ELVIS – THE CAMDEN COLLECTION – 50 Years Later

Elvis Sings Flaming Star
CAS 2304
Released: March 1969
Chart Position 96
RIAA Certification (2004)
Platinum (1,000,000 units)
Side 1
1: Flaming Star**
2: Wonderful World*
3: Night Life*
4: All I Needed Was The Rain*
5: Too Much Monkey Business

Side 2
1: The Yellow Rose Of Texas / The Eyes Of Texas*
2: She’s A Machine*
3: Do The Vega*
4: Tiger Man*
Legend:
* Previously unreleased
** Previously unreleased on LP (USA)

With the exception of the title track, none of the album’s tracks had been previously released and five had not even been heard before. Of these, Night Life and Do The Vega were recorded for Viva Las Vegas, but were not used. Likewise, She’s A Machine was a leftover from the Easy Come, Easy Go soundtrack session. Chuck Berry’s Too Much Monkey Business was a recent recording from the January 1968 session, and Tiger Man was recorded for Elvis’s television special, but was not used. It’s hard to believe that this amazing performance was first heard on a budget album and was also Elvis’ first live recording released commercially. The remaining tracks were taken from Elvis’ films: Flaming Star, Viva Las Vegas, Stay Away, Joe and the recently released Live A Little, Love A Little.

Overall, it was a pretty solid release, especially for a budget album. Most of the tracks were new to all listeners and for fans of the time it must have been a collector’s dream. Clearly some effort was made to compile the album as, with the unreleased tracks, it would have involved locating the master tapes from which the master album could be assembled.

Interestingly, the album cover featured a photo taken during the production of Elvis’s television special. Although it fits very well with the album’s title, the fact that Elvis is dressed in cowboy attire remains a mystery, as no similarly themed number was recorded for the show.

Although previously issued as Singer Presents Elvis Singing Flaming Star And Others in October 1968, the album was only available through Singer Centers, with the Camden edition being its first worldwide commercial release.

Let’s Be Friends
CAS 2408
Released: April 1970
Chart Position 105
RIAA Certification (2004)
Platinum (1,000,000 units)
Side 1
1: Stay Away, Joe*
2: If I’m A Fool (For Loving You)*
3: Let’s Be Friends*
4: Let’s Forget About The Stars*
5: Mama*

Side 2
1: I’ll Be There*
2: Almost*
3: Change Of Habit*
4: Have A Happy*

For Camden’s first release under the contract in December 1969, Colonel and RCA compiled eight recent recordings, along with one from 1962, none of which had been previously released.

Of the recent tracks, three (Let’s Be Friends, Change of Habit and Have A Happy) were just over a year old, recorded in March 1969 during the Change Of Habit soundtrack session. If I’m A Fool (For Loving You) and I’ll Be There was recorded at American Sound Studio in early 1969 in the same sessions that resulted in Suspicious Minds, In The Ghetto, Don’t Cry Daddy and Kentucky Rain. It had almost appeared in The Trouble With Girls, Let’s Forget About The Stars had been recorded for Charro! but had not been used, and Stay Away, Joe was the title song for the film of the same name.

The first song, Mama, was recorded in 1962 for Girls! Girls! Girls! For this release, the 1:00 minute version of the Elvis song was merged with The Amigos recording (as heard in the film) to create a more respectable 2 minute and 17 second master.

Given that Change of Habit had only been released in US theaters five months earlier (November 1969) and The Trouble With Girls two months earlier, it is somewhat surprising that the songs ended up having their initial release on a budget album. However, these, combined with the American Sound recordings, give the album a fairly contemporary overall feel.

Like its Camden predecessor, Let’s Be Friends offered the record buyer an album full of previously unreleased tracks for a cheap price.

Interestingly, the cover photo, taken during the same session that resulted in the cover of the Suspicious Minds single, was the last studio photo session in which Elvis posed.

Elvis’ Christmas Album
CAS 2428
Released: August 1970
Chart Position-
RIAA Certification (2011)
Diamond (10,000,000 units)
Side 1
1: Blue Christmas
2: Silent Night
3: White Christmas
4: Santa Claus Is Back In Town
5: I’ll Be Home For Christmas

Side 2
1: If Every Day Was Like Christmas**
2: Here Comes Santa Claus (Down Santa Claus Lane)
3: O Little Town Of Bethlehem
4: Santa Bring My Baby Back (To Me)
5: Mama Liked The Roses**

Featuring a photo of Speedway on the cover, with snowy mountains added for effect, Elvis’ Christmas Album brought together all of Elvis’ Christmas songs to date, including those from his classic 1957 Christmas Album (which peaked at number 1), along with 1966’s If Everyday Like Christmas, written by Red West. Completing the album with 10 tracks was (‘By request’) Mama Liked The Roses, which had been recorded in January 1969 and previously released as the B-side to The Wonder Of You four months earlier.

Although the album did not chart at the time, it became a perennial bestseller and, according to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), has sold more than 10,000,000 copies in the US alone (in 2011). To date, this is Elvis’s only album to be certified Diamond, making it his best-selling release of all time! In comparison, its next closest seller is 2002’s ‘ELV1S 30 #1 Hits’, which was certified 6x Platinum (6,000,000 units) in 2018.

Almost In Love
CAS 2440
Released: October 1970
Chart Position 65
RIAA Certification (2004)
Platinum (1,000,000 units)
Side 1
1: Almost In Love**
2: Long Legged Girl (With The Short Dress On)
3: Edge of Reality**
4: My Little Friend**
5: A Little Less Conversation**

Side 2
1: Rubberneckin’**
2: Clean Up Your Own Backyard**
3: U.S. Male**
4: Charro**
5: Stay Away, Joe (Replaced by Stay Away** in the 1973 reissue)

Like most of their records at the time, the cover of Almost In Love featured a photo of Elvis in concert, and this formula would continue on all subsequent Camden albums.

The material itself was a mix of fairly recent material, with the exception of Long Legged Girl (With The Short Dress On), which had been recorded in June 1966 for the Double Trouble soundtrack and also released as a single. Of the other tracks, three were from Live A Little, Love A Little (Almost In Love, Edge of Reality and A Little Less Conversation), with a song from Change Of Habit (Rubberneckin’), The Trouble With Girls (Clean Up Your Own Back Yard!), Charro! (Charro) and Stay Away Joe, (Stay Away, Joe). Rounding out the set were My Little Friend, from the American Sound Studio sessions of January 1969 (Rubberneckin’ was also recorded then), and U.S. Male, from January 1968. Excluding Stay Away, Joe, all tracks had been released on singles. (with Edge Of Reality peaking at No. 2 in Australia, where it was the A-side to the B-side of If I Can Dream).

Both A Little Less Conversation (Take 10) and Stay Away, Joe (Take 17) were different versions than those previously released, indicating that the master tapes were used, at least in some cases, when compiling the Camden albums. As Stay Away, Joe had previously been issued on Let’s Be Friends, it was replaced by Stay Away (also from Stay Away, Joe) when the album was re-released in 1973. Curiously, in Australia, Take 17 of Stay Away, Joe continued to be included. on the album, although the record label itself noted Stay Away.

In 2002, the version of A Little Less Conversation recorded for the Elvis TV special was remixed by Dutch DJ Junkie XL (JXL) and became a worldwide hit, reaching #1 in over 20 countries. The following year, Paul Oakenfold remixed Rubberneckin’ for the ‘Elvis 2nd To None’ compilation. Coincidentally, Almost In Love was the first album release of the original recordings of both tracks.

You’ll Never Walk Alone
CAS 2472
Released: March 1971
Chart Position 69
RIAA Certification (2004)
3x Platinum (3,000,000 units)
Side 1
1: You’ll Never Walk Alone**
2: Who Am I?*
3: Let Us Pray*
4: (There’ll Be) Peace In The Valley (For Me)
5: We Call On Him**

Side 2
1: I Believe
2: It Is No Secret (What God Can Do)
3: Sing You Children**
4: Take My Hand, Precious Lord

This Easter 1971 release brought together almost all of the gospel tracks recorded by Elvis that had not appeared on the His Hand In Mine or How Great Thou Art albums.

Four of the tracks date from 1957 and originally appeared on the Peace In The Valley EP, before the album’s initial release on the 1957 Christmas album. As the seasonal themes had already been reissued on a Camden album, it made sense to include Here are the gospel songs. Of the remaining tracks, You’ll Never Walk Alone and We Call On Him were recorded in September 1967 and released as a single for Easter 1968; Who Am I? It was the last track recorded as part of the American Sound Studio sessions and had not been previously released; Sing You Children was from the Easy Come, Easy Go soundtrack; and Let Us Pray was an unreleased song from Change Of Habit. Universal Pictures, which released Change Of Habit, was dissatisfied with the original recording of Let Us Pray from March 1969, so in September Elvis recorded a new vocal track over the original accompaniment, making the song his last studio recording. from the 60s.

In England, the album included 10 tracks because Swing Down Sweet Chariot from the 1960 album His Hand In Mine was added.

Information provided by Antonio Gte González. “Walk A Mile In My Shoes” https://www.facebook.com/groups/146836475332645/?ref=share

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