Only a week or so after The White Album's 40th anniversary comes another: today is the 40th anniversary of Elvis Presley's Elvis's '68 Comeback Special. Truly one of the epic moments in rock and television, it was broadcast on NBC on December 3, 1968.
First conceived as a Christmas special, Elvis and directer Steve Binder decided it was time to TC/CB - Takin' Care of the ComeBack. So they transformed the show from a syrupy TV yule-yawn to an occasion for the King to reclaim his throne - and his relevance to the new generation.
In 1968, Elvis was pretty much absent from the music business. Under the Dick Cheney-like grip of Col. Tom Parker, Elvis cranked out one godawful film after another - Harum Scarum, Clambake, Double Trouble. All the kids were grooving on the Beatles, Dylan, Hendrix, the Stones, the Cream and the Doors. Musically, Elvis was about as relevant as Kip Winger is now.
That all changed on December 3. The King came out of the gate with a vengeance and looked fantastic - and assured the audience that if they were looking for trouble, they had come to the right place:
"Trouble"/"Guitar Man" (Opening Number)
The show featured one dazzling performance after another. Perhaps the most famous part of the special is the "unplugged" pit session with his original Sun Records band, including guitarist Scotty More and bassist Bill Black.
"Heartbreak Hotel"/"Baby What Do You Want Me to Do" (Pit Session)
The King of old, the King who changed the world was back, picking up where he left off when he joined the Army.
"Baby What Do You Want Me To Do" (Smokin' Electric Version)
With his crown firmly back on that beautifully coiffed head of his, the King took it home with perhaps his greatest moment ever: "If I Can Dream" a song that seemed to encapsulate everything that had happened in the world in 1968 yet somehow found the courage to keep its head up and look forward to tomorrow.
"If I Can Dream" (Grand Finale)
The '68 Comeback Special was the highest-rated TV special of 1968, seen by 42% of the TV viewing audience. (Take that, Hannah Montana!) And it kicked off a commercial and creative resurgence that included hits like "Suspicious Minds," "In the Ghetto" and "Burning Love."
RCA has just released The Complete '68 Comeback Special: 40th Anniversary Edition, containing full video and audio footage. You'll have a Blue Christmas without it.
Happy 40th Elvis. TCB.
1 comments:
Just one niggle - Bill Black was not on that show (I think he was already dead by then). The "jam session" included Scotty Moore, DJ Fontana, Charlie Hodge and Lance LeGault (and maybe one other, I forget now).
Great show, in any case.
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