bluejays3577, Kevan Budd, and Doc, thanks for your insights and info. Enjoyable and informative reading, as always. I’m surprised Elvis preferred this Take Me To The Fair. Maybe it’s just the demo singer swaying my view, but I feel like the final version is superior. However, I still would welcome an acetate of the unused version if it surfaced. New discoveries are always welcome.
Jumping to the 70’s, does anyone know if a demo surfaced for the other song Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice submitted to Elvis? I remember reading here that there was It’s Easy For You and a rocker about a neighbor or something (I’m blanking on the title). I wonder what it sounded like. Thanks again!!
Please don’t let Lorraine come down
The song was written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice.
According to a site with Andrew Lloyd Webber facts this song and It’s easy for you were selected for recording at october 1976 sessions. It’s easy for you was recorded and this song was rejected.
It’s mentioned too in the book “Oh, what a circus” by Tim Rice in Chapter 24.
bluejays3577, Kevan Budd, and Doc, thanks for your insights and info. Enjoyable and informative reading, as always. I’m surprised Elvis preferred this Take Me To The Fair. Maybe it’s just the demo singer swaying my view, but I feel like the final version is superior. However, I still would welcome an acetate of the unused version if it surfaced. New discoveries are always welcome.
It's not known which version Elvis preferred only that it was a Wayne/Weisman demo, of which there are at least two.
The track on the CD may prove to simply be another rejected title and not the one Elvis liked and may not even be a Weisman/Wayne song.
Did Elvis record another version? perhaps the wayne/Weisman version he liked?
It would appear that other than the known track being listed as No2 there is no additional evidence at this time that another track was recorded.
but what about the missing session reels?
The content of the reels is known and does not feature an alternate version of `Take me to the fair`.
It may simply be that Elvis went to the session with the two versions still undecided and then dropped the Weisman song at the session. The No 2 reference, referring to the demo version picked, rather than additional recordings.
Kevan Budd.
Kevan, you wrote “The content of the reels is known and does not feature an alternate version of `Take me to the fair`.”
Given that songwriter Ben Weisman wrote a book before he died and listed all the songs of his that Elvis recorded (he claimed 57 songs; actual total was 56 - he also included a song called Chataqua, presumably submitted for "The Trouble With Girls" motion picture), I'm more than inclined to think that the version of "Take Me To The Fair" that Elvis attempted to record on August 30, 1962 is the Ruth Batchelor / Bob Roberts version and not a Ben Weisman / Sid Wayne version. In fact, isn't there a photograph of Elvis with both Ben Weisman and Sid Wayne that was taken around 1966 in which you see a plaque of all of the song titles each of the songwriters had written or co-written that Elvis had recorded. I don't believe "Take Me To The Fair" was listed on the plaque. I would think that they would have known if Elvis had recorded their version or not. A reliable source once told me that before Ben Weisman died, he had in his possession a copy of the film footage of Elvis performing his song, "Twenty Days And Twenty Nights" in Las Vegas during the August 12, 1970 Dinner Show, years before the performance footage finally surfaced on the home video release, "Elvis, The Lost Performances." I would think that he would have remembered whether Elvis recorded his version of "Take Me To The Fair" or not. Also I'm pretty sure that Ernst Jorgensen spoke to Ben Weisman before he died about any songs of his that Elvis may have recorded but were never released. I'm sure if there was something there, it would have been located by now.
Which kind of brings me to my point. If Batchelor / Roberts are the songwriters of the version of "Take Me To The Fair" that Elvis attempted on August 30, 1962, could either of their estates have an acetate copy of the recording? Looking back at the 2003 release of "I'm A Roustabout" recording from the soundtrack sessions to the film, "Roustabout," it was located when someone spoke to songwriter Winfield Scott, one of the co-writers of the song, who happened to have an acetate copy of Elvis' recording of his song. Could this scenario play out again with either the families of Batchelor or Roberts?
Allegro
From 1999 – EPE Auction catalogue:
B115: 32 "Fun In Acapulco" acetates including "Allegro," "The Bull Fighter Was A Lady," "Malaguena," "Fun In Acapulco," "I Think I'm Going To Like It Here," "Bossa Nova Baby," "Vino, Dinero Y Amor," "Guadalajara," "El Toro," "Mexico" and "You Can't Say No in Acapulco."
Before the recording session for IHATWF started on 30 august 1962 the demo version with Take me to the fair ( # 2 ) written by Tepper-Bennett was already known. See acetate dated 28 august 1962 (see handwritten “NEW” on the label).
The song was finally recorded on 22 september 1962.
colonel snow
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Allegro
From 1999 – EPE Auction catalogue:
B115: 32 "Fun In Acapulco" acetates including "Allegro," "The Bull Fighter Was A Lady," "Malaguena," "Fun In Acapulco," "I Think I'm Going To Like It Here," "Bossa Nova Baby," "Vino, Dinero Y Amor," "Guadalajara," "El Toro," "Mexico" and "You Can't Say No in Acapulco."
No information known.
colonel snow
Isn't Allegro the name of the label the acetates were issued on?
Coincidentally Blue Hawaii was also a Paramount production:
When your heart gets restless - time to move along,
When your heart gets weary - time to sing a song,
But when a dream is calling you
There's just one thing that you can do...
Gonna get some records
The song was written by Ruth Batchelor and Clive Westlake.
Publisher: Elvis Presley Music Inc. Copyright 12 september 1962.
Anything known for which recording session or movie the song was written? Anything known about a demo singer? (see discussion about demo singers for Ruth Batchelor in previous posts).
Glen Campbell began singing demos for Ben Weisman / Sid Wayne, beginning with "Girl Happy" and ending with the cancelled August 1967 RCA Hollywood sessions. I believe "I'll Never Know" was submitted for Elvis to record for the August 1967 sessions but he didn't until June 1970. Likewise, even though Elvis did record "All I Needed Was The Rain" in October 1967 for the film, "Stay Away, Joe," the melody, especially on Glen Campbell's demo version, has striking similarities to the 1967 hit song by Bobbie Gentry, "Ode To Billie Joe," which was released in July 1967. Also Campbell's solo career as a recording artist began taking off with the release of "Gentle On My Mind" in June 1967, the recording of "By The Time I Get To Phoenix" on August 29, 1967 and the release of that song on October 23, 1967.
I’ll never know
According to the tape legend the demo written by Ben Weisman was recorded on 1 february 1966 for the movie Spinout but not used (copyright 27-04-66).
Selected for recording again for 22-23 august 1967 cancelled recording session.
colonel snow
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I contacted Bear family with mine and John from Phoenix Forum, concerns on `Because of love` not being Proby and notice the track `Because of love` has moved from the opening track to the last track as a bonus - at least on the website.
Easy come easy go
The track is based on a rejected version of Double trouble from the songwriting team Sid Wayne and Ben Weisman. With new lyrics it’s now known as Easy come easy go and recorded as maintitle for the movie.
"This is it" on the label is a note by Elvis.
It happened a few times rejected songs made their comeback with a new title.
colonel snow
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Perhaps it’s nice to know on the backside of Moon burn (see previous post) you’ll find Playing with fire (Fred Wise & Ben Weisman).
In the musical break down Playing with fire was selected for scene 167 but never recorded.
colonel snow
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Las Vegas
The song was written by Doc Pumus-Mort Shuman. I’ve no other information.
It’s known the songwriting team Pomus-Shuman wrote Viva Las Vegas but I think this is another song.
colonel snow
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Last edited by colonel snow on Sun Mar 19, 2023 3:45 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Colonel Snow, this is really a new topic, but I do not know how to contact you directly. In May 1955 Tom Parker wrote a letter to Bob Neal re Elvis. It is an interesting letter. Parker mentions of "rotten apples" in the music business. Later on in the letter, he wrote " I am not one of the type of personalities that tries to cut out a manager, as you well know a good many would do and perhaps are trying to do."
No doubt this sentence was a great comfort to Hank Snow when he was pushed out of the contract he and Parker had with Elvis!
My question is: Do you have a cleaner version of the letter and do you know if Bob Neal replied?
TP55May25TP copy.jpg
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Colonel Snow, this is really a new topic, but I do not know how to contact you directly. In May 1955 Tom Parker wrote a letter to Bob Neal re Elvis. It is an interesting letter. Parker mentions of "rotten apples" in the music business. Later on in the letter, he wrote " I am not one of the type of personalities that tries to cut out a manager, as you well know a good many would do and perhaps are trying to do."
No doubt this sentence was a great comfort to Hank Snow when he was pushed out of the contract he and Parker had with Elvis!
My question is: Do you have a cleaner version of the letter and do you know if Bob Neal replied?
I don’t have a better scan from this letter and I don’t have the reply from Bob Neal.
Little sister and His latest flame
According to an interview with Doc Pomus both songs were written for a recording session with Bobby Vee for Liberty records in june 1961. For one reason or another the songs were not recorded. By intervention of Hill and Range the songs were offered for a recording sessions with Bobby Darin on 19 june 1961. Again both songs were not recorded.
Now the songs were offered to Elvis and he recorded both songs on 26 june 1961.
Scans from His latest flame (first generation demo and final demo) added in a previous post.
colonel snow
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