...or Harem Holiday which my british pressing are called!!?? This is not an album too start off with after bying a greatest hits collecction by Elvis, but probably the best one if you´re into smoking a joint on wekends .
No just kidding. This one must be one of the albums that Elvis really hated to record and you can certainly hear it on some of the tracks. Try the first sentence on the title track: "Gonna travel, gonna travel..." He sounds depressed in my opinion. But there are worse tracks than that one and one have to go. That one is "My desert serenade (which was included on a earlier poll with the worst songs that I did.)´. The other one that was close (there´s a few candidates...) was "Go east, young man". But the album gets better at the end nad the bonus tracks, also meant for the movie, are the strongest tracks together with "So close, yet so far (from paradise). The rockers sounds a bit pathetic in it´s half arabian arrangements. If I have to chose a favourite, it must be "Animal instinct", which Elvis actually sings with some attack. Despite of the album, please let the votes coming...
I saw Elvis live in concert the year before he died. Even then, he was bigger than life, and had amazing charisma. Haven't seen anything like it since, ....until Adam.........Nocturnal 2010 No matter how old you are, no matter who you sleep with, no matter what color your skin is, we can all party together.” - Adam Lambert 2010
I voted for So Close, Yet So Far From Paradise, but I think Hey Little Girl has some merit. To be sure it's lyrically trite, but Elvis sings it with energy and spunk, and the musical backing is pretty interesting.
This must be the song (So close...) that most people agree on yet. Wonder how it would have fared if had been on, let´s say the "Pot luck" album on a poll?
Just like JERRY NODAK said: some love it , some dont...
I love this LP ! every song on it ! it was my first LP that i bought
But to pick one: the mystery song....WISDOM OF THE AGES , great lyrics, great melody !!!
sincerely
Lior
The only thing worse than this album, at least in the canon of Elvis' '60s film work, is the film from which it derived. I think I've only seen the film once, but it was enough (though, to be fair, I do recall a pretty cool mass fight scene and Elvis looked absolutely fantastic for this film). I's probably my least favorite film, even more so than Double Trouble (Clambake might qualify but, again, that's also one I've only seen once and I remember almost none of it). I should preface my remarks by noting that it's been a long, long time since I've heard some of these tracks and I am gratefully purged of any memory of their details. I think that 1965 was the nadir of Elvis' recording career, though there are still a few songs from the three films recorded for that year that hold some appeal for me.
"Harem Holiday" has got to be one of (if not the) weakest title tracks to any Elvis movie. Oddly, it sometimes pops into my head and won't go away...it IS somewhat catchy, dammit, and makes for a decent 'earworm' (the same is true of others on this LP).
"My Desert Serenade" doesn't even have the redeeming factor of being catchy, really.
"Go East, Young Man" is only marginally better, but at least (from fading memory) it's sung pretty well. I should mention that, although I don't like this LP very much, the attempt at a Eurasian sound actually does work pretty well and creates a unique sound on some tracks. The whole, though, fails more than it succeeds.
"Mirage" is a song I barely remember but, like others on this album, if I were to listen to it right now I'd probably conclude that it's a profoundly undistinguished but very well sung ballad. Elvis could sing ballads like nobody else, and knocking out a perfectly-rendered vocal on such a song was second nature to him by this point.
"Kismet" is one I remember a little more, so I'm guessing it's more memorable. Nice ballad. Not a standout or especially liable to obscure the memory of Elvis' other many fine '60s ballads, but well executed.
Now we're talking: "Shake That Tambourine"! What a classic! Actually, it's decidedly substandard and a complete travesty but it does offer compelling hooks and Elvis sounds like he's having fun, even if he actually wasn't. This song and the next are frequent earworms, invaders of my mental jukebox, which is pretty much how I came to appreciate their unmagnificent magnificence.
"Hey, Little Girl" is the other culprit. It's pure fun. I guess it'd be my pick of the LP, for now. I love it. I mean, I don't actually listen to it on purpose, and I recognize the true nature of the piece (crap, basically) but, hey...
"Golden Coins" is another of those ballads I can only remember bits of, so undoubtedly not especially memorable but well sung. There was a lot of that going around, it seems.
"So Close, Yet So Far" is also a well sung ballad, but this one stands above the others and is a decent ballad by any measure, though still (to me) at or near the bottom rung in terms of all the ballads that Elvis recorded during the '60s. There's something about the song that sounds kind of forced, or contrived, and it detracts to some degree -- still, a nice vocal performance, interesting backing, and it's even the soundtrack to a nicely-shot scene from a movie not known for nicely-shot anything. This'd probably be my pick if not for the incredible catchiness of "Hey, Little Girl," and it's undoubtedly the better performance.
"Animal Instinct," like the other song not included in the film, is stronger than most of what made the cut for the movie. From my first hearing it, I thought it was a cool song. Actually, on any other day it'd probably be my pick for the best of this album. Very different and rather nice, but still nowhere near the quality of Elvis' recordings from non-soundtrack (and even most soundtrack) sessions during the '60s. In comparison to Elvis' other material, any "best of" song from this LP is really the best of a pretty sad bunch.
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"Wisdom Of The Ages" is similarly of better quality, though overwrought and kind of weird. Not bad, though, really. The question is, why cut two of the strongest songs from the film?
One good thing about LPs like this is that it's sure a lot easier to pick a favorite than it is from higher-quality albums!
Not one track on this OST has merit. Not one. Only the Easy Come, Easy Go EP is worse.
The Nashville session was contentious to begin with because of the arrogance of MGM's musical director, Fred Karger. Session man extraordinaire Charlie McCoy relates the story in yet another essential interview courtesy of the September 2008 issue of The Man and His Music.
He goes on to express shock at the sound of the released album. Every track is "dry" -- no reverb or echo on anything. It sounds like crap. Which is a perfect way to describe the Harum Scarum project.
. Dr. John Carpenter, M.D. Stop, look and listen, baby <<--->> that's my philosophy!
Inigo Montoya on Hey, Little Girl wrote:It's pure fun + I love it = crap, basically
???
JerryNodak wrote:So I'll state up front that I love it. The whole album. Every song.
Now we're talkin'. I couldn't have said it better myself. Yes, this soundtrack was badly mastered, but Elvis and the musicians did a terrific job (which is even more obvious on the outtakes because they don't have that dry sound) and there is a lovely atmosphere to this album. The tunes are damn catchy too. Good clean entertainment for the whole family to enjoy!
Keith Richards, Jr.
Dedicated member of The Official Harum Scarum Appreciation Society!
Inigo Montoya on Hey, Little Girl wrote:It's pure fun + I love it = crap, basically
???
JerryNodak wrote:So I'll state up front that I love it. The whole album. Every song.
Now we're talkin'. I couldn't have said it better myself. Yes, this soundtrack was badly mastered, but Elvis and the musicians did a terrific job (which is even more obvious on the outtakes because they don't have that dry sound) and there is a lovely atmosphere to this album. The tunes are damn catchy too. Good clean entertainment for the whole family to enjoy!
Keith Richards, Jr.
Please note that all Swedish people doesn´t share this opinion ...
the album...in my opinion is better than the movie.
the studio band sounds immaculate on each track.
and Elvis...regardless of how he may have felt about the songs...sounds focused...engaged...and committed.
his vocals are beautiful.
and especially on so close,yet so far.
stunning.
and if you dismiss the soundtracks with just a wave of your hand...you'll miss some good stuff.
at times...there are things worth seeing in the wilderness.