyed into my face and fanned his long lashes while he said:

"Write me up good, will you, honey?"

Ending the night by watching one of my favorite late Cheers episodes, the one where Sam dreams of talking to Elvis about fatherhood. Last time I mentioned that episode in the blog, I missed the chords of Blue Hawaii playing in the background. They stood out tonight for whatever reason — maybe the light humidity, which has me finding physicality in the air night after night recently. I now expect to have the song in my head for days. This soft version is near perfect for late spring drifting.

In August, Rob sent me this photo. Blogged it here. His e-mail comment at the time: "Seen inside a restaurant supply store on the Bowery."

In recent weeks, Rob sent me this photo.

Lesson 1: Rob spends a lot of time at restaurant supply stores. (And, frankly, I don't blame him. Restaurant supply stores are awesome.)

Lesson 2: Resistance is futile.

Elvis Week, you know, is a week on, not a week off. This year, in a true Elvis Week miracle, friend Colleen and I learned a reason we've never been enemies is that we both love the King. God bless us, everyone!

So, it was also nice to come across a No Depression essay, "The Top 30 Recordings of Elvis Presley." The essay, the author explained, "would have been better titled '30 Great Elvis Songs that Have Mostly Been Forgotten' but that doesn't have quite the same ring to it and wouldn't apply to some of the material here." Half the songs I'd somehow never heard before. To catch up, I ran to YouTube, an underrated Elvis spot.

Song I never truly appreciated until now: Long Black Limousine.

Song I'd loved but hadn't thought of in years: Baby, Let's Play House.

Song you possibly haven't heard and may like the most: Don't.

Song totally new to me and could've been a classic James Bond theme song if they had pumped it up and worked on it more: Edge of Reality.

Song that makes you want an Elvis and Glen duet: Gentle on My Mind.

Song that's fun in its released form, but between that version and its stripped demo, you know it could've been all kinds of bluesy awesome.

I had to leave town for a little while,
You said you'd be good while I'm gone,
But the look in your eye done told me you told a lie,
I know there's been some carryin' on

Baby (baby), you wearin' that loved-on look
Shoop, shoop, shoop shoop,
Baby (baby), you wearin' that loved-on look

Rob e-mails: "Seen inside a restaurant supply store on the Bowery." 

My favorite Elvis Week piece so far is the Commercial Appeal's "Memphis accordion virtuoso reveals close musical encounters with Elvis." Yessir:

Barrasso was playing his accordion with his back to some winding stairs at that first Graceland party when he suddenly sensed Elvis was coming down the steps.

"I turned around. He was in a black Bolero tux, like a bullfighter tux. Black shiny boots. No shirt. A white silk ascot. A diamond stick pin that I promise would put your eyes out," he said. "On his left shoulder was a chimpanzee dressed exactly like him."

The chimpanzee was "Scatter," who had recently been in a movie with Elvis.

Elvis!

Los Angeles, give me Norfolk Virginia,
Tidewater four-ten-oh-nine,
Tell the folks back home this is the promised land calling
And the poor boy's on the line.

The 75th birthday was yesterday, and you saw experts and fans give favorite songs. I've done that enough here in the past, so I wanted to post something different. Andy Kaufman's impersonations did the trick.

If you've ever loved the spoken interlude in the middle of That's When Your Heartaches Begin (maybe you bundle it with the spoken interlude in your favorite Alicia Keys song) or the vocal gyrations of Treat Me Nice, the YouTube people have guaranteed you a good next dozen minutes.

Bonus: Friend Stevie finds 1993 Tom Hanks with a great Elvis moment.

Elvis, 1956 or so, in a regular line of his from the time: "I like it. I enjoy rock 'n' roll. Lot of people like it, lots of people don't. But as long as it lasts, as long as it sells, I'll continue doin' it, as long as that's what the people want. And if they change, if it dies out, I'll try to do something else, and if that doesn't work, I'll just say 'Well I had my day.' "

And this feels related, as some days…
You've got to sing that song, save those dogs and fly that chopper.

"In time you're gonna pay" … no, sometimes nobody pays, except … tonight's weather report may express my feelings best. The windows are open and I had a thought it would. "Scattered showers, focused mainly on the morning, once again visited the area today. Thanks to some pleasantly surprising sunshine this afternoon, we've seen temperatures rise to the mid-and-upper 70s in many spots. Breaks in the clouds may persist into evening, though additional scattered showers remain possible through the evening and into the night."

That's how ElvisNews.com reports the Jackson death. Judging by the angle and the resulting reader comments, the Elvis community at large is no fan of the late King of Pop. Why? There are the Jackson abuse allegations, for sure, but with a massive dose of musical rivalry. If you want odder reactions to the death, Elvis fans are good place to start. (Sincerely, an Elvis fan but apparently not as big a one as I could be.)