Elvis : The Hayride Years 54-56

<!--aimg--><a href=' www.elvis-collectors.com/Hayridebook_cover.jpg ' target='_blank'> <!--Resize_Images_Hint_Text--><!--/aimg-->
'' Elvis - The Hayride Years 54-56 '' book by Frank Page & Joey Kent and published by J.A.T. Publishing will be out on December 12, 2003. This new publication will contain about a hundred (100 ) pages with great photographs from the Hayride years and a few surprises as well.

<!--aimg--><a href=' www.elvis-collectors.com/Hayridebook_CDcover.jpg ' target='_blank'> <!--Resize_Images_Hint_Text--><!--/aimg-->
This book comes with a 10 tracks CD of restored Louisiana Hayride recordings. '' Elvis Presley At The Hayride Tonight ! - volume one '' CD contains '' Tweedlee Dee '', '' Hearts Of Stone '', a surprise version of '' Maybellene '' and others. The suggested retail price for this book with CD is $34.95 USD plus postage.
<span style='font-size:8pt;line-height:100%'>
Quelle: Elvis-Collectors.Com</span>

Nun weiss ich doch endlich, was ich mir zu Weihnachten wünsche.

Interview with Joey Kent

<span style='color:blue'>FECC :</span> Mr. Kent, what is your involvement with the Louisiana Hayride materials ?

<span style='color:red'>Joey Kent :</span> My father, David Kent, bought the Louisiana Hayride name and archives from KWKH in the mid-seventies and produced a continuation of the Louisiana Hayride show from 1975 to 1987. I inherited the archival photos and recordings upon his death in 1992 and have worked in the years since to catalog, preserve and release these treasures to the world.

<span style='color:blue'>FECC:</span> The news about your upcoming book ‘’ Elvis : The Hayride Years 54-56 ‘’ with Frank Page is great for the Elvis fans. We hope to enjoy a lot of previously unpublished photographs in this new publication. Will your book also feature reproductions of paperwork and memorabilia related to Elvis at the Hayride ?

<span style='color:red'>Joey Kent :</span> Indeed. The book contains over 120 images of Elvis from his tenure at the Louisiana Hayride, a great many previously unpublished, as well as copies of his contract, posters, letters, notes and news clippings, all woven together to tell the story of Elvis at the Hayride. I have held back only photos from Elvis' final Hayride show on December 15, 1956, as we are planning a second Elvis Hayride book dealing specifically with that performance.

<!--aimg--><a href=' www.elvis-collectors.com/Hayridebook_CDcover.jpg ' target='_blank'> <!--Resize_Images_Hint_Text--><!--/aimg-->

<span style='color:blue'>FECC:</span> Your book also includes a bonus CD titled ‘’ Elvis Presley At The Hayride Tonight ! Volume One ‘’. Is there enough material for a second book in the near future AND a ‘’ Volume Two CD ‘’ ?

<span style='color:red'>Joey Kent :</span> As noted above, Frank Page and I are planning a second Elvis Hayride book which will focus on his final Hayride show in December of 1956. Since Elvis was a widely known figure by this time, the majority of the photos of him at the Hayride come from that show. The book will feature expanded interviews with the surviving photographers and other details specific to the show. <span style='color:white'>We hope to include a second CD volume as well, the full concert from that night's performance.</span>

<span style='color:blue'>FECC:</span> What was the idea behind the recording of these broadcast radio shows and for whom were they recorded ? Since it began in 1948, was each Louisiana Hayride broadcast recorded in full, every song and every performer?

<span style='color:red'>Joey Kent :</span> Sadly enough, the FCC did not require radio stations back then to keep copies of their programming as they do today. Audio tape was a relatively new phenomenon and most stations still relied on costly and bulky transcription machines that made phono acetates. If a Hayride show was recorded on acetate or audio tape, it was generally because a commercial sponsor had requested some sort of proof their ads had run or the station was creating a sample of the show to give to a potential sponsor such as Jax Beer or Sal Hepatica. At one point, station manager Henry Clay ordered many programs recorded as ammo for a feud he was having with ASCAP. The licensing organization had accused the station of performing more ASCAP songs on the Hayride than they reported and Clay ordered discs made to prove they were in error.

He further ordered the show's program director, Horace Logan, to encourage Hayride artists not to sing ASCAP compositions on the show! One saving grace, though, was a local photographer named Glen Graham. Mr. Graham loved country music and approached KWKH for permission to tape the shows on his Wollensock tape recorder. He was given permission to do so in exchange for making his professional services available to Hayride artists as an unofficial staff photographer of sorts. Mr. Graham taped the show many Saturday nights from the start back in 1948 but his studio was broken into in 1960 and most of the tapes were stolen at that time along with photo equipment, never to be seen or heard of again. Fortunately, Graham had run out of storage room for the tapes at his office and, beginning in the late fifties, began storing tapes at his residence. <span style='color:white'>Those tapes, over 40 reels, survive today and comprise over 1500 of the 2200+ tracks I have in the Hayride archives. Artist performances by Johnny Cash, Roy Acuff, George Jones, Johnny Horton, Bob Luman, Jimmy Davis, Tex Ritter and countless others were preserved in this way. </span>
<!--aimg--><a href=' www.elvis-collectors.com/EP82.jpg ' target='_blank'> <!--Resize_Images_Hint_Text--><!--/aimg-->
<span style='font-size:8pt;line-height:100%'>Joey Kent / Louisiana Hayride Archives ©</span>

<span style='color:blue'>FECC:</span> We know that most of Elvis’ 1955 performances at the Hayride released so far come from acetates that vary in sound quality. However, it is pretty obvious that his performance of October 16, 1954 ( "That’s All Right, Mama" and "Blue Moon Of Kentucky" ) offer superb sound quality. Does this mean that some of Elvis' performances were recorded on reel-to-reel tape instead of dubbing onto acetate disc ? Is it possible all the Hayride performances ( not just Elvis ) were recorded on reel-to-reel -- and only selected tracks were later transferred to acetate? If true, does this mean that many Hayride performances are lost forever?

<span style='color:red'>Joey Kent :</span> It is true that some recordings survive on tape and others on acetate. Many acetates, such as those of Hank Williams' morning show on KWKH, were actually recycled for their aluminum centers and lost that way. Beginning late in 1952, when a portion of the Hayride show was broadcast every few weeks over Armed Forces Radio as part of their weekly country show "Saturday Night Country Style", acetates were made of those broadcasts for syndication to military bases throughout the world. Sadly, few copies survive today but some may surface down the road. Both the Library of Congress and the National Archives have a series of these recordings but both sets are from 1958-59, a collection salvaged some years ago by some US senator from a base in Korea. In theory, Elvis would appear on several shows if they could ever be located. In the case of Elvis' first Hayride show from October of 1954, that performance was indeed recorded on tape, and that accounts for the superior sound quality.

<span style='color:blue'>FECC:</span> Do the tracks on the CD come from a better source than all of the previous releases containing these songs ?

<span style='color:red'>Joey Kent :</span> Yes, whenever possible the original sources have been used for this latest mastering, and sound restoration expert Walter Devenne did a phenomenal job of restoration using the latest sound enhancement techniques, many not available for use on earlier editions.

<span style='color:blue'>FECC:</span> Do you believe that any of Elvis’ performances at the Hayride are in the hands of private collectors ?

<span style='color:red'>Joey Kent :</span> Yes. I know of a Hayride recording of Elvis singing "Little Mama" that is in private hands. I also know of a Hayride recording of Elvis singing "You're Right, I'm Left, She's Gone". The owner was kind enough to send Frank Page a cassette copy of an acetate he made of one of the Saturday Night Country Style armed forces broadcasts. The man taped the show off KWKH affiliate station KTHS in Little Rock on July 16, 1955. For some reason, he sent Frank a cassette copy many years ago but the man's name and address have since been lost to time. We did, however, restore the cassette copy of the song and it has been made part of the archives. I have been told in the past that many live recordings of Elvis from that era still exist on tape and acetate in the vaults of RCA/BMG.

Some may be Hayride although I haven't gotten confirmation on the titles, dates, quality or other information.

<span style='color:blue'>FECC:</span> It is not impossible that some fans recorded Hayride shows from sitting in the audience or at home next to their radio. Have you ever come in contact with fans possessing such unique recordings ?

<span style='color:red'>Joey Kent :</span> Recently a recording surfaced of the final Hayride show Elvis did back in December of 1956. I have three songs from that night: two recorded by audience members and the encore of "Hound Dog" recorded by KWKH. This tape, which was made by a radio station employee in Texas directly from the Hayride's radio broadcast that night, features all ten songs Elvis did that night including nice gems like "Paralyzed" and "When My Blue Moon Turns To Gold Again". The radio mix contains much less distortion and the audience roars are more in the background where they belong. At the time of this interview, I am still working to obtain a copy of this recording and hope to make it part of the second planned Hayride Elvis book.

<!--aimg--><a href=' www.elvis-collectors.com/EP81.jpg ' target='_blank'> <!--Resize_Images_Hint_Text--><!--/aimg-->
<span style='font-size:8pt;line-height:100%'>Joey Kent / Louisiana Hayride Archives © </span>

<span style='color:blue'>FECC:</span> You were involved with the CD titled ‘’ Good Rocking Tonight The Evolution Of Elvis Presley ‘’ by Music Mill Entertainment, which contained two previously unknown Elvis tracks ( "Blue Moon Of Kentucky" - 01/22/55 and "That’s All Right, Mama" - 01/15/55 ). Were there any Elvis recordings from the Hayride that you, for whatever reason, left off of this CD?

<span style='color:red'>Joey Kent :</span> No, I put in everything I had at the time.

<span style='color:blue'>FECC:</span> The CD ‘’ The Elvis Broadcasts On Air ‘’ states that five songs were performed and recorded on January 22, 1955, including ‘’ Tweedlee Dee. ‘’ However, in two well-regarded Presley books, ‘’ Sessions II ‘’ ( Joseph A. Tunzi ) and ‘’ Elvis Day By Day ‘’ ( Ernst M. Jørgensen and Peter Guralnick ), ‘’ Tweedlee Dee ‘’ is being given as recorded a week earlier, on January 15, 1955. Since you were involved with the previously-mentioned Hayride CD, can you tell us why you have a later recording date for ‘’ Tweedlee Dee ‘’ ?

<span style='color:red'>Joey Kent :</span> Both the January 15th and 22nd performances come from the same acetate and that made it easy to confuse which was which since neither side of the acetate was labelled. The Elvis Broadcasts CD (for which I supplied the info) is in error. I got it backwards. As you'll see in the forthcoming book, a teenage girl named Joyce Railsback kept a journal of many of the shows and her diary helped straighten out the mess. I supplied the correct date to Ernst Jorgensen for his book and Joe Tunzi for his.

<span style='color:blue'>FECC:</span> ‘’ The Elvis Broadcasts On Air ‘’ also claims that three songs from the final Elvis Hayride show on December 15, 1956 were pulled from a full 45 minute performance. Was this last Hayride show completely recorded? Do you own the tape?

<span style='color:red'>Joey Kent :</span> See above. Elvis' final Hayride performance ran between 35 and 45 minutes long and contained the following ten songs in order: "Heartbreak Hotel", "Long Tall Sally", "I Was The One", "Love Me Tender", "Don't Be Cruel", "Love Me", "I Got A Woman", "When My Blue Moon Turns To Gold Again", "Paralyzed", and "Hound Dog".

<span style='color:blue'>FECC:</span> Were there ever any Hayride shows broadcast on TV, either locally or regionally?

<span style='color:red'>Joey Kent :</span> At one time in mid-55, KWKH attempted a televised Hayride show on local CBS affiliate KSLA-TV 12. The show never made it past the pilot stage. Rumors abound that the show was recorde on kinescope but this simply is not true. Kinescopes were very expensive pieces of equipment and KSLA was a brand new station that couldn't afford such a luxury.

<span style='color:blue'>FECC:</span> Does any film exist of Elvis performing at the Hayride? Do you personally have any amateur footage of performers at the Hayride ?

<span style='color:red'>Joey Kent :</span> I've heard rumors but have never seen any footage. I have approximately one hour of 8mm footage recorded at the Hayride during the late 50s and early 60s by Hayride fan Ann Paulsen. A good bit of that footage was used in the 1984 Louisiana Public Broadcasting production "Cradle Of The Stars" which is available on VHS. I know of a good deal more footage and am trying to secure it now. None of Elvis, though. I can assure you the rumor that Hayride personnel shot footage of the show for insurance reasons is completely false. KWKH could barely afford to put on the show, much less have someone film each show. Plus, the lawyers didn't circle back then the way they do now. What would the station have been protecting itself from?!

<!--aimg--><a href=' www.elvis-collectors.com/EP80.jpg ' target='_blank'> <!--Resize_Images_Hint_Text--><!--/aimg-->
<span style='font-size:8pt;line-height:100%'>Joey Kent / Louisiana Hayride Archives ©</span>

<span style='color:blue'>FECC:</span> On behalf of all our readers we would like to thank you very much for your kindness and for having took the time to do this interview with us. We know that “ Elvis : The Hayride Years 54-56 “ will be a success, but still we would like to wish you all the best of luck with this project and the other ones in the future.

<span style='color:red'>Joey Kent :</span> Thank you. This volume was born of the creation of a much larger volume: a giant coffee table book about the history of KWKH and the entire Louisiana Hayride show. Hayride announcer Horace Logan wrote his book and Hayride bandmember/manager Tillman Franks has written his. It's time for Frank Page to go on the record with an unbiased historical accounting in not just his words but the words of the stars, engineers, fans, managers and others who helped make the show such an incredible success. We sincerely hope to have the book, entitled "Cradle Of The Stars: KWKH and the Louisiana Hayride" out sometime in 2004. A lot of work went into this Elvis volume but it will pale in comparison to the full Hayride book which traces the evolution of KWKH from an amateur station in Shreveport in 1916 up through the Hayride era and into the present time.

In both cases, great care has been taken to restore all the photographs, verify all the facts, and credit all those who deserve credit. Speaking of...in the spirit of saving the best for last I'd like to thank the publisher of our Elvis book, Joe Tunzi, for encouraging Frank and I to compile this Elvis volume and release it to the public during the fiftieth anniversary year. Joe shares our enthusiasm for the rich history of the Hayride and personally produced the wonderful companion CD. It was his commitment that these ten tracks sound the best they've ever sounded that resulted in the hiring of Walter Devenne and the creation of an excellent audio companion to a wonderful glimpse into the early life of Elvis Presley. At long last, the gap between Sun and RCA has been filled in and Elvis at his most beautiful, his most free and wild, can now be shared with the world. And who better to paint that picture than the man who first introduced radio listeners worldwide to a kid from Memphis back in the fall of 1954, my good friend, Hayride legend Frank Page. Both he and I thank you.

Joey Kent
December, 2003

<span style='font-size:8pt;line-height:100%'>Quelle: Elvis-Collectors.Com</span>

WOW!
Danke Charles! Sehr guter Tipp!

<!--aimg--><a href=' www.elvis-collectors.com/HayrideYearsback.jpg ' target='_blank'> <!--Resize_Images_Hint_Text--><!--/aimg-->

Elvis - The Hayride Years 54-56
We received this morning the new book ‘’ Elvis- The Hayride Years 54-56 ‘’ by Frank Page and Joey Kent published by J.A.T. Publishing. After our interview with Joey Kent we had the feeling this book would meet all our expectations, and quite frankly it did just that and beyond.

The size of this book is the same as previous book from J.A.T. Publishing ( Rock’n Nassau, For The First Time Ever, Hawaiian Spirit, etc… ) and contains 96 pages. Most of the pictures and graphics were provided by the Louisiana Hayride archives but some came from external sources such as Langston McEachern and Ernst Mikael Jorgensen to name a few. The lay out of the book is also excellent and gives life to the pictures and different documents presented here.

The text throughout the book was written by Frank Page who recaptured the moments when Elvis appeared at the Louisiana Hayride. This is a very interesting read and how fascinating to have lots of dated photographs accompanying the text, along with posters, news clippings, letters and notes. Even more fascinating is the inclusion of several pages of the diary of Joyce Railsback who were taking notes of who was appearing at the shows and what they were singing. A good example of this being her notes on the first show Elvis performed as a regular of the Louisiana Hayride on November 6, 1954. She misspelled Elvis’ name and wrote ‘’ Elvis Prestly ‘’ which was definitely unknown to her at that moment, yet she had the name right on his diary page of December 18, 1954. The songs Elvis performed on November 6, 1954 were ‘’ I’m Gonna Sit Right Down and Cry Over You ‘’, ‘’ Fool, Fool, Fool ‘’ with a mention saying ‘’ He has a strange and different style and may go places with it ‘’ and finally ‘’ Blue Moon ‘’ ( possibly meant ‘’ Blue Moon Of Kentucky ‘’ or perhaps not ? ).

The book contains some photographs we have seen before but a whole lot are being seen for the first time. I won’t go into details about the different pictures illustrated within the pages of this book but the shots taken during the three months of 1956, and the ones from December 15, 1956 are among my favourites. Since a second book is planned on Elvis’ last Louisiana Hayride performance of December 15, 1956, I can’t wait for that one to be published as well as some of the photographs used here are simply stunning.



‘’ Elvis – The Hayride Years 54-56 ‘’ comes with a bonus collector’s CD of restored Louisiana Hayride recordings titled ‘’ Elvis Presley At The Hayride Tonight ! ‘’. I wasn’t expecting much from this CD considering we’ve got so many releases from these recordings over the years. The back cover of the CD mentions ‘’ For The First Time ! Digitally restored from the original sources in the Louisiana Hayride archives ‘’. Are these tracks sound better than before ? The answer is yes.

I compared the tracks featured on this CD with the same ones contained on the CD ‘’ The Elvis Broadcasts On Air ‘’ which I considered to this day the best source for the Hayride recordings. The first two songs on the bonus CD are ‘’ That’s All Right ‘’ and ‘’ Blue Moon Of Kentucky ‘’ from Elvis’ first performance at the Hayride on October 16, 1954. Those two are possibly the ones who sounded quite the same on both releases although I would give a slight advantage to the bonus CD accompanying the book. The same can be said for ‘’ Baby Let’s Play House ‘’ but ‘’ Tweedlee Dee ‘’ From April 30, 1955 is definitely way ahead on the ‘’ Elvis At The Hayride Tonight ! ‘’.

‘’ I Was The One ‘’ and ‘’ Hound Dog ‘’ are equally sounding better here than on the ‘’ Elvis Broadcasts On Air ‘’ CD, and moreover ‘’ Hound Dog is a just a bit longer here since it starts a few lines before the drum rolls leading to the second verse of the song. ‘’ Hearts Of Stone ‘’ is possibly one of the poorest track we’ve got from the Hayride from a very scratchy acetate. Yes, you can still hear some scratches but the improvement is important here. Indeed we here much lesser scratches and more of the music and Elvis’ vocal here.

‘’ Maybellene ‘’ comes with the mention ‘’ reworked audio ‘’. Not exactly certain what it means but the result is a track that is much better and sound relatively fresher when compared to the previous outings of this performance. ‘’ That’s All Right ‘’ from January 22, 1955 is also sounding better. The last track with June Carter talking about Elvis and reading a poem on March 6, 1960 at the Hayride is fun to have although not essential by itself. The audio restoration was done by Little Walter Devenne and he did overall a great job on these Louisiana Hayride recordings.

Unless my memory is failing, I think this is the very first book on Elvis during the Hayride Years. We had other books containing documents and pictures related to the Hayride, but nothing as extensive and comprehensive such as this new book by Frank Page and Joey Kent. These gentlemen did a marvellous job and with the help of .J.A.T. Publishing produced what has already became one of my favourite book on Elvis.

If you are allergic to Elvis in the fifties then this book isn’t for you. However if you dig that stuff then hurry to grab a copy while they last. You’ll be happy that you did and give several spins to the bonus CD, after all what we hear on this is the wild rocker who would soon become the King Of Rock’n’ Roll. I can’t wait for the second volume and CD !!!!!
The Crazy Canuck, January 2004

<span style='font-size:8pt;line-height:100%'>Quelle: Elvis-Collectors.Com</span>

Was ist das für eine VÖ? Hat da mal jemand ein Bild von?

sehr gutes buch....

wann kommt das Buch von Ernst ?

k.b. sagt schon wieder verschoben befürchte erst ende 2008 anfaang 2009 oh mann....
warten wir mal ab mit was mrs um die ecke kommt wobei ich gehört habe das sie auch an einem graceland buch arbeiten...da erwarte ich ne menge...