Back in Nashville by Elvis Presley
Memphis and Nashville were the opposite poles of Elvis Presley’s inspiration. He grew up surrounded by country music and R&B on the radio and live on stages near the projects where he lived. Back in Memphis was the title of the 1970 LP that revisited his hometown R&B roots. The new box set, Back in Nashville, riffs with that title and represents the fruit of a three-month 1971 session in Opryland. By this time, Elvis had put at least one foot down in the smarmy face of Colonel Parker by insisting on recording material he wanted to record. Many of the songs heard on Back in Nashville came from contemporary artists on border where folk met country (Bob Dylan, Kris Kristofferson, Gordon Lightfoot)—when he wasn’t recording gospel and knocking out early R&B and rock’n’roll for fun.
Produced by Felton Jarvis and featuring Elvis’ longtime guitarist James Burton along with ace Nashville studio players, these 1971 sessions found the King in stripped down mode. Elvis sang in front of a band with occasional conclaves of backup vocalists—and sang beautifully. Elvis delivered songs from many sources with sincerity and even dedication. The atmosphere was loose, relaxed. Much of the material collected on Back in Nashville was released posthumously and a few tracks were unheard until now.
