Love Letters from Elvis

Love Letters from Elvis
Studio album by Elvis Presley
Released June 16, 1971 (1971-06-16)
Recorded June 4–9, 1970
Genre Soft rock, country
Length 32:40
Label RCA Records
Producer Felton Jarvis
Elvis Presley chronology
You'll Never Walk Alone
(1971)		 Love Letters from Elvis
(1971)		 C'mon Everybody
(1971)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
MusicHound[2]
Rough Guides[3]

Love Letters from Elvis is the twelfth studio album by Elvis Presley, released in 1971.

The album was made up of leftovers from Elvis' marathon June 1970 recording sessions in Nashville. Most of the other 35 songs recorded during those sessions had been used in Elvis' 1970 albums That's the Way It Is and Elvis Country (I'm 10,000 Years Old). Wanting to squeeze out a third album from the sessions, RCA records had producer Felton Jarvis mix, overdub and compile the remaining songs. The album was critically panned upon release, and failed to crack the top 20 of the Billboard album charts but did reach #12 on the US Top Country Albums chart and #7 on the UK best-selling albums chart.

The song's title track was a rare instance of Presley re-recording a past hit in the studio, his original version of "Love Letters" having been released as a single in 1966. "Got My Mojo Working" is edited down from an impromptu jam session; Presley's version incorporates lyrics from "Hands Off", a 1955 song by Frankie Castro released on the Wing record label (RCA often mislabelled this song "Keep Your Hands Off of It" when the complete jam was issued on CD years later).

Three songs from this album were released on singles. The single "Life / Only Believe" was released in March 1971 and reached only #53 on the US Billboard Singles chart. It was Elvis's lowest chart position for a single since "Almost in Love" had reached #95 in late 1968. "Heart Of Rome" was placed on the B-side of the non-album track "I'm Leavin'" released as a single in August 1971 it reached #23 in the UK and #83 in Australia.

Track listing

Original release

Side one
No. TitleWriter(s)Recording date Length
1. "Love Letters"  Edward Heyman, Victor YoungJune 7, 1970 2:53
2. "When I'm Over You"  Shirl MileteJune 7, 1970 2:28
3. "If I Were You"  Gerald NelsonJune 8, 1970 3:01
4. "Got My Mojo Working"  Preston FosterJune 5, 1970 4:36
5. "Heart of Rome"  Alan Blaikley, Ken Howard, Geoff StephensJune 6, 1970 2:56
Side two
No. TitleWriter(s)Recording date Length
1. "Only Believe"  D. Paul RaderJune 8, 1970 2:49
2. "This Is Our Dance"  Les Reed, Geoff StephensJune 6, 1970 3:16
3. "Cindy, Cindy"  Dolores Fuller, Buddy Kaye, Ben WeismanJune 4, 1970 2:33
4. "I'll Never Know"  Fred Karger, Sid Wayne, Ben WeismanJune 5, 1970 2:25
5. "It Ain't No Big Thing (But It's Growing)"  Shorty Hall, Alice Joy Merritt, Neal MerrittJune 6, 1970 2:49
6. "Life"  Shirl MileteJune 6, 1970 3:10

[4]

Follow That Dream reissue

Disc 1
Original album (tracks 1-11); new bonus songs (tracks 12-15); first takes (tracks 16-22)
No. Title Length
1. "Love Letters"    
2. "When I’m Over You"    
3. "If I Were You"    
4. "Got My Mojo Working" / "Keep Your Hands Off Of It"    
5. "Heart Of Rome"    
6. "Only Believe"    
7. "This Is Our Dance"    
8. "Cindy, Cindy"    
9. "I’ll Never Know"    
10. "It Ain’t No Big Thing (But It’s Growing)"    
11. "Life"    
12. "The Sound of Your Cry"    
13. "Sylvia"    
14. "Rags To Riches"    
15. "Something"    
16. "The Sound Of Your Cry" (takes 1, 2, 3)  
17. "Cindy, Cindy" (take 1)  
18. "I’ll Never Know" (take 1)  
19. "It Ain’t No Big Thing (But It’s Growing)" (takes 1, 2)  
20. "Life" (take 1, 2)  
21. "Heart Of Rome" (take 1)  
22. "If I Were You" (take 1)  
23. "Rags To Riches" (rehearsal, take 2)  
Disc 2
Session outtakes and undubbed masters
No. Title Length
1. "Radio Commercial"    
2. "The Sound Of Your Cry" (takes 4, 5, 6)  
3. "Cindy, Cindy" (takes 2, 3; undubbed master)  
4. "Got My Mojo Working" / "Keep Your Hands Off Of It" (take 1; undubbed master)  
5. "I’ll Never Know" (takes 2, 3)  
6. "It Ain’t No Big Thing (But It’s Growing)" (takes 3, 4, 5, 6)  
7. "This Is Our Dance" (takes 6, 7, 9,11; undubbed master)  
8. "Life" (take10)  
9. "Heart of Rome" (take 2; undubbed master)  
10. "Love Letters" (takes 3, 1)  
11. "If I Were You" (takes 2, 3, 4, 5)  
12. "Only Believe" (takes 1, 2, 3, 4; undubbed master)  
13. "Sylvia" (takes 1, 2, 3, 4, 9)  
14. "Rags To Riches" (take 3)  

[5]

Personnel

References

  1. ↑ Love Letters from Elvis at AllMusic
  2. ↑ Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel (eds) (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink Press. p. 892. ISBN 1-57859-061-2.
  3. ↑ Simpson, Paul (2004). The Rough Guide to Elvis. London: Rough Guides. p. 146. ISBN 1-84353-417-7.
  4. ↑ "Elvis Presley Albums". Softshoe-slim.com. Retrieved 2012-02-29.
  5. ↑ "Love Letters From Elvis". Elvis Presley Enterprises. 2013. Retrieved October 20, 2013.
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