Seven Years in Fluville

Today would have been Elvis's birthday, but he's dead.

Today is also the Boogie Woogie Flu's birthday and it's nearly dead.

I am here tonight to help this long neglected enterprise limp into another year.  Our annual Hanukkah extravaganza died when the lights unexpectedly went out after the second night. It was not a miracle or a lack thereof - it just happened. Tonight, I'll attempt to resuscitate and breathe some life back into this dying corpse by offering seven nuggets of pure gold recorded by the King at Stax Studios in his hometown of Memphis. Hope you dig it.

Happy Birthday Elvis, and long live the BWF.


Download:

"Promised Land (Take 5)" mp3
by Elvis Presley, 1973.
available on Elvis At Stax

"Just A Little Bit" mp3
by Elvis Presley, 1973.
available on Walk a Mile in My Shoes: The Essential 70's Masters 

"You Asked Me To (Take 3A)" mp3
by Elvis Presley, 1973.
available on Elvis At Stax 

"Three Corn Patches (Take 14)" mp3
by Elvis Presley, 1973.
available on Elvis At Stax  

"Find Out What's Happening (Takes 8 & 7)" mp3
by Elvis Presley, 1973.
available on Elvis At Stax  

"If You Don't Come Back" (Take 3)"
by Elvis Presley, 1973.
available on Elvis At Stax  

"If You Talk In Your Sleep" mp3
by Elvis Presley, 1973.
available on Walk a Mile in My Shoes: The Essential 70's Masters

Five Years in Fluville

Today we celebrate five years of the Boogie Woogie Flu, and while this strange endeavor may be limping along at a limited capacity, we are, still here. And, what better way to celebrate this miraculous event than to listen to the the b-side of James Brown's 1978 smash hit, "The Spank." JB's own version of "Love Me Tender," because, after all, it's Elvis' Birthday too.

Happy Birthday Elvis from all your friends in Fluville.



Download:

"Love Me Tender" mp3
by James Brown, 1978.
available on James Brown: The Singles Volume 10: 1975-1979

Elvis' Record Collection

Photo © Alfred Wertheimer

It's well documented that Elvis was a degenerate, and more than likely that he was a record collector too. So, in commemoration of his 72nd birthday, I'll kick off this flagship posting of the boogie woogie flu with some chestnuts that the King recorded and brought to a larger audience. Hopefully, his records were in better condition than mine. Check out Pete "Guitar" Lewis on "Hound Dog". There are two versions of "Tomorrow Night" here. Elvis recorded a beautiful version based on Lonnie Johnson's signature number that never saw the light of day until thirty years after the fact. The Lavern Baker version was recorded around the same time as Elvis' and is something to behold. I had to include Elvis himself, so we get his version of "My Baby Left Me" by Arthur Crudup, songwriter of Elvis' first single, "That's All Right".

Happy Birthday Elvis.


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Download:















"Hound Dog" mp3
by "Big Mama" Thornton, 1952.














"Baby Let's Play House" mp3
by Arthur Gunter, 1954.














"Blue Moon of Kentucky" mp3
by Bill Monroe and his Bluegrass Boys, 1947.















"Good Rockin' Tonight" mp3
by Wynonie Harris, 1948.















"Tomorrow Night" mp3
by Lonnie Johnson, 1948.















"Tomorrow Night" mp3
Lavern Baker, 1955.















"My Baby Left Me" mp3
by Elvis Presley, 1956.