TCBCast: An Unofficial Elvis Fan Podcast

01/08/2025

Investigating "Sunset Boulevard" this morning and it seems like the July 24, 1970 rehearsal and 1974 rehearsal discs are differently mastered - and in the case of the 1970 rehearsal, differently MIXED - than previous releases of the same material.

The July 24, 1970 rehearsal especially (see one track's waveforms below, FTD on top, Sunset Boulevard on the bottom) is drenched in reverb and weirdly flat and muted compared to the vibrant mix on the FTD. So strange that the mainstream set is getting a noticeably quieter and less clear version of this incredible rehearsal compared to what collectors got on the TTWII 50th Anniversary set?

This is the one time it might have been advantageous to have just copied and pasted from the FTD. It was already a great, modern-sounding mix!

The 1972/1975 material is a mixed bag. Once again (just like the carelessness of the Memphis set) there are overdubs where there are supposedly meant to be none, including guitar and cowbell on Burning Love, an organ on Pieces of My Life that's not present on the outtakes at all - and an absolutely crazy overdubbed guitar part on Shake a Hand that was added later and rejected by Elvis...

There are a few highlights on the first disc that Matt's mixes DO compliment the material, like "Fool" and "Susan When She Tried" and it's nice to get slightly longer fade-outs on a few of the master takes, and if you subjectively like the new mixes, we're not trying to tell you not to, just please don't defend the calling these undubbed when they're factually not.

31/07/2025

Gurdip, Justin, Ryan, and Olivia all gathered round to discuss their thoughts on Peter Guralnick's new book, "The Colonel and the King: Tom Parker, Elvis Presley, and the Partnership that Rocked the World." Full spoilers within.

We recommend people buy it to make their own judgment. It is available through most major retailers - you can learn more about the book and where to buy it here: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/peter-guralnick/the-colonel-and-the-king/9780316399449/

Gurdip, Justin, Ryan, and Olivia all gathered round to discuss their thoughts on Peter Guralnick's new book, "The Colonel and the King: Tom Parker, Elvis Presley, and the Partnership that Rocked the World." Full spoilers within. We recommend people buy it to make their own judgment. It is available....

26/07/2025

The TCBCast gang is waist-deep in preparing to discuss Peter Guralnick's new book but Gurdip and Justin snagged listener Kirsty Garland who currently runs the "Exposing Elvis Photoshops" pages on Facebook and Instagram for a quick episode.

They dig into why Kirsty decided to take on the effort of debunking and providing sources for badly digitally manipulated photos of Elvis that have seemed to proliferate in the wake of Elvis's resurgence in popularity, her thoughts on why so many pages create them, and also her feelings about the coming onslaught of AI Elvis images.

Naturally, there's also coverage about recent Elvis news - not just confirmation of the world premiere of Baz Luhrmann's EPiC at the Toronto International Film Festival in September (and its 100-minute runtime), but there finally is confirmation of the substance of London's immersive theatre experience "Elvis Evolution." Billed (and previewed in teaser videos) as containing the first AI deepfake Pepper's ghost-style hologram... this mystery train has seemingly gone wildly off the tracks in its first couple weeks, with reports of angry fans demanding refunds, being escorted out of shows, and the company behind the experience claiming to the BBC and other media outlets that they had "made clear when tickets went on sale" that there would be no AI Elvis in the way fans expected.

Tickets went on sale in October - here's an article from IQ Magazine from October 2024 of them talking about AI Elvis still being in the show: https://www.iqmagazine.com/2024/10/behind-the-scenes-of-elvis-evolution/

Here's the October 21, 2024, video of Layered Reality from their own YouTube channel showing off Work-in-Progress versions of the deepfake Elvis, implying inclusion in the show at the time tickets went on sale: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7bPqwtHRp0

And finally, here's an article from as recently as July 2025 - right around the premiere - from Fast Company magazine, with new quotes and information not seen in any report or coverage prior to the premiere, directly from CEO & Head of Studio, still talking about AI Elvis being part of the show: https://www.fastcompany.com/91368335/inside-elvis-evolution-ai-and-immersive-tech-bring-the-kings-life-to-the-stage-in-london

Take from all that what you will.

No Songs of the Week this week - but we promise "The Colonel and the King" will be a doozy worth the wait!

Kirsty's pages can be followed at instagram.com/exposing_elvis_photoshops/ or searching for Exposing Elvis Photoshops on Facebook.

If you enjoy TCBCast, please consider supporting us with a donation at Patreon.com/TCBCast. Your support allows us to continue to provide thoughtful, provocative, challenging and well-researched perspectives on Elvis's career, his peers and influences, and his cultural impact and legacy.

The TCBCast gang is waist-deep in preparing to discuss Peter Guralnick's new book but Gurdip and Justin snagged listener Kirsty Garland who currently runs the "Exposing Elvis Photoshops" pages on Facebook and Instagram for a quick episode. They dig into why Kirsty decided to take on the effort of de...

21/07/2025

FYI We do have confirmation now of a runtime for Baz Luhrmann's EPiC per TIFF: 100 minutes.

TIFF is a charitable cultural organization with a mission to transform the way people see the world, through film.

21/07/2025

This is the news! World premiere of EPiC at Toronto International Film Festival in September.

“Baz Luhrmann’s EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert” World Premiere at TIFF in Sept… 7 wks and counting!!

We’re very proud to announce Bazmark’s latest production, with Authentic Studios and Sony Music Vision - Baz Luhrmann’s EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert - Elvis sings and tells his story like never before - has been officially selected for Toronto International Film Festival’s 50th edition. It’s cause for celebration ⚡️a little less conversation and a little more ̶a̶̶c̶̶t̶̶i̶̶o̶̶n̶ party on the night!!

21/07/2025

Teaser? Trailer? Release date? Baz has something EPiC planned for tomorrow!

18/07/2025

Yikes. Seems in line with other reviews coming out, too.

Any hopes that this AI-assisted tribute would replicate the joys of Abba Voyage are quickly dashed by limp and indifferent offerings

18/07/2025

We can sadly confirm firsthand, eyes on page, that what Jamie and John discuss in this video is a 100% accurate representation of "The Colonel and the King."

Peter Guralnick has written a broadly lop-sided narrative about Colonel Parker, frequently leaving out confirmed factual accounts (including ones previously included in his two-volume biography of Elvis) that make Parker look bad, and for ones that *are* left in, contriving excuses that often directly contradict arguments and logic stated elsewhere in the same book.

I also emphatically agree with John's point that the content of the carefully curated selection of letters and correspondence that accompany the book, in my personal opinion, still manage to completely contradict the arguments made in the sections in between each letter where he's attempting to add context. Guranick's pleading, almost combative editorial insistence that you read some of them as emotionally intimate, when those exact ones frequently bear obvious hallmarks of manipulation and abuse... defy explanation other than willful blindness.

The prose itself is genuinely well-written as always, and the conceptual idea of giving Parker the autobiography he never got to write, so to speak, is interesting from an artistic perspective, but where "Last Train to Memphis" and "Careless Love" were meant to clarify and illuminate amid all the noise, "The Colonel and the King" muddies the water again. The story around Colonel Parker is as nuanced as Elvis's life story was, and deserves a sympathetic, fair but honest read - just as LttM & CL were. This has been plenty sympathetic, but disappointingly far from honest and as a result, profoundly unfair to many who were wronged by Parker as a matter of historical fact.

We'll have more to discuss naturally when we do our own episode on the book in the future.

Elvis Presley and Colonel Parker book by Peter Guralnick EARLY REVIEW - PART ONE! "The Colonel And The King" review from ARC (advanced reader copy). Review, ...

17/07/2025

After an intensive two week deep dive reassessing the work of producer Felton Jarvis, Justin comes up for air only to find one Gurdip Ladhar waiting patiently at the surface.

Gurdip eases his way into the water, bringing along a favorite comfort Camden, 1971's "I Got Lucky," a collection of songs mostly comprised of movie material previously only available on Extended Plays (and one excellent non-movie single B-side!)

But we're not quite done with Felton yet - the last two episodes provoked some great responses long and short from Elvis fans of all kinds, and we tackle some of the most pointed questions and queries to result from the effort. Gurdip also gives his thoughts on recent Elvis news.

For Song of the Week, Gurdip picks up right where he left off, picking the upbeat "I Love Only One Girl" from the feature film "Double Trouble," while Justin goes all-in on another one of Elvis's singularly iconic 1950s rock-and-blues recordings that's wildly out of season: "Santa Claus is Back in Town."

After an intensive two week deep dive reassessing the work of producer Felton Jarvis, Justin comes up for air only to find one Gurdip Ladhar waiting patiently at the surface.  Gurdip eases his way into the water, bringing along a favorite comfort Camden, 1971's "I Got Lucky," a collection of so...

14/07/2025

Thanks listener Cesar for mentioning in the comments (unprompted btw!) that he'd like to hear Peter Guralnick come on TCBCast! We'd love to get the chance to sit and talk shop about all the questions we'll surely have about his thought process behind "The Colonel and The King" but he's quite an elusive fellow! 🤔

PG Events announced!

07/07/2025

After setting the stage by understanding producer Felton Jarvis's career leading up to his early collaborations with Elvis, we continue to investigate and interrogate the fan belief that he was singularly to blame for the "syrupy" overdubs that diminished the "pure" unfinished tracks.

Helped along by a 1980 interview done between Felton and Jerry Flowers of RCA in which the producer talks about his career retrospectively, Justin and Bec trace Felton's journey as Elvis hires and hand-picks him to be his exclusive producer, taking Felton away from RCA and other artists so that Elvis can, as a largely autonomous artist whose only studio commitments during this decade are to send periodic deliverables to RCA, work at his own pace and create the kind of recordings that he truly wants.

But was Felton truly to blame for the overindulgent strings and horns that were added to Elvis's music, or is there someone else that we've collectively overlooked? And has the narrative been all wrong and the way we even talk about "overdubs" been clouded by a widespread "rockist" misunderstanding of both Elvis and Felton, their respective jobs and tastes, and misunderstood expectations of the kind of music both fans & critics thought Elvis "should" be making?

The duo examine Elvis's live performances in relation to his studio work, touch on a few more non-Elvis records produced by Felton, and even revisit the 1981 "Guitar Man" project Felton spearheaded before his early death to see if it provides clearer insight into the producer's preferences and tastes.

For Song of the Week, Bec makes a promise that "It Won't Be Long," covering the recording cut from "Double Trouble," while Justin goes prospecting because he's pretty sure "There's Gold in the Mountains" still to be dug up from "Kissin' Cousins."

Some of the resources consulted for this and the last episode included, even if not quoted or mentioned in the final episode:

Felton Jarvis's 1980 Interview with Jerry Flowers of RCA
William Bozeman: "Felton Jarvis: The Man Behind the Music" from Elvis Express Magazine
Peter Guralnick: Careless Love: The Unmaking of Elvis Presley
Roben Jones: Memphis Boys: The Story of American Studios
Rick Hall: The Man from Muscle Shoals: My Journey from Shame to Fame
Norbert Putnam: Musical Memories, Volume 1
Ernst Jorgensen: Elvis Presley - A Life in Music
Ernst Jorgensen & Peter Guralnick: "Elvis Day By Day" and "The Complete Masters"
Ernst Jorgensen, Johnny Mikkelsen & Erik Rasmussen: Reconsider Baby: The Definitive Elvis Sessionography
Elvis Music FAQ by Mike Eder
Alanna Nash: "Revelations from the Memphis Mafia" & "The Colonel"
Luther Moore: "Felton Jarvis Re-Appraised" from Elvis: The Man & His Music magazine
Brian F. White's Interview with Norbert Putnam: https://www.brianfwright.com/interviews/norbert-putnam
Michael Nesmith: Infinite Tuesday - An Autobiographical Riff
TapeOP's Interview with Chip Young: https://tapeop.com/interviews/124/chip-young
Various reviews, articles, editorials, and interviews compiled from across Elvis Australia, Elvis Information Network, Elvis-History-Blog, Elvis Monthly, Strictly Elvis, Arjan Deelan as well as Discogs, KeithFlynn.uk, Elvisconcerts.com and other resources online.

After setting the stage by understanding producer Felton Jarvis's career leading up to his early collaborations with Elvis, we continue to investigate and interrogate the fan belief that he was singularly to blame for the "syrupy" overdubs that diminished the "pure" unfinished tracks. Helped along b...