TCBCast: An Unofficial Elvis Presley Fan Podcast

• TCBCast 384: Favorite "Movie Versions" of Elvis Songs (feat. John Michael Heath)

  John Michael Heath joins Justin this week as guest host as they discuss some of their favorite alternate versions of Elvis songs as they appeared in the original movies he starred in, frequently with added instrumentation, backing vocals, or often completely different performances altogether than what was commercially released on record. For Song of the Week, John looks back at "Pieces of My Life," the introspective Troy Seals-penned song off the "Today" album that landed as the B-side of "Bringin' It Back" as a single, and that Elvis only performed live once in Asheville, North Carolina. The song Justin intended to pick for song of the week, however, ended up having an extra twist to it that he wasn't expecting that needs a bit more digging - wait to hear that next episode! If you enjoy TCBCast, please consider supporting us with a donation at Patreon.com/TCBCast. Your support allows us to continue to provide thoughtful, provocative, challenging and well-researched perspectives on Elvis's career, his peers and influences, and his cultural impact and legacy.

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• TCBCast 383: Mahalo from Elvis (1978) Album Discussion

  Released in 1978 on the Pickwick label, at first glance the budget album "Mahalo from Elvis" could have seemed like any number of other slapdash repackaging of old recordings in the wake of Elvis's death. However "Mahalo" not only represented the first official release of the five post-show songs from "Aloha from Hawaii" filmed for inclusion in the continental US broadcast, but had originally been compiled by RCA's Joan Deary for release in late 1973.  As an album that could have potentially been part of the lifetime canon of Elvis's album releases, has "Mahalo" been overlooked? Eventually certified Gold by the RIAA, many later-generation fans - including Justin - had it in their vinyl collection early on as a formative part of their Elvis musical experience. Bec and Justin decided to revisit the record and see how it holds up. For Song of the Week, Bec takes the baton from Olivia pick last week, highlighting another Don Robertson-penned number, the stunning "There's Always Me" from 1961. Justin, on the other hand, tries really hard not to let the potential for innuendo get out of hand as he digs into what sets Elvis's version of the country weeper "It Ain't No Big Thing (But It's Growing)" apart from numerous others before and after his.  If you enjoy TCBCast, please consider supporting us with a donation at Patreon.com/TCBCast. Your support allows us to continue to provide thoughtful, provocative, challenging and well-researched perspectives on Elvis's career, his peers and influences, and his cultural impact and legacy.

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• TCBCast 382: All Shook Up: The Musical, Part 2

  This week, Justin and Olivia wrap their discussion on the 2005 Broadway musical "All Shook Up" as they take a closer examination of the second act of the show as it flounders in its half-hearted attempts to make social commentary while still surprising with the inclusion of Elvis deep cuts like "Power of My Love," "I Don't Want To" and "There's Always Me" in its narrative. From there, the duo hit their Songs of the Week. Tying in with the musical's lead character Chad, a roving roustabout himself, Justin tackles the brief history behind the title theme to Elvis's 1964 film "Roustabout." Then Olivia goes on a wonderful deep dive into the symbolism and storied history of "La Paloma" as its Spanish composer Sebastián Iradier comes into contact with Cuban music, brings it back to Europe and writes a song that goes on to explode in popularity around the world, becoming a standard in Mexico and also somewhat associated with Hawaii, being brought to the islands by Europeans - leading to its further adaptation as "No More" for Elvis in "Blue Hawaii" and "Aloha from Hawaii." If you enjoy TCBCast, please consider supporting us with a donation at Patreon.com/TCBCast. Your support allows us to continue to provide thoughtful, provocative, challenging and well-researched perspectives on Elvis's career, his peers and influences, and his cultural impact and legacy.

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• TCBCast 381: All Shook Up - The Broadway Musical, Part 1

  Olivia & Justin look back at a unique event in Elvis's posthumous legacy from 20 years ago - the EPE-endorsed 2005 Broadway show that utilized Elvis's music to tell the story of Chad, a 1950s motorcycling roustabout who travels from town to town bringing rock and roll and romance to small town America, Natalie, the mechanic who falls in love with him, and the numerous other characters brought to life in this show penned by writer Joe DiPietro. Crammed to bursting with more Elvis hits than you can shake a stick at, "All Shook Up" received middling reviews on Broadway at a time not particularly generous to jukebox musicals, yet has since become a standard for smaller theatre companies and schools to license... but how does the story really stack up, either to other musicals, or to Elvis's own musical films? Is Elvis's legacy represented well? Is his music used effectively? We sat down with a filmed version of the original Broadway production, the script and soundtrack album to try to figure it all out. We ran a bit long on Song of the Week so this is being split across two parts, breaking right in the middle of the discussion where the intermission would be in the musical itself.  If you enjoy TCBCast, please consider supporting us with a donation at Patreon.com/TCBCast. Your support allows us to continue to provide thoughtful, provocative, challenging and well-researched perspectives on Elvis's career, his peers and influences, and his cultural impact and legacy.

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• TCBCast 380: Kissin' Cousins - Album, Sessions & Movie Revisit

  Justin and Bec decided that since it's been a while since we've covered MGM's "Kissin' Cousins" on TCBCast (and since Bec hadn't seen it since she was a kid) that they'd tackle the very limited number of recordings remaining from the September 1963 instrumental and October 1963 vocal overdub sessions for the film soundtrack while also giving Bec a chance to give her thoughts on the movie. Where she landed may just surprise you! Naturally, the pair discuss some lyrics and songs cut from the movie and album, bonus songs on the album that are carried over from the May 1963 sessions, as well as a few demos that have surfaced which were submitted for potential inclusion. For Song of the Week, Justin keeps to the theme of the Smokey Mountains of Tennessee and gives a very brief overview of the history of "On Top of Old Smokey" leading up to Elvis singing it in character in the film "Follow That Dream." Bec, on the other hand, has revelation as she realizes what "Queenie Wahine's Papaya" is actually about - and shares the fun research she did on fruit innuendo.  If you enjoy TCBCast, please consider supporting us with a donation at Patreon.com/TCBCast. Your support allows us to continue to provide thoughtful, provocative, challenging and well-researched perspectives on Elvis's career, his peers and influences, and his cultural impact and legacy.

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