Reviews (page 12 of 14)
Not sure about this elvis album, was expecting more from the "king". Blue suede shoes is obviously a banger but everything else was a bit forgettable. Okay I actually really like blue moon. 2/5
The OG culture vulture and probably the most overrated artist ever. He has some catchy songs though.
Definitely a performer, not an artist. I would rather listen to the originals of many of these. Also very one-note.
Du skal lete lenge etter 50-tallsalbum som ikke fremstår utdaterte. Dette er ikke et av dem. Top 3: Blue Suede Shoes, Trying to Get to You, Blue Moon - Take 9/M
Some great stuff.
So far, this is the first album I’ve struggled getting through - the swing between catchy songs and ballads is a little too much for me. Favourite track: Blue Suede Shoes
jeg er iKKE elvis fan. jeg liker ikke schtiken hans. jeg liker ikke at han stjal fra roy hamilton. jeg synes ikke det er noe å feire og være stolt over at rock og blues kun ble akseptabelt fordi en hvit elvis gjorde det først. jeg synes ikke han er sjarmerende. og jeg synes ikke musikken er god nok for å gjøre opp for det hule personaet hans.
Not a fan of the king
For it's place in the 'history' of popular music you would expect more from this album. Maybe the passing of time has dulled it's impact, and in 1956 it would have hit harder. However, the versions of 'I Got A Woman' and 'Tutti Frutti' don't even come close to the originals. So maybe this album is more a marker of how inherently racist the USA was in the pre 1960's - and it's sad to say that not much has changed in that regard. Musically, it did very little for me, so I think 2 stars is about right.
This is my 2nd collection of 50s rock after Here’s Little Richard and my reaction is much the same. We even get a version of Tutti Frutti that’s not as good as Little Richard’s. Blue Suede Shoes is the highlight. There’s a surprising variety of vocal range, but some songs don’t suit him. Mercifully short — Elvis definitely seems like a singles act, and one that’s probably better-appreciated in a live setting. I feel like this is still a few years away from rock n roll albums truly mattering more than the respective singles.
Classic rock'n'roll I guess. Seems ok, guitar seems out of tune in some places.
Stand out tracks: Blue Suede Shoes, I'm Counting on You, I Got a Woman, Trying to Get to You, Money Honey All in all, a good album but most of the songs weren't my sort of energy. 2.5/5
It was a much simpler time.
I admire Elvis Presley for the many boundaries he broke regarding race and musical styles, but apart from Blue Suede Shoes, it was a bit naff. His vocals were a bit odd to my now 21st century ears. Sue at work loves him and I'm pleased for her, but Sue doesn't like My Bloody Valentine.... she is living in the past, like me, but hers is the past of her grandfather.
Verzameling losse liedjes, al dan niet gecovered van andere artiesten. Luisterbaar maar niet heel bijzonder. Weinig samenhang tussen de nummers. Zal in die tijd vast revolutionair geweest zijn. Rating: 5/10 Favo nummer: Blue Moon (Take 9/M) Minst favo nummer: Just because
Not as good as bad company by bad company but it’ll do
I appreciate the cultural significance of this album and its impact on rock and pop music, but I really don’t care for it. I’m not much of an Elvis fan, but do like some of his music, just not much at all from this album.
I need one Elvis.
Two seems harsh. Nearly bottled it with a 3 but I’m sticking to my guns… I don't like rock n’ roll Elvis! Too generic, and of course he covered Tutti Frutti! I know they all covered each others songs back in the day but there’s too many. I’m Counting On You is the stand out. An album of Elvis ballads would probably get a 4. Book your ideas up, Elvis.
Its harmless dull good fun.
Han har trevlig röst, det är catchy och lättuggat men lite för simpla melodier. Det mesta låter likadant. Känns trist att det är så mycket covers och kulturell appropriering.
Efter 100 skivor känner jag mig tillräckligt redo och invigd för att för första gången använda det bevingade ordet ”bjäring”. Bestående intryck: Det är en rätt vidrig och urvattnad version av tutti frutti det här. Gick in med öppet sinne men vidhåller att Elvis, åtminstone så här tidigt, är mycket överskattad. Förlåt för gammal och utnött spaning, men det finns samtida svarta artister som gör rock n roll bättre, till exempel original-tutti fruttin Little Richard. Eller original i got got a woman-en Ray Charles, för den delen. Med det här sagt, han blir ju fetare (på flera sätt) senare och man ska inte pissa på hans betydelse. Det är bara i långa stycken just ”bjäring”.
tiktoktempot på låtarna! och ändå är det så tråkigt! sorry kingen
Cool record not for me tho
Blue Suede Shoes is a solid hit. But so many here that I just did not enjoy
I don’t really like the under 3 minute song throughout the album, and the song length consistency added to the general repetitiveness of the album. Elvis is a legend, and I can imagine a version of myself that loves this album. Unfortunately it’s not this version of me.
Elvis is iconic but I don't like his music and that's okay.
Personally, I’m not sure what anyone would get from listening to Elvis in 2026. I mean, it’s ok, but musically it’s nothing incredible. He didn’t write anything of the songs, so from a compositional perspective Elvis himself is redundant here. For cosmetics and performance, I guess you had to be there.
I am a hater. I really don't like Elvis Presley. Blue Suede Shoes and Money Honey are good, but the rest did absolutely nothing for me.
Not really my vibe
I know this album hit in the 50s, and I'm not denying that it's good music. Just not my type to really listen to is all
Was okay for something playing in the background
Jeg hører ikke på Elvis, men kan innrømme at han hadde noe. Det er ikke like synlig på alle låtene (I'm Counting on You høres ofte ikke ut som ham; One-Sided Love Affair gir meg litt demo vibes; I Love You Because får meg til å grine av kjedsomhet), men der det kommer frem, står han over tilsvarende artister. Bare synd at låtene ikke er bedre. Skiva er kort, men det hadde holdt med en single. Kanskje en EP. Blue Suede Shoes, Tutti Frutti, Blue Moon... og en til, vilkårlig valgt fra låtene som ikke ligger på svartelista.
Mix of solid ballads and bad covers of great songs by black artists
i'm not even an elvis hater but the second that unseasoned version of tutti frutti came on i knew we had completely lost the plot
I feel like this is just too old for me, it was ok as an album just not for me
He will pay the price
Always been an Elvis sceptic, and this album isn't doing much to change my mind. Rock & roll Elvis is OK, but country Elvis is somewhat second rate, for the most part. Blue Suede Shoes, I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Cry (over You) and Trying to Get To you are highlights. The version of Tutti Frutti is very weak sauce.
Not my vibe but a good jaz vibe
Elvis isn’t really my cup of tea
I actually kind of enjoyed around half of this album - mainly the tracks that clearly sounded as though they were from later recording sessions, weren't as muffled in terms of their production and had some zip to them. Presley's rendition of "Tutti Frutti" is probably the pick of the bunch. There is, however, some absolute cack on here as well, where the tracks meander along lifelessly and the vocals grate on my eardrums (I'm looking at "I Love You Because", "I'll Never Let You Go (Little Darling" and "Blue Moon"). All in all, probably a two star as I can't imagine myself revisiting.
He brought rock and roll to masses, but there were contemporaries who did it better and had more originality than Elvis
I can be in an Elvis mood on occasion, but most of this album does nothing for me.
Not my vibe
my man has very particular boundaries with regards to his footwear
His danceable stuff is decent. The love ballads are, there. Being his first album his voice wasn't all mature so the slower stuff is lacking. You can tell he has the talent but not the maturity. It's interesting since I've not ever sat down to listen to Elvis but because he's Elvis I know a lot more than I expected to. I mean my niece had an Elvis Impersonator at her wedding. Dude was larger than himself. I don't understand it off this album but you can see the start pretty well with this album.
I might be going too easy on this album but after hearing like 30 90s electronica albums, this is the first one that doesn’t make me want to rip my hair out. It’s a low bar, but I feel like at least one of them on this list deserves a 3.
I think he's the one we want. He's got a nice thing. He's not bad with the singing and the playing and the shaking of the tochis.
Fell asleep at the second song.
Maybe it mattered in the 50s, but it’s not great anymore. I get where others built from this, but not making any playlists for me
was ok
Mind-numbingly boring.
Not really my cup of tea although I can appreciate that in the context of those times it would have seemed radical and very exciting.
Cool to find tutti frutti here
It's a decent collection of songs but heavy on the cheese. Better when just rock n roll.
I know this is an important record and I know it has to be on this list. My stance on Elvis has been colored by PE . I just can not get over the whitewashing 5 stars or its impact - but missing the soul so 2. Although his voice is always great to listen to - you can see why the Colonel was so keen to exploit him, erm I mean it.
I can appreciate it, but not quite my cup of tea unless I was listening for an era party/ dance
One original song, the rest are just covers, and not the best ones, to be frank. In retrospect, Presley was more about the performance than about the music. Well, he brought R'n'B and R'n'R into the mainstream by whitewashing it.
This is my first time listening to an Elvis record. His voice is pretty here, this is the debut so I didn't get a lot of the ahuh-huh tone we tend to associate with the star. Instead, this piece of work reflects the beginnings of the appropriation of the genre. We've got some grade A writers on here like Ray Charles and Little Richard, and these Elvis versions aren't necessarily better, just slightly whiter. It's not a bad listen but it literally shows me what direction to head in when I find it losing momentum. Props to the guitarist though, keeps the record going. 2.2/5
If you take the impact on culture and music as a whole out of the rating (which is obviously tremendous), its not really an album i love. I dont think Elvis's version of any of the standards on here are better than other more authentic versions ive heard. The mix is really low at points, to the point it almost sounds acapella. He's got an incredible voice, but none of the music itself was all that impressive. Its a 5 if you factor in how "important" the album is, but that aside its a solid 2.
Yeahhh musical genius, just would never put it on personally
Highlight: I'm Counting On You. In a nutshell: the power and the passion. In 1956, rock and roll had officially arrived, and Elvis Presley lead the charge. He enchanted teens with his energy and shocked parents with his swagger. Elvis could sing. He could play guitar. With the right promotion, he could be a star. And he did. As an album, it's okay? Releasing covers were the norm in the 50's and 60's so I give that a free pass. White people covering songs written and/or performed by people of colour was no big deal at the time. And yet, it felt strange listening to Elvis cover Little Richard. Hearing anyone else but Little Richard performing Tutti Frutti is surreal and for me didn't hit the target. I didn't think Elvis recorded mellow songs without sounding like he was crooning, in his early years. Today I learned. Overall: 4/10
..
mid highs and low lows
Not my favorite Elvis album.
I know this was influential but I’m pretty sure damn near everything that has come out since then is more interesting.
I’m just not an Elvis fan. I understand he was an important part of music but aside from a few tracks, it just does nothing for me. Didn’t hate it, just won’t be back.
Just about what I expected, but only one hit that I remembered as being Elvis' and a few that I didn't even associate with him at all. Not long, not good, two points.
Blue Suede Shoes - killer opener. Then song after song of filler - not a memorable tune amongst them. A couple of (other) covers that don’t come anywhere near the originals. And finally some redemption with Money Honey. At least the middle section of the album goes by relatively quickly…… 2 stars basically for Blue Suede Shoes, the rest can get lost.
blues fast saknar känsla, svårt att koppla bort tanken att det är whitewashing av blues
Melhor Música: I'm Counting on You Pior Música: Tutti Frutti
Look I get it. In the 50s white folks weren’t listening to black artists so of course you needed a white southerner to be the King of Rock and Roll. With that reductive statement aside, I have never vibed with Elvis and do not enjoy his music in almost any capacity.
Don't really get what all the fuss was about. Starting to think that Elvis was popular just because he was hot which in a way is progressive and I have to admire the hustle but it's not a great album in the year 2025
Never listened to an entire Elvis album til now. It's about what I recalled of Elvis. Flashing back to Brian Logan's house the day Elvis died and his mom flipping out....
I understand the significance of the album but fail to appreciate many of the songs within that showed what Elvis would ultimately become but were recorded poorly by modern standards. Lots of slow ballads etc
i know elvis was referred to as “the king of rock and roll”, but you could probably make more of an argument for that title belonging to either little richard or chuck berry. elvis didn’t really do anything groundbreaking, honestly other than bringing music that already existed to a wider whiter audience. the upbeat songs on this album were ok, but the slower ballads kind of fell flat to me. if this album was an example of how “great” elvis was, you lost me.
GETTING CAUGHT UP! lol the fact that so many of these songs are covers give the "Elvis stole every single thing he ever did" people a lot of credibility. there were some good moments tho
Short and Sweet. I dont have much to say about this Some songs are good, most are okay. I dont want to give it a higher rating just because of his legacy and pioneering, hence itll be low, sorry boomers. I acknowledge it and respect it but id like to give a rating solely on the music.
Pretty good, just not a lot I found personally compelling
Very of it's time. Nice and short, which helps. Some quirky, different songs, but a lot that sounds the same. Hard to judge an album that's approaching 70 years old so a rating of 2.5 seems fair.
My brother needs to write his own songs
The voice of Elvis Presley has been parodied for so long by goofballs, grotesques and eccentric amateurs that we forget how thoroughly ludicrous it was to begin with. Warbled in the upper reaches, overegged in the lower, it is the sound of a nineteen-year-old pretending to be an adult, pretending to be a libertine, pretending, in short, to be alive. He was always a parody, even before the jumpsuits. And I guess that's how pop should be. However, I was looking at some spirit photographs the other day – those turn-of-the-century curiosities where the bereaved were duped into seeing their dead relatives hovering in artfully blurred silver nitrate. They are, to modern eyes, laughably inept: all crude double exposure and vaseline smudge. Yet people believed them because the medium itself was miraculous. One can only assume that, a century from now, AI’s convincing simulacra will appear equally preposterous. So too with Elvis. The miracle has faded. What was once radical – the slapback echo, the hiccuping libido, the made-in-Memphis fuzz – now sounds like a conjuring trick exposed. Those rockabilly progressions were new once; now they’ve ossified into pastiche. Even the album cover survives only as citation - The Clash quoting it, fashion reappropriating it, history feeding back on itself. The various recordings here flatter no one. Scotty Moore’s guitar is kinetic but often turns into ectoplasmic blur, the double bass reduced to a rumour, and the piano shackled to the clichés of a style still being invented. Only Blue Moon interrupts the charade. A Rodgers and Hart relic smuggled into the repertoire, it sounds like an intruder from another century - eerie, suspended, slightly embarrassed to be here, but successful precisely because it is not dated modernity, it had already weathered time. Presley sings as if overheard rather than performing. It is the record’s true spirit photograph: a transparent illusion that, despite itself, convinces credulous idiots like me. 1.5 I like Elvis. I think he had a great talent in singing and in stage presence. He wasn’t interested in songwriting much less making ‘albums’ and that lack can and ought to be credited to his era more than some artistic deficit on his part. So let’s lay the credit for this Elvis ‘album’ at the door of RCA Victor. Here is Elvis, recorded half a dozen different ways in different places over 18 months, still figuring out how and what he wanted to sing. Some of it is iconic and some of it is bound to extract a wince even from the King’s biggest fans. All of it was singles. This is a compilation and it is a sloppily assembled one. That this compilation was consumed in huge quantities and as such represents a key artefact of a moment of cultural explosion is nothing to its artistic value which is near zero. I except the album cover from this assessment - it looks terrific. Do pink and green ever fail when they work together? Listening to this is rather like watching the whole two and a half hours of broadcast footage of the first moon walk. Everyone watched it at the time but now only those with specialist interest need bother because, honestly, it wasn’t a great show. The rest of us make do with the couple of minutes where Neil Armstrong climbs down and does his line. It’s the Blue Suede Shoes of the moon landing. 1.5/5
It's ok but not my cup of ☕. Luckily it's less than half an hour long so it doesn't feel too long.
Elvis didn't not have a great voice, but he had a distinct one, which is often far more important. On this debut, everything - including his distinctive warble - is very rushed and rough around the edges. Maybe that energy is part of what made the whole thing work. Regardless, teens fainted, parents exploded and rock and roll was born. Hindsight reveals this to be a pretty average "white guy sings black music to bring it to the masses" affair, and a fairly shabbily produced one at that, but there is no denying Presley had star quality. Pretty sure he nicked the cover design from The Clash though...
Not my ham sorry King
From an impact perspective, this is undoubtedly 5 stars. But from the perspective of how much I enjoyed listening, it's a two.
28 minutes I’ll never get back
Not really into Elvis, especially an album full of covers. At least it was short. 2/5 Won’t listen again
I guess some songs are compelling when you first heard them, but then you hear the original recordings and Presley’s version are no big deal.
It's kind of just a historical oddity now. There's nothing here that hasn't been improved on since.
Meh
Elvis is our foremost culture vulture and his debut album features the kinda scattershot output you'd expect from someone grown in country music but with a foot in rhythm & blues. He's my first repeat artist on this after a mere month but I found this lacking. This was released firmly in the era when everything actually rhymed so I don't know how the laziness of Just Because passed muster. There's some great piano on One-Sided Love Affair. There is never a scenario where I will reach for these versions of I Got a Woman and Tutti Frutti over Ray Charles and Little Richard.
I can see why young (and not so young) women lost their shit when this came out in 1956. Prior to Elvis, most pop/rock stars were polite, buttoned up gentleman. And then here comes Elvis the Pelvis, looking hot and shaking his hips at you. Or crooning lovingly into your eyes. He was pretty dreamy after all. The music on the other hand, not so dreamy. Starting with Blue Suede Shoes was a tease. Fun rock and roll song, upbeat, makes you want to move. I would have enjoyed an album with more of this, but it went downhill after that. Then there’s the whole issue of him culturally appropriating black music. A complicated subject, too much for a 1001 albums review. As a Ray Charles fan, I’ll say that I Got a Woman wasn’t even close to Charles’ version. Overall you cannot deny the influence of Elvis and he absolutely should be on this list. It’s just not for me.
I never got the Elvis hype. It might be a generational thing, or maybe just my own personal sensibility, but I never managed to enjoy his music. I still did my best to give a chance to this album. To make things simpler, I’ll just go with the questions I usually ask myself when rating an album : 1) Is it original ? Not really. This album is entirely made of covers, there’s not a single original song. Elvis was a great showman and performer, but not a songwriter (I don't think he ever wrote or composed a single song in his career). That leaves only his voice, which is nice enough, but hadn't fully matured yet in this album (by his own admission). 2) Is it important in the history of music ? Certainly, although not necessarily for good reasons. I can fully believe that if you were born in 1940, this record would have sounded groundbreaking – especially if your parents didn’t let you listen to black music, and all you could access was sanitized radio stations. It was indeed the first rock'n'roll album to get that kind of success. But the more I listen to early 50’s rockabilly, the more I realize how little Elvis actually invented, and how much better were the black artists (and a few white ones) who came before him, and yet never got as much credit. I’m certainly not blaming Elvis himself - he didn’t invent segregation, and he genuinely loved rythm'n'blues. And the fact that he became the “white face of rock’n’roll” at least helped this kind of music become acceptable to a mainstream audience, an evolution that would eventually also benefit black musicians. But in an ideal world, Elvis would never have become “the King”. 3) Did I enjoy it ? A little. He gets the job done, but I find his energy underwhelming, especially compared to Little Richard’s debut album. Just listen to both versions of Tutti Frutti back to back – there is absolutely zero doubt who is the greatest artist... As for the folksy bits, they just bored me. 4) Will I listen again ? No. If I ever crave 50s rock’n’roll again, I’d rather listen to Chuck Berry, Little Richards and Fats Domino. Maybe they didn't have that special "smooth voice" that Elvis developped later in his career, but they are in my opinion infintely more powerful. Overall, a record I’m glad to have listened once for its historic value, but not something I’ll remember or care for in the future. This album's biggest merit is to be a first album. 4/10
Good album. Songs start to all sound the same after a while.
I was dreading getting this. Not a fan of the king. Luckily it’s only 12 songs and none of them are over three minutes long. But somehow he still manages to sing in about six different made up voices.
mislio sam da će biti bolje, razočaralo me. par okej stvari i ostalo zaboravljivo. ima elvis boljih pjesama
I'm not here to review showmanship. Elvis is basically the king of karaoke. The problem I have with this album is it's almost entirely covers, or at least the tracks that are musically interesting. There's little to say about it that others haven't already said, and it's a 2.5/5 for me.
Eh 🤷🏼♂️
He really was ahead of his time. 2:30 run times on songs, immediately into the hook. Elvis would have loved TikTok. Kind of a slog to listen to though. His voice on some of those runs really takes you out of the music. I’m at like a 2.5.
Good songs, good performance.. docking points because not really an album so much as some songs thrown together
Mid album
Not a fan. This album made me sad as I was thinking about some of the original artists who did much better versions of their songs, but didn't get the credit that Elvis did.
Actually really really boring. GIVE THE CLASH THEIR ALBUM COVER BACK
4/10 Elvis was obviously a legend, responsible at least in part for the breakthrough of rock ’n roll to a mainstream white audience. Listening to this, you can get a bit of an idea why. He takes some really great tracks like Ray Charles’ I Got a Woman and Little Richard’s Tutti Frutti, sands off the edges and presents it in a pretty boy package that has just enough edge to make it feel rebellious to teenagers, but not so much edge that their parents ban it from the family record player. But to me, that sanding off of the edges just dulls the quality of these tracks. I’ll happily listen to Ray Charles and Little Richard’s versions of these tracks now and again, but have literally no reason, with modern access to music, to ever chose the inferior product that Elvis provided. And that’s before we mention his voice. It just rubs me the wrong way. When he’s crooning, it’s bad enough, but when he puts on that affected seal-like quick legato into his phrasing, I find it massively irritating and inauthentic. As a 70 year old record, it sounds remarkably clean as a recording, the band are largely doing a good job, and I frequently found myself tapping my feet along to the music, but what I enjoyed, I enjoyed in a way that I’d enjoy a decent cover band at a wedding. I’ll enjoy them while I’m there, but would never choose to listen to their versions of classic songs over the originals if I had access to both versions. And there were quite a few tracks that I wouldn’t even bother with the originals either. Extra points for cultural impact and importance, but I this won’t be troubling my speakers again. Blue Suede Shoes - This is obviously a classic. It’s also a pretty straight cover that adds a bit of pace to the original but not much else. Elvis approaches it with a swagger and you can see why he took off. The recording sounds great and it’s a solid rock ’n roll song. I’m Counting On You - This kind of crooning nonsense just doesn’t do it for me. It’s a competent composition, but boy is it insipid and boring. I Got a Woman - Ray Charles wrote it and did it so much better. Elvis puts on his awful, affected whooping style to his vocal which is just terrible. It’s a decent enough performance from the band, but why would I listen to this when I could listen to Ray instead? Ons-Sided Love Affair - Looks like he was the first one to actually record this one! More of that affected vocal that’s just irritating though. It’s pretty thin gruel, although the band perform well enough and there’s some nice bits of piano. I Love You Because - More crooning crap. It’s boring. Just Because - This is pretty uninspired too. The guitarist sounds like he’s struggling to keep up with the pace. It’s just a bit sloppy all round, sounds very thin. I quite like the rhythmic thrust of it, but it’s just not got enough substance to be any good. Tutti Frutti - See my comments about ‘I Got a Woman’. Give me Little Richard over this any day. It’s a good song, but this version just doesn’t do anything to justify itself over listening to the original, just sands off the edges and strips it of drive. Sloppy guitar solo too. Trying To Get To You - Softer, worser, slower, weaker. Daft Punk wrote a song about how to make a better song than this. It’s just boring. I’m Gonna Sit Right Down and Cry (Over You) - At least there’s a bit more pace to this. But there’s more of Elvis’ affected gulping vocal that just rubs me up the wrong way. It’s also not very interesting. Can’t help tipping my feet to it despite myself, but it’s more of the same really. I’ll Never Let You Go (Little Darlin’) - Croon. Yawn. Blue Moon - Even slower. Even more crooning. And it’s just the same thing round and round for two and a half minutes. Even Elvis sounds like he isn’t arsed. Money Honey - This just sort of plods along and doesn’t really give me much to chew on. It almost feels like they’re slowing down because they’ve got a bit bored themselves and are just starting to phone it in. Elvis is still giving it a bit of effort, but again, I just find his vocal grating. And we’re done.
I just don't care much for Evlis to be honest.
Fine old Rock & Roll. Not a bit re-listen album for me
I mean, it's important I guess.
This album was hit and miss for me, I like the more upbeat songs but the slower crooner Elvis isn’t really my favorite. That said some of the faster songs did start to sound a little similar. 2+ stars but not enough to round up to 3.
Not bad, but keep in mind Elvis wrote nothing. He's an entertainer, but songwriters of all colors did the heavy lifting.
Ya know, I really didn't love this. I actually thought I would like it. But, I mean I really didn't......
"Elvis was a hero to most, but he never meant shit to me." -Public Enemy, "Fight the Power" I've always viewed Elvis as a pop culture sensation, rather than a proper Rock star. He stole just enough from Black artists to make him seem edgy while performing mostly orchestral Pop and Country music. I'll drop an added half-star on this album for inspiring the album cover of The Clash's "London Calling."
I’m a big fan of Elvis Presley‘s 60s songs such as Suspicious Minds, Kentucky Rain, and In the Ghetto, this not so much. I understand that this is another historical album, but it doesn’t make it good. Blue Suede Shoes has not aged well, especially considering that Black performers were doing the same thing with more grit and authenticity. This album is appropriation on the highest level.
I used to love Elvis growing up. But the more I learn about him, the more I feel like he just stole everything.
I grew up in a family obsessed with 1950s US pop culture. I've heard a lot of Elvis in my life. Listen, he took black music and made it palatable to folks like my family. If you listen to his version of Tutti Fruitti, it's just a pale imitation of the energy and verve Little Richard brought. I've heard a lot of Elvis in my life. He was a commercially viable, marketable white kid that brought black music to the white mainstream. This album is historically interesting but for the real deal you have to listen to the people he copied.
I really don't want to listen to this but I will try... aaaand it's not my thing
An album full of cover songs. I know he made the stuff popular, but these are kind of lame versions IMO. Elvis is not for me.
Not sure I really get it. I understand he’s a pioneer of rock and roll, but in the context of hearing all that came after it’s hard discern what was edgy and provocative about this. When the Brits took the blues and cranked up the angst and bravado, that’s when it started to feel like rock and roll to me.
Elvis.... I don't consider him the "king of rock & roll". I grew up with the adults around me listening to him, I have family members who still obsess over him, and I'm very familiar with his work. I've never liked his voice, and I've never understood the hype. Chuck Berry and Buddy Holly had more appeal for me, but maybe Elvis really had that raw sexuality 50's teens and 20-somethings were starved for? that being said, the songs are so-so. I hate to rate it so low, but besides Blue Suede Shoes, nothing really stands out for me. The cover versions were done better by their original singers and/or writers; I will never, ever put this one on again.
I know, I know, it‘s the King. But…meh. Fav: Blue suede shoes
I didn't recognize anything from here. I prefered the louder/fast songs to the slow quiet songs. Even though I don't normally listen to music this sound/style I didn't hate it. Elvis has a beautiful voice. It's definitley one of the older albums on this list, but I'd call it classic before I call it old. 4/10
dnf
As I’ve said multiple times, anything pre Beatles may as well be from another planet and I can’t relate to it in any way. I was hopeful the King would be different. He’s not. He’s a cover artist. 4.3/10
It has good songs, but it's not memorable at all.
2,2/5
Underwhelming skiffle
An almost sufficient list of covers, maybe interesting at the time but hardly interesting in 2025. 2.4/5 - > 2/5
Elvis Presley - ever heard of him? Great cover... and now in a New Orthophonic High Fidelity Recording!!! Astonishing that this record came out in 1956. Needless to say, it caused a ruckus in society. The thing I've always liked the most about Elvis is the variety of songs he sings. He loves slow ballads, loves blues classic, rock-a-billy, rock and roll, dramatic songs, inspirational, gospel, etc. Guy could sing anything and just own it.
Aside from that marvellous sleeve design, I was really rather disappointed by this album. I was expecting something a bit more rousing. Other than Blue Suede shoes and maybe Tutti Frutti (but tht's a bit limp compared to Little Richard's version), it was all rather bland stuff and not what I was expecting from the 'king of rock and roll'. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that while some of Presley's singles released around this time were game-changing, this album really doesn't deserve its place on this list.
He’s… HWHITE?
i really enjoyed this album, i liked tge story telling and really enjoyed vienna and movin out
Overrated.
Meh. Comme dirait Felix, faut respecter l’homme qui a probablement changé tout le cours du rock n roll. Mais c’est pas particulièrement intéressant. Au moins c’est juste 28 min!
I didn't really care about this at All. Just a bunch of okay covers
I prefer The Beatles.
It's Elvis
It's alright, I'm not sure I'd listen to it again. Something really irks me about his voice.
Clearly a classic and important and such but so many of the tracks on it I much prefer other versions like Ray Charles' I Got A Woman or Little Richard's Tutti Frutti. Elvis versions all just seems so flat. I think I like him best when his vocal style really comes out.
Funny ahaha, not used to listening something like this. I mean it's nice, not something I would intentionally put on, but it is a good album – just not my cup of tea.
One For The Money, Two For The Show 1001 Albums Generator 68 (07/07/2025) It's kind of funny that yesterday I had an album by Elvis Costello and today I have an album by the much more famous musical Elvis. Elvis Presley is a man that needs no introduction and there is already so much annoying discourse about him online. Is he a culture vulture? I guess. I mean, none of the songs on this album were written by Elvis, but essentially all of them were popularized by their inclusion on this album. Is he a highly influential musical figure, without whom any history of music would be incomplete? Yes. Do I find his music interesting? Honestly, not really. It's really crazy to me how dated a lot of Elvis' music sounds, considering some truly amazing albums came out of the 50's. I have always found this style of "pre-Beatles rock" boring, and while Elvis is the king of this specific subgenre, the problems I have with the sound are still certainly present on Elvis' self-titled debut studio album. By and large, this album is divided into fast paced rock songs and slower rhythm & blues songs. I am a fan of much of the former and I dislike much of the latter. With that said, the album starts pretty strong with one of Elvis' most popular songs, Blue Suede Shoes. This song is so fun, and that "one for the money, two for the show" intro is absolutely engrained in my head for all time. I have my problems with Elvis' voice, but I think it really works here. I also love the start-stop rhythm that underlays the verses and Elvis' guitar solos are great here. Tutti Frutti is the most fun that you could have in the 1950's, and I love that Elvis sounds like he's going to explode with excitement. Money Honey is another one that I was familiar with, as I have sampled it before. I really like this one. The constant piano glissandos are a great touch and the build through the verses to the choruses is well done. As far as the slow songs are concerned, not all is bad. I Love You Because is a truly sweet song with simple but effective instrumentation. The whistles that open the song are a great touch and I love the jazzy, traditional clean guitar leads that play throughout the background are pure class. Meanwhile, Elvis' cover of Blue Moon is a beautiful rendition. It does feel a bit boring at times, since there isn't much variation within it, but it is pretty, and Elvis' voice is really quite good. His falsetto is really surprising. There are aspects of Presley's voice that I just do not like. One-Sided Love Affair is a fun piece of Rockabilly that is absolutely decimated by his goofy vibrato voice. For similar reasons, I'm Gonna Sit Right Down And Cry (Over You) is impossible to take seriously, in spite of its depressing lyrics. This song also highlights the unfortunate production on this album, as Elvis' voice overpowers the instruments under it. This album is also full of dated, uninteresting pieces of slow country (?), such as I'm Counting On You, Trying To Get To You, and especially I'll Never Let You Go (Little Darlin'). These songs really drag down this album and make Elvis Presley feel much longer than just 28 minutes. Elvis Presley is unfortunately a bit of a disappointment. Despite having some good songs, the overall sound has not withstood the test of time. I wish I liked it more, but it's a 2.5, rounded down to a 2. Favs: Blue Suede Shoes I Love You Because Money Honey Least Fav: I'll Never Let You Go (Little Darlin')
Blue Suede Shoes was the only track I enjoyed. I don't like his voice in general.
Nothing screams the start of rock and roll like a white guy blatantly covering black artists and riding it to stardom. Although my personal favorite example of this is Elvis covering Tooti Fruti, a song about gay sex. I'm giving this a bonus star just for that fact alone.
I think they gave him too much credit
It’s a classic for a reason, but I’m docking points for how most of it sounds old as hell and the fact that Elvis didn’t write a single song on the album. (Blue Suede Shoes is always great tho)
It’s Elvis obviously hugely influential but not something that I’m listening to now or is comparable with what came after Elvis.
I don't like groomers.
mid
My original review from 2019: Hmm, I don’t know. The cultural impact of this album is immense, but...I don’t know. I feel like the original versions of the big songs here are better, and some of the ballads are easily skippable. I do like the reinterpretation of Blue Moon, and One-Sided Love Affair is pretty good, but the album as a whole is...I don’t know. How about 3 stars? 2025: I like Elvis. But not this album. I only got about 50 albums in the last time I tried this 1001 album list, but this was one of them. And I was thoroughly unimpressed. I’ve come to realize that I like his singles, but his albums are just packed with filler, which is understandable when you are pumping out 3-4 albums a year. His early Sun Sessions are great (now called Sunrise I believe), but again that is a lot of his early singles. I’ll always be a Buddy Holly guy, if I had to choose. Probably close to 2.5 stars.
very little cohesion throughout, seems like a bunch of stuffed together singles and a lot of misses
Decent Chuck Berry cosplay
basic bitch
Oh this fucking guy. I didn’t know that I wasn’t really an Elvis fan until today.
Never been an Elvis fan. Just never got into him. The only time I listen to him is “Hound Dog” on the Forrest Gump soundtrack and around the holidays mixed between other holiday classics. Was interesting to hear his different vocal tones on the less popular songs I hadn’t heard before. Didn’t realize the range he had and I did dig his slower songs. I’m sure this was influential for its time but since I gave Burrito Brothers a 3, I’ll give this one a 2. At least I listened to it before I died.
I think I would enjoy these songs more if they where song by the actual people who inspired Elvis. I get why this is here but beyond that not much excitement here.
“old as shit” That’s all I originally wanted to say about this album and, I guess, about Elvis too. It’s just so funny to me that this bland milquetoast bop got so hot, it really reinforces the weird state of pop music before then and just how musically stunted everyone was. I can appreciate the historical significance, but that’s about it
Neither here nor there
point9.
elvis famously cribbed his entire thing from black artists and then got more famous than them because it was easier to sell rock & roll records if they were done by a white person. he brings nothing new or unique to most of these recordings and so i can’t think of any real reason to listen to Any of these songs over the originals. this is most clear on his versions of tutti frutti and i’ve got a woman which are both miles beneath the classic originals. his greatest contribution to music history was his stage presence and dance moves or whatever which he also cribbed. nothing i’ve said just now is anything new. not a good album
Debütalbum (EP?) bis auf den ersten Track nichts was mich aus den Schuhen hebt. Hauptsächlich ein Kind seiner Zeit. Elvis musste seinen Sound erst finden.
This man stole songs and fucked a 13 year old. Overrated.
I have a real soft spot for EP but this album doesn't do much for me
Favorites: Blue Suede Shoes, I Got A Woman, Blue Moon Ehhhh. Nothing was bad (except Tutti Frutti got on my nerves some), but I just didn’t find this very interesting. I’m also pretty anti-Elvis as a concept so that doesn’t help much. Eh.
2/5
He’s not great
Skal ikke kimse av the king men det blir nok en doiser! Nå veit jeg hva den skal brukes til!
Sorry to say it but I found this album not very interesting and honestly kinda boring, nothing really stood out to me at all. I’m sure this was good for its time but it hasn’t aged well to me.
You can definitely feel the age of this album, but it could have been worse.
as with most other royalty, i don't really care for this king
The songs I know are good, the versions of others are often terrible, and the less well known stuff is a waste of time
A full album of Elvis is too much Elvis for me. I didn't hate it, but I enjoy his songs in shorter bursts.
I feel like I need to be in a specific mood for Elvis. Unfortunately today, I was not.
The fact that this album is of huge historical significance doesn't mean that music in it is good by today's standards. I don’t believe that good art is timeless since any idea can be built up upon, improved, or evolved; and after some changes, the original iteration usually wouldn’t feel that good in hindsight. That is how I feel about this album. Sure, he basically invented rock, which has been my favorite genre by far since the start of my musical journey. But 70 years later, the genre has changed and evolved so much that the “original” rock album seems incredibly underwhelming. That’s definitely not entirely Elvis’s fault, of course. He didn’t have the decades of output to draw inspiration from (although, of course, he used other genres), and he had no access to the slew of technological advancements musicians have right now. The culture in the 50s was also entirely different. What today feels tame and basically sterile back then was seen as rebellion, and it certainly didn’t translate well. I don’t really like this album. It’s not awful, but it’s a relic of its time that today feels uninspiring. Both vocals and instruments are not very fun, and in terms of energy, it basically has nothing even on a lot of rock albums I would consider to be on the slower side. I wouldn’t say that Elvis is a bad artist or whatever. It’s just that he was treading on new ground of a genre that hadn’t been studied before him. The only reason I didn’t rate it lower is because it’s short. 5/10
Still don’t get the hype.
Pre-Listen: I am not a real big Elvis fan, but I am in for the listen. I know he is the so-called “King of Rock and Roll,” and is a cultural icon whose influence on music and popular culture is immense. However, I struggle to get past his problematic social, cultural, and musical history. As Ray Charles said, “He was a person who came along at the right time when he was a white kid that could do his rock ‘n’ roll and rhythm and blues, and the girls could swoon over him. Nat Cole got in trouble in Alabama when the women swooned over him, got put out of town.” Post-Listen: Better than I was gearing myself up for. Still not my cup of tea but it was a pleasant enough listen.
This is an interesting one. While I love Elvis in general I think this album doesn't illustrate his later best when he stepped into his own music. The tunes here are that classic kind of rock n roll which are usually a fun listen, but he hasn't refined his vocal style yet... And something has to be said about the context from which an album of a white guy making (imo worse) covers of music that originated from Black artists is considered so culturally groundbreaking. His version of tutti frutti is the definition of phoning it in... I'm sorry Elvis!
I appreciate and understand it's impact of popular music but I just didn't enjoy it. Too old for my ears.
I don't think I ever need to listen to this again.
Meh
acho essa capa mto foda. e aprecio que o album seja curtinho. só isso mesmo.
Fav: I Love You Because Least Fav: Blue Moon Revolutionary in the 50s and only in the 50s
Earned a point for only being 29 minutes
I never was and never will be a fan of Elvis. 2 stars or D.
Fun but nothing id listen to again. Bluesy
I'm an elvis apologist most days but it's Self Esteem day so 'I've got a woman across town who knows her place is in the home' ain't cutting it today mate sorry. Thinking my favourite elvises are on later albums or singles or we bc this is mostly bringing to mind that tumblr audio of him rolling down a bowling alley.. this is kinda bland. Yeah I'm reading the background this is a compilation of covers the record company didn't think would sell? Understandable. Sorry Elvis I thought I'd enjoy this but it's kinda nothing. Listening again before I rate bc its short and i can. His voice sounds really immature here, like it could honestly be anyone singing a lot of these. Couple of decent tracks like obviously blue suede shoes goes and i liked trying to get to you and his version of blue moon but ultimately uninteresting as an album beyond its status as a museum piece :/
Being historically important can only get you so far, kid. ⭐⭐1/2
This was not as bad as I expected, but mostly because I was appreciating the instrumentation (some of it quite novel even for today) rather then Elvis' irritating voice.
It turns out I can only enjoy elvis if it's played in a film soundtrack, ideally lilo and stitch or charlie's angels. Just such a bland album. Middle of the road and boring to listen to. It's the music equivalent of those toasties you can get on trains: it'll fill you and technically the cheese is melt but you're not happy and you didn't enjoy it and you know that it could have been made so much better. I've lost the plot of this metaphor, but this album was so uninspiring I couldn't think of anything better. 1.5
Good greatest hits but this album is pretty meh
Elvis might be the King of Rock and Roll, but let’s be honest — he was more of a singles guy than an album artist. This debut has its moments, sure, but most of it doesn’t hold up all that well today. That said, “Tutti Frutti” and “Blue Suede Shoes” still pack a punch, and his version of “Blue Moon” is surprisingly solid. Credit where it’s due — he helped bring Black music to a wider (and whiter) audience, even if that’s a complicated legacy. At the time, this might’ve been groundbreaking. Now, it’s mostly a history lesson
Got me tapping my foot
Very good classic rock album
Couldn't find it to listen to but I know what Elvis sounds like
Elvis Presley 5/10 'Blue Suede Shoes' is a great opener and an example of Elvis at his best, beyond that this just feels too repetitive to be listened to as an album. Quite interesting to read the assessments on here of Elvis's popularity as a product of him being the 'acceptable' white face of blues and rock and roll - kind of explains why this doesn't really hold up compared to other artists of the same era such as Muddy Waters (who I've already reviewed on this list). Similarly, while listening to 'Tutti Frutti' I was thinking I could see how this would have been a revelation on the dancehalls of the 1950s, but it turns out to be a cover of a Little Richard song anyway. All in all tough to rate this album in a way that doesn't feel disrespectful to Elvis so I'm just rating based on my enjoyment of the music sitting in my bedroom in 2025. Listens: 2
I'm a fan of Elvis , have been since I was a kid in the 70s. I understand why this is an important album but listening to it now it's hard to understand why Elvis became the superstar that he was. Blue Suede Shoes is a great first track but after that it's just a lot of bad covers of songs that had been done much better by other artists. This hasn't aged well.
Try as I might, I simply cannot get into or appreciate Elvis Presley. I've never fully gotten the appeal. I understand his importance to rock history...but weren't there like tons of other, better and more original artists out there?
Elvis is a legend but this album doesn’t really have any of my favorite songs of his and doesn’t flow very well.
Didn’t really do much for me. Blue moon is the one here for me. It’s a little haunting and spooky and chill too.
Undeniably a highly influential album in the history of rock 'n' roll and popular music. Elvis presents in his debut album a mosaic of rockabilly, rhythm and blues, and pop. His voice is not yet fully mature, but I think it fits with his unrefined, short tunes intended for a young audience. His characteristic halting, erratic vocal inflection is most exaggerated on One-Sided Love Affair, and I had to skip that track on my second listen—to me, it's just annoying. The circumstances of this release were the perfect storm: a generation of youths with more free time than ever, ripe to be the first "teenagers" with a shared youth culture; and the rise of television, among other things. Elvis likely could have been replaced with another handsome white boy that could sing and was willing to look a little silly on stage, and they would've done well. All that said, I can appreciate the floodgates that were opened by Elvis for the wider adoption of historically Black musical idioms into the popular culture. I'd choose almost anything else to listen to over Elvis, influential though he may be.
Nope. 2/5
Not fussed. 2/5
There’s maybe two songs I actually like and the rest I’ll live without ever hearing again.
It was fine.
I like some of this, and can hear how it’s permeated some of my favourite music. I’m not fussed on a fair bit of it though and i’m yet to properly learn about Elvis and his cultural impact, as well as the more modern discussion of Elvis as either a representative of a deeply racist system or/and a bridge between musical cultures. This would be a light 3, but I deduct 1 for these not being his own songs. ⭐️⭐️
Talentless chancer with a penchant for hamburgers and 14 year old girls releases collection of other people's songs and covers and inadvertently helps kick off rock and roll as well as a stream of fat Elvis impersonators and wedding chapels. The king? Fuck off. Alvin Stardust, Stray Cats and Mrs Mills did a better job.
Nothing interesting about this album.
Really interesting contrast, listening to this next to Sinatra‘s Songs for Swingin’ Lovers which came out the same year. I understand how groundbreaking and popular Elvis was, but I just don’t like his style. It comes across very forced and cheesy. He was meant to be experienced live because he was an electric performer, but The music in my opinion doesn’t stand solidly on its own.
Meh. I appreciate the music and transition it ushered in, but not my thing.
This album exemplifies why I didn't really like Elvis until I found the Sun Sessions. His older rockabilly stuff was great, and there's traces of that here, but it's mostly the softer ballads that emphasise his voice over the music. And I can't really be doing with that.
Just not a fan of that voice. Respect it but didn't like it.
Deus que bagulho sem sal
More historically important than it is a good record. Elvis's vocals are obviously great and full of charisma, but the songs themselves are just basically the same old 12-bar blues thing over bad over again. There are classic tracks here, of course, but we wouldn't lose out on not hearing every single one of them. Key tracks: Blue Suede Shoes
okay
Not a fan of Elvis
Not exactly the best Elvis album. Really just a glorified covers record. The soulfulness is definitely on display and his takes on the songs seem genuine rather than trying to rip them off and make them entirely his own, but it just doesn’t do a whole lot for me. Elvis is more of a greatest hits type of artist and trying to listen to full albums of his music can be grueling.
come on.
it was important, just not to me.
no mater how iconic .. just not my thing . 2
High 2 Would have love more song like Tuttit frutti and blue suede. Less "velvet ballads" An album that didnt age well, not because its bad but because rock n roll has evolve so much since that
Ehhhhh
Amazing that he recorded this without ever meeting a Black person
All of the genuinely acceptable tracks are on the latter half of the record - v much a product of its time and it feels like his whole Elvussy went into his later work. Credit where credit is due, he did sound nice when he kept in his lower register.
Rating is how much I enjoy it, not its influence or relevance.
Yeah I really just don't enjoy this
Love blue moon and I’ll never let you go. The rest is not my favorite, maybe another listen
It's fine I guess, but the whole time I was listening to it, I was just thinking how there is so much better rock music from around the same time. Doesn't have the songs I like from him, and a lot of his vocal affectations kinda annoy me/are all over the place. It's like there's three different singers on the record, and they don't really mesh. Was hoping for some good Fallout-core and unfortunately did not get it, haha (Although Fallout music is more 40's, but still).
Enjoyable but bland.
Elvis has a great voice, but he always sounds like he’s overdoing it. Beyond that, the album is pretty standard for the time period and takes a lot of inspiration from Little Richard (including a Tutti Frutti cover), so it’s unsurprising that I’m not a big fan.
For a debut album, I can undoubtedly see how this could have taken the world over by storm when this came out. Especially starting off with Blue Suede Shoes, which is a song I fairly enjoy. However, for casual listening these days, it's not very entertaining in my opinion. The audio quality is very dated and the music is pretty basic. Great for some, not for me though.
di bello c’è solo la copertina
FUCK Elvis. Only good song is Blue Suede Shoes. Not because of Elvis. But because the song is a great song. The rest are trash covers.
It was alright. Seems historically important/astonishing.
Worthwhile to listen through once because I'd never hear a song of his that he's not singing in his signature voice. But that's about it, if I'm listening to 50s rock I want to listen to someone else.
Eh
It’s Elvis. I wouldn’t listen to again but found myself unconsciously tapping along.
A decent classic.
I know, Elvis transformed the music of the time and is "the King". Alas, I didn't live through it and will never truly understand it his popularity or the ensuing craze of the time. Thanks for starting something that others could build on! Not really interested in spending more time with this album.
While I can appreciate the history and the influence.. I just don’t really like to listen to it. 🤷🏻♂️
I get he inspired a generation but this was just dull apart from Blue Suede Shoes.
Elvis was a classic but I’m not a huge fan
Kinda meh! Recording quality makes the sound very shrill. Like, I get that he was big in his time, but this really doesn't grab me. I can hear the impact and references of this album in contemporary music though, so it is undoubtably very influential.
Elvis - konungur tveggjastjörndómanna. Mikið fór rokki fram á sjöundatugnum.
Elvis is a consistently meh artist for me.
Clearly a classic and important and such but so many of the tracks on it I much prefer other versions like Ray Charles' I Got A Woman or Little Richard's Tutti Frutti. Elvis versions all just seems so flat. I think I like him best when his vocal style really comes out.
he’s hwhite. not bad. but also not jamming with anything other than blue suede shoes.
The upbeat songs were enjoyable, but the ballads really dragged this out. Which is hard to do on an album that's less than 30 minutes.
The skeet of lil bill in which he says Presley would have fucked his own mom if given the chance will stay in my head more often than this album. No, seriously, there's some nice songs but I really don't see what is special with this one.
Didn’t enjoy
all 12 bar basically. Not much variety
Not a fan of this one, but I don’t typically enjoy anything pre-70s so it checks out.
catchy thievery
I guess I like Elvis in small doses. Some decent tracks on here.
Not sure why, I was expecting more. 4/10
I have very little opinion about this album. I don't mind hearing it, I wouldn't have minded to not ever have listened to it. In between 2 and 3 for me, but I'll give it a 2 just because I find the album a bit boring.
2.18
Your grandma probably thinks this guy’s the GOAT because he sang songs written and performed better by black people. Your grandma sucks.
Meh
Classic Rock'n'Roll, by the numbers, without much variation. Elvis was a trendsetter for audiences in the '50s. To me it's just same old, same old, desperately in need of songs to match his talent. 2/5
One killer (Blue suede shoes), the rest are fillers. Certainly his fame wasn’t founded in the lp era.
IMO, Elvis is overrated and his music is boring.
I’ve always enjoyed Elvis - mostly the phenomenon surrounding his popularity. This album is mediocre at best, but it drove the masses wild.
yeah it's alright. not an Elvis fan, but still listenable. won't be playing it again, but it was nice to go through one of the most recognized artists atleast once. honestly, going through the whole album, i didn't feel the need to skip any songs.
He's white?
65% Best: Blue Suede Shoes Must-Hear? No. Elvis is overrated AF
Really not aged that well tbh. Ive had some later Elvis albums on here and strongly disliked them. But this isn't much better. One sided Love Affair sounded like someone taking the piss out of Elvis. The slow songs were bad. Blue Suede Shoes was the pinnacle of the album so it was pretty much over 2 minutes in. Another 26 minutes of getting through it. Also, why did he feel the need to butcher Tutti Frutti? Mad choice. 1.5*
“When are they gonna get to the fireworks factory?!” The Album.
2/10 Maybe with time this album could grow on me but for now im rating it a 2
Trying to leave the racial implications aside... This is still not good. None of the songs are his. I only liked Blue Suede Shoes and I still prefer the original Carl Perkins version. Elvis was a product that benefited from other artist's work. If not for that song I would consider giving this a 1.
Am I the only one that doesn’t like Elvis’ voice? Didn’t enjoy it at all.
Giving an additional point for historical significance, but there's nothing Elvis was doing here that others weren't doing better (Little Richard's version of Tutti Frutti is superior), and some of these songs are terrible (One Sided Love Affair).
Not really my bag. I like some of Elvis’ stuff but it’s difficult to put the music era into perspective. It’s like a very rough version of early Beatles
I am not really an Elvis fan.
The cover might look like he's singing. He's yawning A few days ago I couldn't finish the first song. Demoralizing
Alright, not his best album nor really my cup of tea 4/10
this album was alright. i felt like it showcased levi’s’ talent more than anything. didn’t like the beats or the repetitive lyrics but i can appreciate the talent and how beautiful his voice is.
Yawn soz
I found this very mind-numbing, it was like he recorded as many songs as he could just to see what would stick… it worked tho ofc he got Blue suede shoes out of it Standout tracks: - Blue suede shoes - Trying to get to you - Blue moon
It's a fine early Elvis offering. Of course there's plenty of the typical-of-the-time white guy doing black music in a less impressive way, and this is far from Elvis at his most mature vocal work. There is much better Elvis music out there.
giving it two stars only because i recognize that it has to have some appeal bc its elvis favorite tracks: Blue Moon? idk
Some old school vibes. I'd heard most of these songs as singles over the years so it was cool to listen to the whole album. Not exactly my cup of team but a cool moment in time
Not the biggest Elvis fan, and this didn't sway me. I think maybe this era of music is lost on me.
First song is the only good song
Despite his magnitude and perhaps being one of the most famous musical artists that has ever lived I must confess that I dislike Elvis with a passion. How can this be I ask? My elder brother played his records so my early years were filled with his music but it appears made no connection with me at all. My earliest musical foundation can be traced to Cliff Richard (Bachelor Boy my first single) who was often compared to Elvis and has his English version. I don’t think that this registered with me and if there was ever an Elvis v Cliff thing. In any case this was only my one foray into the Cliff camp (although I do like his Christmas songs) so I don’t think my Elvis hatred stemmed from that. I was soon into The Beatles and early English 60’s groups. And whilst my musical heroes lauded Elvis has their inspiration I just dismissed this and considered Elvis from a previous generation and not for me. Nowerdays I can listen to artists who were about during the 50’s and can actually enjoy their music and see their value. But unfortunately this does not extend to anything Elvis has ever produced. This could be considered as heretical and I get that. I wish that I could say there was at least one Elvis song I liked but honestly can’t. This album in my estimation is a 1/5 but this is based on my own prejudices and Elvis, whatever I think of him, does not deserve that. 2/5 23/9/24
some of the least elvisy elvis ever, surprisingly varied for a 50s rock and roll album.
I'm so sick of this man!! I have a long familial problem with Elvis Presley! My aunt and mother warred over buying his records or other records as a child and it poisoned us all! That weird Blue Moon version gets 1 additional star for being weird (positive)
boring!
Elvis Presley , ah what can be said The cover art is iconic and love that the The Clash used it for “London Calling” “Blue Suede Shoes” is classic Rock’n’Roll The 4th track “One Sided Love Affair” is pretty decent ,though the “Elvisisms” get a bit much “I LOVE YOU BECAUSE” is plain awful. The beginning whistle , the crooning, and high pitch Elvis parts are so annoying. He annunciates words weird and elongates them to make those young girls Swoon. The lyric “I Love You Because Your YOU” is what most boy bands would base their whole careers off of. “Just Because” is the better of the Because songs, but that’s not saying much “Tutti Fruitti” is a good song. It’s another classic, might just be a tad better by on of the songwriters (LR) I think the next great moment is “Blue Moon”. Though this song has been done better by other artists and production here is pretty sparse ( side Note His falsetto makes Tiny Tim look good) In the end I went into this a not an Elvis Presley Fan, and can’t say The King swayed me. Overall I prefer most other 50’s Rock’N’Rollers (Buddy Holly (my favourite), Jerry Lee Lewis, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Chubby Checker etc etc) I understand the importance of this album for influencing many artists. It really was a starting point for many to jump into the genre. However this just isn’t a great “album” by today standards. It isn’t even a good album by what it would truly mean 10 years later. He still is THE KING , just not one I think has all that much royalty 2/5 (1 by my standard, giving it a 2 for historical reasons) 1* - Not Good 2* - Has Merit 3* - Would listen Again (Good) 4* - Like It/Love it 5* - Love It & is A Classic album
An important debut obviously, but the vocal performances are the only thing impressive here. Elvis showcases his talent on some simple (and boring) Rock & Roll tunes. Sounds samey the whole way through and even features a few covers on it to boot. Doesn't help that the recording quality is pretty bad on a few of the tracks as well.
Not really my preferred style of music but interesting to listen to it through the lense of "this was revolutionary back in the day"
C'est la première fois que j'écoute un album complet de Presley. Celui-ci contient quelques morceaux classiques bien connu. Je préfère les morceaux plus rock de l'album plutôt que les slows, mais je trouve que l'album a très mal vieilli, je n'accroche pas du tout. Ce n'est pas un album que j'écouterais de nouveau. =>2/5
I really understand his influence and his immense impact on the entire world but to me I didn’t totally see the spark. And yes i know I am saying that because i have access to all the music he influenced and I am bigger fan of that, so I do recognize that. However just really not a huge fan!
Honestly, not impressed with this album. Feels a tad racist. His voice, while iconic, does a little too much every once in a while. Elvis is talented, and you can hear it, but this isn't a great showcase of his talent. It's a fun album, but it's not particularly good. Favorite Song(s): Blue Suede Shoes
Except for the hits I know and love this isn't all that great
‘Seinfeld isn’t funny’ syndrome
boring elvis shit tbh
It is impossible to downplay the importance of this record in the annuls of music. There are people out there who fell in love to this record. I am not one of them. But I certainly appreciate it.
Classic album cover, lionized by The Clash's London Calling. This was made before albums were really a "thing" yet, and this was definitely not recorded as an album. More likely a combination of all the tapes they could find to capitalize on Elvis's early success. I never liked his warbling vibrato and by my time all of the original versions of tunes he made famous were readily available and generally preferable. There's nothing about listening to this now that is changing my perspective. My favorite aspect of this album is its brevity. And some of the guitar playing (Some. If that's Scotty Moore on Blue Suede Shoes, it's his worst work I've heard. Can't seem to keep up with the tempo!). I think you had to be there. I grew up mainly after he died and I and my friends knew Elvis mainly as the image of celebrity excess and a cautionary tale told by a huge velvet painting of a late period bloated Elvis stuffed into an Evil Knievel wannabe jumpsuit with a tear streaking down his cheek hanging over our favorite booth at Mama's Pizza. There was a kid in my 1980s high school who would wear a t-shirt with the cover of that "50,000,000 Elvis fans can't be wrong" album on it and whenever I would walk by him in the hallway I would obnoxiously yell at him "yes, they can!" In retrospect I am surprised no '80s hardcore band swapped Hitler into that image. Missed opportunity.
King of Rock and Roll my arse.
Never been a fan. It has some history vut apart from a couple of tracks not great
Blue Suede Shoes is the only good track on this thing. It's only Elvis' first album, so it can be forgiven for not being Peak Elvis, but when you consider everything Elvis would become, its obvious weaknesses are very apparent: flat singing, poor instrumentation and a general lack of personality.
I'll admit I'm not the biggest fan of Elvis in general. I think he's terribly overrated and is more a product of being in the right place at the right time more than anything else. As exhibited on this album, he has some talent don't get me wrong. Rock and roll in the 50s had a very distinct cadence and structure, and by and large, Presley seldom deviates from that formula. In my opinion, that repetitiveness is not conducive to longer listening sessions. There is not much to take away on this album for me, and there were a couple tracks that had me almost bored to sleep. Overall, Elvis remains under the "not for me" umbrella. Notable Tracks: - Blue Suede Shoes 3/10