"Suspicious Minds" - why the early fade out and back up again?

[gilesm]

Does anyone know why, on the the original single version of "Suspicious Minds", the volume fades down and then back up again just prior to the end of the song.
This has always bugged me, was this an error in the mastering?

[cibetty]

I also wondered about that. It can be heard in the song that the volume is low and later it is loud again.

[Teddy]

The fade out/fade in ending was an intentional decision, albeit a reckless one, since it's an undesirable feature for radio programming, and I've yet to find anybody who actually likes the effect.

I guess in 1969 it was considered pretty quirky.
It's supposed to reflect the lyric on an artistic level, reminding us that were caught in a trap, presumably, and won't be permitted to walk out of the song without the express permission of the artist

[gilesm]

Well I never. What a strange choice to make. Do we know if Elvis was involved in this?

[gilesm]

I have just heard from another Elvis fan that this was done in Nashville by studio engineers paid by the Colonel because he was pissed off regarding the publishing rights to the song. he was trying to scupper the single apparently...

What do you think to that theory?

[elvisville]

Elvis was doing it live before the single came out , the live version faded and then came back up full on, they where trying to replicate this effect.

[gilesm]

Great, so thanks for the answers guys, I guess it was just a funny little decision!
Never liked it though (the effect that is, the song is a masterpiece ).

[KPM]

Elvis was doing it live before the single came out , the live version faded and then came back up full on, they where trying to replicate this effect.

Yes thats the reason.
Felton Jarvis decided to do the fade in/fade out-after watching Elvis do it live in Vegas and he wanted that excitement on the record-I do recall a local DJ making fun of the ending saying Elvis just did not know when to quit.
Eventually here in St. Louis they just faded it out on the first fade.

[Brian]

Marty Lacker says Chips Moman originally produced Suspicious minds without the fade out but after the tapes were turned over to RCA Felton Jarvis went back in and messed with the production on some of the songs including putting the fade out on Supicious minds.
According to Marty the DJs who played the song on the radio were upset about it having the fade out then fade back in affect because it messed up their timing on their playlists and it almost stopped them from playing it at all.
Chips Moman felt his original production was better and didn't like the fade out either and was pissed off at Felton Jarvis for going back in and messing with it.
Chips Moman felt the fade out was okay to do live but not for the studio recording.

This is all according to Marty Lacker.

[Teddy]

Chips Moman felt the fade out was okay to do live but not for the studio recording.

I'm inclined to agree with Chips in this instance.

[waymore44]

I personally dig the fade out and fade back in....but I wouldn't have released it to radio that way. That's something I would've done for the album version...of course there was no album version which again makes no sense. What went through the minds of the people at RCA?? Did they not want to sell albums or something??

How much more would "From Elvis In Memphis" have sold if "Suspicious Minds" had appeared on the album? Sure it had "In The Ghetto" but that's the only hit.

Back to the fade thing, I've NEVER heard "Suspicious Minds" on the radio that they don't end it on the first fade.

-JD

[Trelane P]

I wish they would lose the fade on all current releases. The song should only last under 3mins. The constant repeats add nothing to the studio version.

[Brian]

I personally dig the fade out and fade back in....but I wouldn't have released it to radio that way. That's something I would've done for the album version...of course there was no album version which again makes no sense. What went through the minds of the people at RCA?? Did they not want to sell albums or something??

How much more would "From Elvis In Memphis" have sold if "Suspicious Minds" had appeared on the album? Sure it had "In The Ghetto" but that's the only hit.

Back to the fade thing, I've NEVER heard "Suspicious Minds" on the radio that they don't end it on the first fade.

-JD

Back then one single off an album was common pratice.

[gilesm]

I guess hindsight is a wonderful thing, but it just seems a little crazy.
Suspicious Minds really should have been the headline song for "From Elvis In Memphis" but it's easy to know what should have been done so many years on.

Perhaps I will engineer my own version and load it in to iTunes without the fade! Easy enough to do these days...

[EnigmaticSun]

What I like about the live versions is Elvis becoming increasingly weaker nearing the end ("blum-blum-blum baby") - he is actually faking weakness there. When finishing the song you occasionally hear a Fawlty Towers-like "RIGHT!" or a similar effect to say the least.

No this post isn't as hard to understand. It's more simple than you think.

[Teddy]

When finishing the song you occasionally hear a Fawlty Towers-like "RIGHT!"

From now on, I won't be able to hear it any other way

[EnigmaticSun]

From now on, I won't be able to hear it any other way

"a gin and orange and a scotch and water please"

see how Fawlty reacts - of course Elvis drew from his experiences in martial arts.

[Teddy]

"a gin and orange and a scotch and water please"

How extraordinary- I recently saw this episode on television, after many years without seeing Fawlty Towers.

I suppose Elvis was a Monty Python fan, so it isn't completely ludicrous to imagine that he was taking influence from John Cleese.

Or is it?

[Suspicious Minds]

I like this version. To release it without extra overdubbed, it doesn't feel that it's a finished record. I like the fade out/fade near the end of the track.
As for the DJ's being confused because of the fade out/ fade in. I think they would have played the record before broadcasting on air.
Some DJ's got caught out because they thought the record had finished playing.

The fade out /fade in was tried again on I Just Can't Help Believin.
I don't think this record without overdub would not have charted so well as this single.

[EnigmaticSun]

I suppose Elvis was a Monty Python fan, so it isn't completely ludicrous to imagine that he was taking influence from John Cleese.

That's a good question - who invented the "RIGHT!" wheel?

My best guess is that Elvis tried to end such a song as in breaking the heaviest set of bricks - gain some physical force by breathing technique and release it all at once.