On March 21, 1958 RCA Victor released "Elvis' Golden Records". The longplayer sold 150,000 units, entered the "Top LPs Chart" on April 21st, stayed for 50 weeks and peaked at number 3. After the king's demise the album returned on September 10, 1977 for another 24 weeks and made it to number 63. The RIAA honored the domestic sales with Gold (1961), 5xPlatinum (1992) and 6xPlatinum (1999). Outside of the US "Elvis' Golden Records" also sold very well, worldwide RCA was able to retail 10 million copies. This amount of physical sales equals 1.5 billion paid streams of the complete album or 15 billion paid streams of individual tracks. "Elvis' Golden Records" is the king's second best selling album, only surpassed by the 1970 re-release of "Elvis' Christmas Album". Today "Elvis Golden Records" is the most popular Presley album with more than 1.5 billion streams on Spotify alone.

The cover was designed with (what a surprise!) golden records and a promo shot for the MGM movie "Jailhouse Rock". The backside featured the tracklisting and liner notes.

On the streaming platforms "Elvis' Golden Records" is available as released on September 16, 2022. I don't know if any further mixing or mastering has been done since 2016, when the core of the Presley albums was re-worked for "The Album Collection". For this project all tracks were scanned with high-resolution equipment and remastered. Therefore the album can be presented with the golden Hi-Res emblem. The better sound of these versions is owed exclusively to the new mastering (the elimination of interfering noise). Because first one cannot turn an analogue recording into a high resolution recording just by scanning the tape with hd equipment and second even an old cd with 16 bit/44.1 kHz exceeds the auditory sense of a human being.

The RIAA started to honor domestic sales above a million copies with a Gold Award in 1958, so when the album was released, the organization hadn't given out any award yet. By now all the singles represented on this longplayer are awarded officially, but it took the RIAA until the 1990s to do so. Nevertheless all the 45s had sold more than a million units by the time the album was released, so the tracks were solid gold anyway. The longplayer contained the a-sides of the first eight RCA singles and six b-sides. In total "Elvis' Golden Records" has a running time of 32:03 minutes.

In 2015 Follow That Dream Records released a collector's edition of the album, which included bonus tracks and outtakes. For a review tap HERE.

"Hound Dog" was recorded on July 2nd, but this time the rock'n'roll king needed 31 attempts to get it right. At first the song was credited to Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller and Johnny Otis, but after a legal dispute it became just Leiber/Stoller. Originally "Hound Dog" was recorded and released in 1952 by Willie Mea "Big Mama" Thornton, later Jack Turner and Eddie Hazelwood also recorded the song. Elvis performed it much faster and harder than his predecessors and turned it into an iconic rock'n'roll song. The single "Don't Be Cruel" / "Hound Dog" was released in July 1956, sold over eight million copies and became the best selling single of the decade! RCA Victor also released "Hound Dog" on the ep "The Real Elvis" (1956) and on the boxed set "Worldwide 50 Gold Award Hits - Volume 1" (1970). Live versions can be found on "Elvis" (1968),  "From Vegas To Memphis / From Memphis To Vegas" (1969), "Elvis As Recorded At Madison Square Garden" (1972), "Aloha From Hawaii Via Satellite" (1973). "Elvis Recorded Live On Stage In Memphis" (1974) and "Elvis In Concert" (1977). However, the king never even came close to the greatness of his original recording.

In June of 1957 the title song of Elvis' second movie had been released on the b-side of "Teddy Bear". It became a number one hit and sold six million copies, of which RCA simply allocated a million to "Loving You". The track had also been released on the extended player "Loving You - Volume 1" as well as the longplayer "Loving You". In 1970 it would be re-issued on the boxed set "Worldwide 50 Gold Award Hits - Volume 1" and in 1975 on the album "Pure Gold". Elvis recorded the song on January 17, 1957 within three takes. Even though the last one was selected for release, the king re-recorded the ballad on February 24th and ordered RCA to release the 4th attempt. "Loving You" was written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. Elvis had previously recorded Leiber/Stoller songs, but this was the first one, the duo wrote exclusively for him.

The single "All Shook Up" / "That's When Your Heartaches Begin" was released in in early 1957 and sold over 7 million units. Some fans might have known the a-side as "I'm All Shook Up", released by David Hill (a pseudonym of the actor David Hess). He had taped the song in November 1956 while Elvis recorded his version on January 12, 1957 at Radio Recorders in Hollywood/California within ten takes. The second voice belongs to Hoyt Hawkins, a member of The Jordanaires. When the rock'n'roll king released his version, not only the name had changed, but also the writing credits. Suddenly the tune was not just originated by Otis Blackwell, but also by Elvis Presley. The reason was simple: If Mr. Blackwell hadn't credited Presley and therefore given him half of the writer's royalties, he wouldn't have recorded the song. And at the time Elvis' sales were so high, that it was better to get 50% of a Presley release than 100% of a release by anyone else. I fell in love with "All Shook Up" when I was eight years old. Now four decades have passed and the song still is one of my favorites. It's just a piano, a rhythm tapped on the back of a guitar and two voices. Very simple, but the essence of a popsong! RCA Victor re-released the track on the album "Pure Gold" (1975), the extended player "A Touch Of Gold - Volume 3" (1960) and the boxed set "Worldwide 50 Gold Award Hits - Volume 1" (1970). Live recordings can be found on "From Memphis To Vegas / From Vegas To Memphis" (1969) and "Elvis As Recorded At Madison Square Garden" (1972). "All Shook Up" is also part of a medley released on "Elvis" (1968).

"Heartbreak Hotel" / "I Was The One" had been the king's debut on the RCA label and had moved more than four million copies. RCA Victor also released the track on the ep "Heartbreak Hotel" (1956), the album "A Legendary Performer - Volume 1" (1974) as well as on the boxed set "Worldwide 50 Gold Award Hits - Volume 1" (1970). Live performances can be found on the albums "Elvis" (1968) and "Elvis As Recorded At Madison Square Garden" (1972). The song was written by Mae Boren Axton and Tommy Durden. Because Axton wanted to do the young singer a favor, she credited him as a writer and therefore gave him a third of the royalties. In the song the narrator was left by his girl and lives at Heartbreak Hotel, just down the end of Lonely Street. Elvis' vocals mirror the somewhat morbid mood of the tune, the echo also adds a special note. Elvis recorded "Heartbreak Hotel" on January 10, 1956 and chose take number 7 as the master. Producer Steve Sholes wasn't too happy about the track, because up to that point the young singer had been most successful with hyped-up versions of well known country songs. Besides that nobody at RCA Victor seemed to like "Heartbreak Hotel". It's not known weather Sholes trusted the instinct of the Hillbilly Cat or if he thought the first 45 would bomb anyway and he had better control of his artist if he could be made responsible for the flop. Whatever his thoughts might have been, after "Heartbreak Hotel" turned out to be a massive hit discussions of that kind were a thing of the past.

The legendary rock'n'roll song was taped on April 30, 1957 at Radio Recorders in Hollywood/California. Elvis recorded eight takes, of which only the numbers 4 and 5 are complete performances. Afterwards two pick up-takes were recorded, which started in the middle of the song. The final version was a splice of take 6 (a long false start) and pick up-take 2. When the song was released in September 1957, it reached the number one of the "Top 100", the "Country Best Seller Chart" and the "R&B Best Seller Chart". RCA also released it on the albums "Pure Gold" (1975) and "A Legendary Performer - Volume 2" (1976) as well as on the boxed set "Worldwide 50 Gold Award Hits - Volume 1" (1970). Live versions can be found on the albums "Elvis" (1968) and "Elvis In Concert" (1977). "Jailhouse Rock" is also featured in the "Rock'n'Roll Medley". For me "Jailhouse Rock" is a masterpiece. A great melody, a driving rhythm and subversive lyrics (it's actually about a party of homosexuals, which was considered to be abnormal in the 50s of the last century). Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller had surpassed themselves with this song. Elvis' performance is unbeatable. Nobody ever came even close to his original recording, including Mr. Presley himself.

The original recording was released in 1954 by Willie & Ruth, Elvis taped his cover on September 1, 1956 and approved the 9th attempt for release. It is said that Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, the writers of "Love Me", didn't like the king's interpretation, because he ignored the irony and sang it seriously and schmaltzy instead. But especially the female fans loved to hear him beg "Treat me like a fool, treat me mean and cruel, but love me". RCA Victor released the track on the album "Elvis" and on the extended player "Elvis - Volume 1". Because Billboard picked the track to list the ep on the singles chart "Hot 100", it was also included on the boxed set "The Other Sides - Worldwide Gold Records Volume 2" (1971). "Love Me" quickly became a fixed item in the king's concerts. And so the song is included on "Elvis As Recorded At Madison Square Garden" (1972), "Aloha From Hawaii Via Satellite" (1973), "Elvis Recorded Live On Stage In Memphis" (1974) and "Elvis In Concert" (1977). A performance taped in 1968 for the television special "SINGER presents Elvis" was released in 1974 on the album "Elvis - A Legendary Performer". Unfortunately Elvis rarely met the level of the studio recording on stage.

Here the singer is knowingly taken advantage of by his girlfriend, but he cannot leave her because he loves her so much. Somehow he doesn't seem to be affected by this issue at all, because the melody is peppy and there is not even a suggestion of sadness in Elvis' voice. "Too Much" was recorded on September 2, 1956 at Radio Recorders in Hollywood/California within 12 takes. To iron out the last few mistakes the king also produced two insert-takes. In the end the master was created of take 12 and insert-take 2. "Too Much" was not an original song, but a cover version. It had been written by Lee Rosenberg and Leonard Weinman and recorded by Bernie Hardison in 1954. In early 1957 the track was supposed to be the b-side of "Playing For Keeps", but the audience as well as the radio stations preferred "Too Much". And so the ballad stalled at number 34 of the "Hot 100" while "Too Much" became a number 2 hit. In total the single sold three million copies. Elvis' performance was re-released on the extended player "A Touch Of Gold - Volume 3" (1960) and the boxed set "Worldwide 50 Gold Award Hits - Volume 1" (1970).

On July 2, 1956 Elvis recorded "Don't Be Cruel" at RCA Studio 1 in New York City/New York. He worked hard on the track and needed 28 takes before he reached a satisfactory result. The song was written by Otis Blackwell, but Colonel Parker was able to deal out a 50% share of the royalties for his client. Therefore Elvis was also listed as composer. Mr. Blackwell obviously wanted to write a hit and so he took many bits and pieces of other popular songs. But regardless the authenticity "Don't Be Cruel" is one of the best recordings of the "early" Elvis and a highlight of his catalogue. RCA Victor also released the track on the extended player "The Real Elvis" (1956), the albums "A Legendary Performer" (1974) and Pure Gold (1975) as well as on the boxed set "Worldwide 50 Gold Award Hits - Volume 1" (1970). Live performances can be found on "Elvis As Recorded At Madison Square Garden" (1972) and "Elvis In Concert" (1977). Originally the studio version had been released on the single "Don't Be Cruel" / "Hound Dog", which became the best selling 45 of the decade.

Presumably to get Sam Phillips' attention Elvis had recorded a self-financed single at the Memphis Recording Service in 1953. One of the songs was the ballad "That's When Your Heartaches Begin". On January 13, 1957 he taped the song at Radio Recorders in Hollywood/California within 14 attempts. It has to be mentioned that just four of them were complete performances and the master had to be spliced of the takes number 7 and 14. "That's When Your Heartaches Begin" was written by Fred Fisher, William Raskin and Billy Hill. It was recorded for the first time in 1937 by Shep Fields & His Rippling Rhythm Orchestra, three years later it was covered by The Ink Spots. RCA Victor later re-released the king's version on the boxed set "Worldwide 50 Gold Award Hits - Volume 1" (1970). The ballad itself is ok, the same can be said about Elvis' performace. It was originally released on the flipside of "All Shook Up".

The b-side of the single, the ballad "Loving You", was presented earlier on the album. RCA Victor also released the track on the soundtrack album "Loving You", on the extended player "Loving You - Volume 1" (both 1957) and on the boxed set "Worldwide 50 Gold Award Hits - Volume 1" (1970). The singer begs his loved one to be her Teddy Bear. Tigers are too rough and lions are not kind enough. For a performer, who was sold as a rebel and even the king of the wicked rock'n'roll music, lyrics like that were embarrassing. But the girls loved it and "Teddy Bear" became an evergreen. In the 1970s Elvis mostly performed it in a medley with "Don't Be Cruel". Live recordings can be found on "Elvis As Recorded At Madison Square Garden" (1972) and "Elvis In Concert" (1977). 

The title song of the king's first movie was released on a single in late 1956, became a number one hit and sold 4.5 million copies. RCA Victor re-released the track on the soundtrack ep "Love Me Tender" (1956), the albums "A Legenary Performer (1974) and "Pure Gold" (1975) as well as on the boxed set "Worldwide 50 Gold Award Hits - Volume 1" (1970). Live versions can be found on "Elvis" (1968) and "Elvis As Recorded At Madison Square Garden" (1972). The many lackluster performances prove, that Elvis himself didn't like the song too much. I cannot help to agree. The ballad was written by Ken Darby, who based it on the classic "Aura Lee" from 1861. Because Darby didn't want to be associated with the movie project he credited the song to Vera Matson, his wife. Elvis was also credited as writer, because his manager had dealt out a share in the royalties of 50%. The rock'n'roll king didn't spent much time on "Love Me Tender". He recorded it on August 24, 1956 at the soundstage of 20th Century Fox within two takes.

The b-side of "Jailhouse Rock" also charted and peaked at number 27 (Hot 100), 11 (Country) and 7 (R&B). The macho tune was written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, Elvis recorded it on May 3, 1957 within 13 takes. The master was spliced of the takes 10 and 13. Finally the king rejected this version and recorded "Treat Me Nice" again on September 5, 1957. The 15th and final attempt replaced the previously selected master. RCA Vicor also released "Treat Me Nice" on the extended player "A Touch Of Gold - Volume 2" (1959) and the boxed set "Worldwide 50 Gold Award Hits - Volume 1" (1970).

This one was first released on an extended player of the same name, then it became the b-side of "Love Me Tender" and finally was also issued on "Worldwide 50 Gold Award Hits - Volume 1". Elvis recorded "Any Way You Want Me" on July 2, 1956 at RCA Studio 1 in New York City/New York. He needed 12 attempts to archive a satisfactory master. I don't like this ballad, because Elvis performs it with a tad too much power and the song itself isn't very good, too. It was written by Aaron Schroeder and Cliff Owens.

This schmaltz was recorded on April 14, 1956 at the RCA Studios in Nashville/Tennessee. Because no satisfactory take could be archived, Steve Sholes created a master by splicing takes 14 and 17. The song was written by Maurice Mysels and Ira Kosloff, RCA Victor released it on a single, the ep "The Real Elvis" (1956) and the boxed set "Worldwide 50 Gold Award Hits - Volume 1" (1970). Take 15 was issued on the album "A Legendary Performer - Volume 2" (1976).