My Way

[kklk56]

This is a cd review...it concern a cd called 'Blazing Into The Darkness'. Near the end of the cd is the well known Elvis song called 'My Way'...What makes this version so special is what happens after the song is thru.:

Here is a transcript of what Elvis said: "That's a very good song, ladies and gentlemen.. I, uh uh wouldn't want it to be associated with my own personal life... now the end is near, and all that jazz, its a nice song, its okay for Sinatra, but, I haven't even ate it up and spit it out yet, or chewed on it.... (audience laughing).... nah, it's a good song"

When I heard that version for the first time, it sents a chill up my spine.. I sit here and wonder now, about the people that were there on that night, August 11, 1972. What must have gone thru their minds, five years later when theyheard the news that Elvis had died. Did they recall Elvis' words from that night, the part about that he hadn't even ate it up and spit it out yet...

It's so hard to fathom that Elvis would die only five years later from almost that exact date, August 11,1972. During that period he still was at the very top of his game, everything was in the palm of his hand and he never had looked better...

Right after singing 'My Way' Elvis sang a special version of American Trilogy in that it contained some unusual drum beats, accenting the song...

I leave you now with a little known strange fact ..I heard this only one time in my life, I don't recall where and I've never seen it published since (except by myself): Elvis always opened all his shows with the 2001 theme/Also Sprach Zarathustra.... Elvis died on august 16,1977.....August is the 8th month.. If you add 1977 (the year he died) to 8 (the month he died) to 16 (the day he died), well friends, it adds up to 2001....

adios!!

[Albert]

pfioeh.... I have changed all capitals into lower case words. Could you please type in lowercase instead of capitals?

About your story: great work. That Elvis monologue could easily be from August 1974. Amazing.... I don't think people remember that particular story because by that time it would be "just a joke" (one that you can forget).

About the numbers: that was one thing that Elvis was extremely fascinated with. He was fixed on numbers and read numerous books about it

[Captain Elwood David]

Originally posted by Albert@Apr 29 2004, 11:35 PM
About the numbers: that was one thing that Elvis was extremely fascinated with. He was fixed on numbers and read numerous books about it.

Yes, indeed.

"Numerology" was (IMO) just some of the utter nonesense that Geller turned EP on to.

In fairness to Geller, however, he was not the only person who influenced / entertained EP's belief in the Metaphysical, etc.. Hodge is another that comes to mind.

Also, in fairness to EP himself, he was a voracious reader ....... interested in almost any & everything. He was so hungry for knowledge & used reading as one escape in his life. Depending upon how you look at it, it was a fairly innocuous past-time and one that only those that were close to Elvis actually knew about.


- Capt. "EL."

PS - My thanks for ditching the CAPS.

[kklk56]

Thanks for changing everything to lower case...sorry.i had my caps lock on and really didnt notice..I will try to pay closer attention next time../kk

[Albert]

This piece may sound negative, but it isn't intended so:

Being intelligent is always a plus for yourself our your surroundings. But more important is if you're kind, think about other people, etc. I think I know enough about Elvis to say that he as a wonderfull human being.

Having said that, I almost can't imagine Elvis reading intelligent books. Elvis has rarely ever shown that he knew a lot, read a lot or had a big vocabulary (a thing that comes with lots of reading). The way he treated his carreer, musicsessions, movie recordings, the way he let Parker manage his carreer, the way he talked in the few rare interviews or even on stage.... nothing showed a very intelligent person.

So I think that Elvis was very interested in many things, but that isn't the same as being intelligent. And of course, that isn't a problem, because there are many more aspects of a person that compensate it (and Elvis had LOTS of those).

[Captain Elwood David]

Originally posted by Albert+Apr 30 2004, 09:16 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (Albert &#064; Apr 30 2004, 09:16 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'>This piece may sound negative, but it isn&#39;t intended so ...
[/b]

Not negative, at all.

Originally posted by Albert@Apr 30 2004, 09:16 AM
Being intelligent is always a plus for yourself our your surroundings. But more important is if you&#39;re kind, think about other people, etc. I think I know enough about Elvis to say that he as a wonderfull human being.

In this department, EP definitely was.

Originally posted by Albert@Apr 30 2004, 09:16 AM
Having said that, I almost can&#39;t imagine Elvis reading intelligent books. Elvis has rarely ever shown that he knew a lot, read a lot or had a big vocabulary (a thing that comes with lots of reading). The way he treated his carreer, musicsessions, movie recordings, the way he let Parker manage his carreer, the way he talked in the few rare interviews or even on stage.... nothing showed a very intelligent person.

Evidence suggests that EP did indeed read some heavy-duty selections. He was, however, a very slow, deliberate, & careful reader. IMO, it just was not a side that he showed to many, especially the public.

<!--QuoteBegin-Albert@Apr 30 2004, 09:16 AM
So I think that Elvis was very interested in many things, but that isn&#39;t the same as being intelligent. And of course, that isn&#39;t a problem, because there are many more aspects of a person that compensate it (and Elvis had LOTS of those).
[/quote]

Interesting, very interesting.

On one level, I will agree: his interests were wide-ranging, but I equate that to demonstrate EP&#39;s open-mindedness / curiosity about many things. He was definitely searching for something ...... answers, etc.. IMO, I don&#39;t think EP&#39;s hobby of reading was done with the goal of being "intelligent" in mind. Rather, just like his music, career, & even life, ................ simply to just enjoy.


- Capt. "EL."

[Albert]

I completely agree with you on all points. My answer wasn&#39;t really a reply to the previous post. But because of the &#39;Elvis reading&#39; aspect I posted that reply. Because many fans want to imply that Elvis was a very intelligent person because he read those books. With those people I dissagree. I don&#39;t believe Elvis was very intelligent. but was a person who was reading to search for the goal and purpose of life.

[kklk56]

I have read and heard that Elvis had a photographic memory...people that worked with him said he was a genius when it came to music..he could be on the stage with his entire band and one person could hit a wrong note and Elvis knew it...Even tho he never had any professional training he knew music .to me ,that takes a lot of intelligence.i wish i could sit down to a piano and just start playing.i can recall several interviews with Elvis over the years and he always came across as being very smart.Maybe your perceptions are just diffrent than mine but to me Elvis was very smart..and when he had a music session,no one but him was in charge.,he was the director,and they didnt stop working on a song until Elvis himself was satisfied.Elvis actually excelled at everything he attempted..i believe he could have been one of the greatest actors that ever lived if Colonel Parker hadnt held him back..IN his very first movie that he ever stared in&#39;Love Me Tender"he not only learned his lines but every single cast member&#39;s as well..to me ,this required someone with high intelligence..to be able to recite the entire movie from start to finish,and know every single actors lines,well,that takes some brains..kk

[Albert]

No, I don&#39;t think that you can say that someone with a perfect ear when it comes to music, automatically is very intelligent or a genius. Besides that, there&#39;s a huge difference of being a dumb (or not too bright) and being very intelligent.

I don&#39;t believe Elvis was very intelligent, but also not to he was dumb or hardlearning. Just &#39;normal&#39;. But hey, you should look at Einstein. That guy was horrible to see, probably couldn&#39;t sing, didn&#39;t attract women and perhaps didn&#39;t have the gift of making masses of people happy. So you can&#39;t have it all.

And I also don&#39;t believe Elvis was a music genius. He was gifted in the way many artists and musicians are gifted. But besides Rock&#39;n Roll Elvis rarely showed interest in developing or creating new musicstyles. And that for someone who had a career during the explosion of creativity: the 60s. But then again, that he isn&#39;t a musically genius isn&#39;t a problem for me either. He was (in my books) the best entertainer ever. Elvis did what nobody else can and will do: he changed the world of popular music. Besides that, he was The Total Package...

[Lonniebealestreet]

It&#39;s hard to say what is the exact barometer for musical genius, but I do believe that Elvis qualifies in that department. Though he couldn&#39;t read music, I believe that his musical vision was as keen as anyone&#39;s. He knew what he wanted to hear, or if he didn&#39;t know from the outset, he worked on it until it became clear the way a song should be (though less in the later years). Not a songwriter, Elvis&#39;s interpretations of other people&#39;s music were so creative in many cases that I believe a strong musical acuity was required. All this aside, what happened at Sun--the Big Bang --is as all the convincing I need. But who is to say?

Regarding his intelligence, his quest for knowledge is well-documented. That alone, of course, does not make him an intelligent man. But one is who does not know everything but is wise enough to recognize that has a mark of intelligence, in my mind. Elvis was not exceedingly well-spoken, and that gives people a tendency to think he did not have a great mind. And he certainly made a lot of bad decisions--or non-decisions, which were in effect bad decisions. But I think that some of the things he did or didn&#39;t do can be attributed to his personality and/or level of maturity getting in the way of his own best interests, at times. Those things should be viewed separately from his intelligence.

Listening to that 1962 interview of which excerpts can be heard on the Silver Box set (I have the whole thing on another disc), I personally find it hard to come away not thinking that Elvis was a smart man. Some think Elvis was not intelligent because he was not capable of real self-analysis, that everything he did was just instinctual and he was not one to think things through. That interview demonstrates just the opposite, I believe. Elvis was very reflective and natural and more articulate than most people would expect. Unfortunately, his candor in that interview was not something he ever repeated to that degree, at least not in a recorded interview which I have heard.

Although I am just a nutty fan , I do think I am looking at this subject objectively. I can take off the rose-colored glasses when I want to. I&#39;m not saying I&#39;m right and anyone else is wrong, but I stand by my opinion.

[P.S. Annie]

Intelligence comes in many shapes and forms. Most common when people are
talking about intelligence they think about IQ (and those silly tests, which doesn&#39;t mean a thing, you can have IQ of 160 but if you are socialy &#39;behind&#39; you wont get very far). But in the psychologie we also recognize musical intelligence. Is intelligence defined by using big words or the ability to emphasize with other people? Well..... what I&#39;am trying to say in my poor English :bash: that intelligence is not something which can be measured by one thing and that there is not one definition for it. So before we can say if Elvis was intelligent we first have to agree upon ................... Sorry a got a little carried away here, won&#39;t go on further, I think I go listen to one of his genius songs

[Captain Elwood David]

Guys / Gals -

Am going to just say this much:

Putting aside much of the esoteric BS that I don&#39;t believe in / agree with (regarding some of EP&#39;s reading preferences / interests - especially from the likes of Geller), .......... I can tell you with absolute certainty ----&#62; some of the things that EP was able to digest intellectually thru his readings is not the kind of stuff your "average Joe" would be able to process.

IMO, it is MYTH that EP was not intelligent ...... or even of just "average" intelligence.

He might have had an undisciplined intelligence (which can result from the lack of a formal education to guide one), but it was definitely there.


- Capt. "EL."

[P.S. Annie]

Originally posted by Captain Elwood David@May 1 2004, 01:41 AM
IMO, it is MYTH that EP was not intelligent ...... or even of just "average" intelligence.

He might have had an undisciplined intelligence (which can result from the lack of a formal education to guide one), but it was definitely there.


- Capt. "EL."

[jbgude]

In my book Elvis was very intelligent, there was no doubt that he was quick on the uptake. As the Captain already pointed out, he never really got to develop his intelligence perhaps due to lack of schooling/college and : an over abundance of MONEY too quickly&#33;

I think the point that Albert and the other non english speakers were trying to make is that Elvis was no INTELLECTUAL and that is a totally different matter.

jb