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‘The Girl Happy Sessions' FTD Box-set Review The Girl Happy Sessions So it’s with an updated awareness that collectors can get rationally excited about the new FTD release of 3CDs - over 190 minutes and over 80 previously unreleased outtakes from the ‘Girl Happy Sessions’.
Interestingly I have never noted that Elvis keeps his clothes on throughout the film.
The photograph of the gang at Parker’s birthday party is noteworthy with everybody looking happy and smiling - except Elvis and Marty Lacker. The film gets some surprisingly good newspaper reviews even though the New York Times does suggest… “Come on, El. Send us a better one next time, up in the league with Fun in Acapulco and Viva Las Vegas.” The booklet also features the usual Sessions Data, movie trivia, foreign film posters, worldwide premieres plus interesting chart listings, 45 rpm and 33 sleeve covers. It's a well compiled booklet. There are several RCA tape box covers featured including the back cover of the album tape box that shows ‘My Baby Is Gone’ (instead of ‘I’ve Got To Find My Baby’) listed as track 11! It also shows that Side A ran less than ten & half minutes. What a rip-off. While Elvis was obviously not enthused by the material he was recording he was still putting time and energy into completing “okay” Masters. At the session he even comments to the producers he wants better “I don't like 'ok'!"
The album was recorded in June 1964 but not released until March 1965 at the time when pop-music was changing fast. On February 9 1964, The Beatles had performed on The Ed Sullivan Show. On the week of April 4 1964 The Beatles held all top five chart entries on the Billboard singles chart with Can't Buy Me Love, Twist And Shout, She Loves You, I Want To Hold Your Hand and Please Please Me. By May 1964 The Beatles also occupied 3 out of the top 5 positions on the Billboard Album charts.
The Audio It’s worth noting however that whereas on the earlier 'Kissin' Cousins' sessions all the songs were vocal-overdubs for most of this session Elvis was still working with the live band (which included fine guitarists Tiny Timbrell and Tommy Tedesco) even if the material was a pale comparison to his earlier 60s songs. The new complete Girl Happy Sessions contain over 80 previously unreleased takes, albeit most of them false starts, but if you enjoy the movie and its soundtrack then there is still plenty of fun to be had listening to Elvis and the musicians as they struggle time and again to create a usable master. The MGM Audio Mix In the studio Elvis was standing quite close to the drums so when his microphone is faded up you can hear some studio ambience bleeding into his microphone, most notably the cymbals. This gives an odd effect and is very noticeable on The Meanest Girl In Town especially on headphones. When the track starts it is ONLY the musicians playing on left speaker. Then as soon as they fade up Elvis’ microphone (around six seconds in) you can hear the general studio audio bleeding through into Elvis’ microphone creating a weird stereo effect before he actually starts singing. One of the best examples of this terrible mix is on The Meanest Girl In Town Take 11 during Boots Randolph’s sax solo when they fade Elvis’ mic down (between 01:44 – 01:50) causing everything to suddenly go ‘left channel only’ before returning to the weird-stereo-bleed-mess a few seconds later. On Do The Clam Boots Randolph’s sax solo is repeated to lengthen the song. However on the inserted 20 seconds repeated solo it was added “left-channel only” so the backing vocals suddenly stop on the right channel only to jump back in when Elvis starts the next verse. It is truly the worst audio editing. RCA’s Bill Porter would never have been so stupid.
DISC 1 features the original soundtrack album, including the sped-up chip-monk sounding ‘Girl Happy’, but minus ‘You’ll Be Gone’ bonus song. While this was definitely not Elvis’ best soundtrack album it did contain some stronger songs than the earlier ‘Kissin’ Cousins’ and at least Elvis was interacting and singing with the musicians for most of the tracks. Girl Happy, Do Not Disturb, Cross My Heart and Hope To Die, The Meanest Girl In Town, Puppet On A String and I’ve Got To Find My Baby are all fun soundtrack material while the ridiculous 'Do The Clam' was a Top 5 single across Australia! The album made the top ten album charts in the USA, the UK and Australia but it would be his last soundtrack LP that achieved these high sales. For some very odd reason four tracks, ‘I’ve Got To Find My Baby’, ‘Fort Lauderdale Chamber Of Commerce’, ‘Startin’ Tonight’ and ‘Wolf Call’ were edited down for release (‘Startin’ Tonight’ only lasts 78 seconds). With the first side of the original LP running less than 11 minutes, even with these very lightweight songs, surely another few minutes of playing time would be a bonus for Elvis soundtrack buyers. Ridiculously ‘Do The Clam’ was actually extended by repeating Boots Randolph’s sax solo mid-song. It all made very little sense. As a brand new treat for collectors, Disc 1 includes the full-length Unedited Masters that were shortened for release discovered on mono acetates. Kevan Budd has done great work to clean up the crackle and hiss. ‘Wolf Call’ was one of the five songs where Elvis overdubbed his vocal. The first version runs the full 2:26 but is missing the Jordanaires later overdubbed backing as well as that Ray Walker deep-bass addition. The song was heavily edited for album release with the first guitar solo and second verse cut, as was the ending. This song was also slightly sped up. While pure soundtrack filler it is still interesting to discover how over a minute was cut from the actual recording. The Jordanaires overdubbed full-length version is also included. ‘Startin’ Tonight’ was similarly edited down to under 80 seconds. This time the rather lame mid-song guitar solo and 4-bar intros to each verse were taken out. To be honest the unedited full-length version is hardly any improvement but it would certainly have boosted the value of the LP’s very short side A. ‘I’ve Got To Find My Baby’ - the official release always sounded as if it cut-in “mid-scream” and this full-length version proves exactly that. It was madness to edit out the song’s original 4-second build-up to cut-in mid-cheer from the Jordanaires, especially as the cheer repeats later in the song. Elvis’ second verse is completely removed and there is a quick fade out. Editing the final soundtrack number down to 82 seconds when it could have run an extra minute beggars belief. ‘Do The Clam’ acetate is the original 2:43 recorded version. As mentioned above, this song was actually lengthened by repeating the sax solo for no obvious reason. ‘The Meanest Girl In Town’ acetate features the complete session recording through to the final “cut”. Nothing was edited this time, it was only faded out earlier than one might expect. Elvis gave up on the session after the gruelling 36 attempts on ‘Do Not Disturb’ so the musicians then continued after midnight to finish off the backing-tracks that were required and which Elvis would later overdub. The extra ‘Instrumental Outtakes’ that complete CD1 are alternate complete versions that could have been used. ‘I’ve Got To Find My Baby’ is notable for being less rushed with a smoother sax solo. ‘Fort Lauderdale Chamber Of Commerce’ take 4 proves that the song was quickly faded out half-way through. Another verse would have followed with a rather fun Jordanaires high-pitched calypso play-off. Unfortunately Elvis’ overdubbed full-length version has not been found. ‘Startin’ Tonight’ alternate take 1 is similar to the used track, if slightly slower. A final collector’s treat is the often discussed Tickle Me ‘I Feel That I’ve Known You Forever’ overdubbed movie version which has been taken from an acetate. The 1962 ‘I Feel That I’ve Known You Forever’ original had Elvis’ vocal removed and then was edited down to 90 seconds (the FTD sleeve says 2:34 when it should be 1:34). Elvis then supplied a new quieter vocal for the ‘Tickle Me’ movie soundtrack, presumably at Paramount Soundstage. Why Elvis or the movie studio thought this was required rather than just editing down the original release as they did with the other tracks it is not known. Elvis’ new vocal was recorded in October 1964 between ‘Girl Happy’ and the ‘Harum Scarum’ sessions however the FTD booklet supplies no background information about the song or why it is included in this ‘Girl Happy’ collection.
DISC 2 - The Sessions Pt.1 - 71 Minutes Puppet On A String Previously unreleased Take 3 (with a start missing from the tape) is first and it is quite a delight, only spoilt by an extraneous studio noise at the very end. Studio engineer Dave Weichman knows that it was a good take and says, “Take a listen”. Elvis is in good humour throughout. Take 5 delightfully falls apart with Elvis laughing, "Every time you look at me… He's looking at me with a sheepish grin!" Later on Elvis laughs as he sings in the wrong key and on previously unreleased Take 9 his voice wobbles as he tries to hold a note and he jokes “Damn it, I missed it.” The Meanest Girl In Town The very rough previously unreleased Take 1 is a delight. Elvis is laughing from the start, “Hot Damn, She’s Evil” he sings and then fluffs with the fabulous “ain’t no bout adoubt it” (instead of ‘doubt about it’) and amazingly the band keep going! For a lightweight tune Elvis is surprisingly involved suggesting a faster tempo and raising the rhythm section during the break. The joy is being able to eavesdrop on Elvis trying his hardest on these lightweight songs and still managing to stay in a happy mood. Most attempts end quickly with Elvis messing up the lyrics, but previously unreleased near-complete Take 6 is another good addition as Elvis gets close but stumbles at the last hurdle, and sings, “There ain’t no doubt about it…. we’re confused on the end!” It’s a treat as the band still keeps going. On Take 7 he struggles with the lyrics and runs out of breathe laughing, "Ha, ha, whoo! Speaking of taking a deep breath!" “That feels great, man” notes studio engineer Dave Weichman. Complete Take 9 includes a passionate extended “Ha, Ha, Ha” ending, as does Take 11. Take 13 would be the Master. Girl Happy Take 1 was taken at a very slow-twist tempo and has a lovely feel to it as Elvis can take time with his vocal. Elvis stops before the final chorus but the band continues. “Hold it!” yells Elvis. By the second take the tempo had been sped up. On Take 3 Elvis nearly makes it to the end before tripping up and then laughs deliciously, "Hold it, Hold It." He talks to the band commenting, "I think it could be a little faster." A real favourite. The arrangement was changed for Take 4 with the guitar pulled back and Floyd Cramer’s piano more upfront. In fact there is a definite vibe of Cramer’s 1961 hit ‘On The Rebound’ here. The guitar is back driving the song on previously unreleased Takes 5 – 10 which all fail while they work on the tempo or Elvis fluffs the melody, “Goddamn, forgot the line, damn!” Take 11 is a brilliant new addition as Elvis stops looking at the lyrics, “Oh God, why did I look up, why did I look up, why did I look up!” he explains as the band keeps on playing. “That’s a good tempo though” he notes. Elvis’ frustration starts on the near-complete Take 12 and Elvis fluffs end , “God damn, what’s wrong with you guys, No, No!” Elvis asks, “Who invented this? I’m going to beat the hell out of him?” The final master was an edit of near-complete Take 13 where Elvis stops 10 seconds before the play-off and ending-insert Take 5. Movie producer Joe Pasternak was at the session and Elvis disconcertingly asks, “Mr Pasternak please don’t let them bring me up on that….” Cross My Heart and Hope To Die But Elvis could never conquer the middle-break lyrics, On this release we get seven previously unreleased attempts and almost all of them fail at the middle-eight as Elvis stumbles yet again. These new outtakes only run 9 minutes in total so it’s still undemanding to eavesdrop on Elvis’ frustration over his timing. By Take 2 they have upped the tempo, the finger-snaps are cool but Elvis drifts off melody and stumbles, “Goddamn, how’s that thing written!” he expounds while the band keeps playing! It’s a nice addition. Before Take 5 Elvis seems to be happy with the lyrics, clicking his fingers and whistling to himself. Complete Take 6 has a lovely, light feel and Elvis just fumbles his way through the usual lyric stumble and the song has a lovely jazzy playoff. It’s delightful. Further attempts fail at the same spot and on Take 9 Elvis starts getting annoyed, “Goddamn. Cos’ you, my ass! Oh shit!” On the final Take 11 the studio ambience is picked up through Elvis’ mic and also finger-snaps on the right channel. There’s some stereo spread but by the time it was edited down for the LP Master at the start they cut the right channel completely only cutting in Elvis’ mic at 00:12. It sounds terrible. It’s also worth noting that on the final release Elvis still stumbles at the “drag me away from you, 'Cos I” lyric!
DISC 3: Sessions Pt.2 - 71 minutes Unfortunately Elvis would then spend the rest of the evening struggling through 24 takes of Spring Fever and 36 takes of Do Not Disturb after which he would walk out of the session in disgust leaving the rest of the songs to be overdubbed. There is little doubt that even the greatest soundtrack fan will have trouble enjoying over 27 minutes of failed attempts at the ridiculously inconsequential ‘Spring Fever’. Spring Fever Take 4 was the first complete attempt but it sounds like a rough run-through and Elvis stops singing before his final line. Elvis then asks for a quick rehearsal with the Jordanaires to sort things out. At this point you would expect one serious attempt before cutting the final Master and moving on to the next song. But, oh no, Elvis would fail on all the next eleven attempts and from basic lack of concentration. It’s not until Take 11 that Elvis gets close to finishing the song before stopping at the chorus. “Almost fellows, I’m sorry” he apologises. Both Dave W and Musical Director George Stoll try to up the enthusiasm noting, “Doing real good” and “Just going great!” On Take 13 for some reason Elvis throws in the typical old mannerism of “uh, huh, huh” mid first chorus which of course throws out his timing! On complete Take 16 Elvis sounds very disinterested and doesn’t bother to sing the final line. Previously released Take 18 falls apart delightfully when the band stops which leaves Elvis mid-sentence. He ends up singing, "The sky is full of butterfly … shit!" As another take stops, George Stoll rightfully points out to Elvis that he’s losing interest noting, "It should be a little happier too. You're thinking of other things." As Ann-Margret was still hanging around and visiting Elvis, I can imagine his mind being on other things than 24 takes of 'Spring Fever'! New Take 20 is a nice addition with Elvis sounding more interested and only fumbling the last verse with the band cutting out with a cute rock’n’roll ending. George Stoll notes, “really rolling great up to there.” Elvis comments, “well, let’s save that one.” Penultimate Take 23 is a delight as Elvis confuses the lyric ‘cab’ and ‘car’ and laughs at himself, “oh, God!” before screaming loud in frustration. Even on the Master cut Elvis seems to hold back hardly singing the ending at all – and to be honest who could blame him. EIN NOTE: We recommend selecting the following Spring Fever tracks 1, 4, 7, 9, 10 from Disc3. Do Not Disturb Luckily this time there is some variety as the first few takes are basically the musicians on their own while Elvis works out the melody. The first ten outtakes only last 6 minutes while they change the tempo and also rehearse the track. Elvis comments, “I’m not getting anything from this goddamn thing!” On Take 8 he hilariously sings, “Let’s take the phone off the hook, tell the maid to… go get fucked!” After a quick rehearsal Elvis states, “It’s OK. It’s OK now.” Little did he know! On Takes 13-16 Elvis is still struggling to follow the melody and tricky key change. Again most of these are short false starts with takes 17-23 lasting less than 5 minutes in total. Elvis is obviously getting very frustrated noting that he wants to follow the piano melody rather than change key as required. At one point George Stoll suggests changing the melody but Elvis even with all his frustration respectfully replies, “No Sir, it’s not that.” It’s on Take 24 that Elvis gets angry saying, "That is undoubtably the weirdest goddamn chord change I think I've ever tangled with in my life. I'll beat the hell out of it if it takes 94 years of hard labour. I'll come back after the picture and record it for hours!" It is fascinating to eavesdrop on every exasperating moment. The engineer points out that the earlier take was "okay". Always the perfectionist, even with this lesser movie material, Elvis notes, "It was 'ok'. I don't like 'ok'!" Take 28 is at least complete but Elvis sounds very stilted. He does however delightfully hum along at the end as the band keep on jamming. “That was very good El” says George Stoll. Takes 29-34 are previously unreleased but still go no further. Take 33 is a nice new addition as Elvis trips up on the key change but still manages to joke, “You son-of-a-bitch. Stay with me fellows, no really!” It also features a cute jazz-jam ending. Take 36 would be the Master but even then you can still hear the guitars go out of key (@1.34) I guess Elvis wasn't going to try it yet again! In fact at this point he left the studio and went home! EIN NOTE: We recommend selecting the following Do Not Disturb tracks 11, 15, 17, 19, 21 from Disc3. Final five Overdubbed songs Having heard what RDM engineer Anthony Stuchbury has done to rectify the stereo mix of ‘Girls, Girls Girls’ it is only a shame he couldn’t have fixed up the mix on this Girl Happy release.
Elvis with producer Joe Pasternak and director Boris Sagal
Sidenote: While other reviewers have noted that the content of this 3CD soundtrack set is too repetitive, I personally compare it to FTD’s recent ‘Last Tours Vol. 2’ 3CD set where listening to seven all-too-similar 1977 concert versions of ‘O Sole Mio / It’s Now Or Never’ I found far more of a tedious chore.
Overall Verdict: Girl Happy is by no means a favourite Elvis soundtrack of mine, however there is always plenty to enjoy from eavesdropping on Elvis’ recording sessions. This 3CD set includes an impressive 190 minute detailed look at Elvis’ Girl Happy sessions compared to just 68 minutes on the original ‘Girl Happy’ Classic Album release. The booklet is excellent and the new full-length acetates add real value to understanding how RCA compiled the original soundtrack album. It’s also fascinating to hear Elvis’ frustrations building up over this lesser movie material when we know that even worse would follow. To be honest I got far more added enjoyment from this set than the ‘His Hand In Mine’ complete sessions which only added 3 minutes more material to the previous FTD Classic Album release. With Elvis’ RCA recording sessions’ barrel almost scraped clean it is a joy to discover plenty of new and entertaining material here on this fluffy soundtrack release and if you are a ‘Girl Happy’ fan then this is a lovely addition for your collection.
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