“YOU’LL NEVER WALK ALONE”
THE SOUL OF THE ARTIST.
By Rosa García Mora
“When you walk through a storm,
Hold your head up high,
And don’t be afraid of the dark.
At the end of a storm,
There’s a golden sky,
And a sweet silver song of a lark.
Walk on through the wind,
Walk on through the rain,
Though your dreams be tossed and blown….
Walk On! Walk On! With hope in your heart,
And you’ll never walk alone…”
A standard from the American Songbook, with wonderful lyrics of soul and hope, and a beautiful melody, of which Elvis makes a prodigious interpretation, turning it into a work of art and into one of the most solemn hymns of popular music, with that deep gospel flavor that he loved so much.
“You’ll Never Walk Alone” was recorded by Elvis on Monday, September 11, 1967, at RCA Studio B in Nashville. These September sessions would be a turning point in the artistic growth of Elvis, who was immersed in the recording of soundtracks for his films.
It was Elvis himself who played the piano in the performance of this song. There are a handful of studio recordings, other than home recordings, that feature Elvis at the piano, and two of them are among the best vocal performances Elvis has ever produced.
One of them, “Danny Boy“, recorded at “The Jungle Room Sessions” in 1976 and the other was “You’ll Never Walk Alone” recorded nine years earlier.
For the master take, a 30-second splice of take 8 was made, with the last part of take 1.
Take 1, five and a half minutes long, is one of those examples where Elvis gets so immersed in the song that he just doesn’t want to get out of it and turns it into magic.
It is incomprehensible that take one was given that treatment, and not been chosen in its entirety as a master take, but surely it was because of its long duration and the fear that it would be poorly marketed.
It was released as a B-side single to “We Call On Him” ??on March 26, 1968.
The song was composed by Richard Rodgers (music) and Oscar Hammerstein (lyrics) for the musical Carousel, which opened on Broadway on April 19, 1945.
It was recorded by many great artists such as Gerry and the Pacemakers, Frank Sinatra, Roy Hamilton, Johnny Cash, Barbra Streisand or Mahalia Jackson, among many others.
Also, the “Shankly Gates” were erected at Andfield Stadium in 1982, with their motto written: “You’ll Never Walk Alone”
The solemn interpretation that Elvis makes of this theme, with his versatile and emotional voice at its best, turns it into a work of art, full of soul, with a spirituality and a strength that brings us to tears, and makes us drink from the source of faith and hope, even in the air that escapes between each of his phrases.
Although Elvis won three Grammy Awards during his lifetime, he was also nominated for eleven others, including one in the category of Best Sacred Performance in 1968 for the studio master of “You’ll Never Walk Alone.”
Elvis performed this song, only once on stage, playing it himself on the piano, during the night show at the Nassau Veteran Coliseum, Uniondale, NY, on July 19, 1975. And there is a record of the recording, which you can listen to below in the link.
No one would guess that eight years had passed between this live performance and the 1967 studio recordings.
A song to keep in our hearts, that will always remind us that we will never walk alone.
Once again… close your eyes and enjoy this master piece.
Information provided by Rosa Garcia Mora. https://www.facebook.com/rosa.garciamora.12
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