"Elvis Presley" by Elvis Presley

Ranking: #56

Original Release Date: 23 March 1956

Genre: Rock and Roll

"Elvis Presley" was the inaugural album by - you guessed it - Elvis Presley (affectionately known as the King of Rock and Roll). This album is notable, not only because it is the first album of possibly one of the most prolific musicians in contemporary pop culture, but because it also marked rock & rolls entry into the domination of the airwaves. Elvis' self-titled album spent 10 weeks at the top of the Billboard charts, the first rock & roll album ever to do so. His music would define the genre and he is still well loved by fans (like myself) today.

Let's take a look at what was happening in 1956. At this point, it's no secret that Elvis was heavily influenced by the blues music being created by African-American artists of the time. Not so coincidentally, 1956 also marked a critical year in the Civil Rights Movement. In November 1956, the Supreme Court would rule that the Alabama bus segregation laws were unconstitutional in the landmark Browder v. Gayle case. From the end of 1955 until this ruling, anti-segregationists held the Montgomery bus boycott, the initial act of social protest that would evolve into the Civil Rights Movement. This protest would spark other bus boycotts in the South and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s involvement would elevate him as a leader for social justice. Unfortunately, this would put him in danger and in January of 1956, Dr. King's home was bombed - just one of many attempts that would be made on his life until his assassination in 1968. He was far from the only public figure targeted - Nat Cole was attacked in April while he was performing onstage in Birmingham in a racially charged incident. And the first attempts to integrate public schools are met with venomous opposition throughout the South.

Blue Moon (moon, moon, moon, Blue Moon)

You saw me standing alone (moon, moon, moon, Blue Moon)

Without a dream in my heart (moon, moon, moon, Blue Moon)

Without a love of my own

In other news (and perhaps as a distraction from the events of the day), the first soap opera, "As the World Turns," premiers on network television. Cecil B. DeMille's masterpiece, "The Ten Commandments" is released in the United States. And the Suez Canal crisis leads to war between Israel and Egypt. Other than that, it was a big year in the world of sports and it was an especially big year for Elvis Presley. Throughout 1956, practically every single he released became a hit both domestically and internationally. He was making the rounds on the talk show circuit, to include his famous performance on "The Ed Sullivan Show." And he also made his film debut in "Love Me Tender." Nope, not a bad year at all for a 21-year-old from Memphis, Tennessee.

I wanted to take a look at both Elvis' natal chart as well as the chart for the album release. In this day and age, we don't blink twice at a 21-year-old being famous in an instant - between Disney Channel stars and the glut of celebrity children, it's bound to happen. But in 1956, Elvis meteoric rise was almost unheard of. Elvis' birthday is 8 January (he shares this birthday with our last featured artist, David Bowie), which makes him a Capricorn. When his debut album was released, the ascendant and Uranus were directly opposite his Sun, indicating a major shift in how he would perceived. Uranus was also square his natal Uranus - squares are known for being rough, but they can also be a sign that events happen suddenly, without warning. Another interesting thing to note is that when this album was released, the North Node was conjunct his ascendant in Sagittarius, an indication that he was just following his destined path. Speaking of Destiny, his North Node, his Moon, and his Saturn were all in Aquarius. Revolutionizing the music scene wasn't just his Destiny, he may have felt it was his duty as well. Elvis' midheaven is in Virgo, which isn't much of a surprise. A Virgo MC, being ruled by Mercury, usually points to a person who is detail-oriented and highly skilled at self-learning. Elvis didn't have formal musical training, and mostly learned and played music by ear. Ironically, he said music was the only class he ever failed. But he loved music as a child and he'd seek out ways to listen to it, frequenting shows at local blues venues (something good boys didn't do in the segregated South) and spending time at record stores to hear the new releases.

This was a fun album to listen to, mostly because I grew up an Elvis fan. My dad would always remind me that he was in the 10th Mountain Division when he served in the Army, which is one of the units my dad was in when I was a kid. It's not a long album and it doesn't even have most of the hits people can point to as being Elvis. But it was an important album - there isn't a pop or rock musician today that can say they weren't influenced by Elvis. If they say they aren't, they're lying because they probably wouldn't exist without this album. I can't even imagine what music would sound like today if this album was never released. We'd probably be listening to elevator music or untuned violins or something like that. Oh wait....

"Blue Moon" Video

"Kiss Kiss Kill Kill" by HorrorPops

I'm feeling HorrorPops, especially some of their darker stuff. HorrorPops are a Danish punk band, whose influences are mostly rockabilly and psychobilly. Especially when you get into more horrorbilly stuff (like Nekromantix and Calabrese), a lot of the songs are cinematically inspired. On the album, "Kiss Kiss Kill Kill," there are several songs inspired by classic movies. Most notably in my mind was "Thelma & Louise," which draws on the film to paint a picture of a pair of freewheeling girls on a joyride (when, in reality, the ending of the movie was much more tragic). The titular song itself, which I'm featuring today, takes it's name from a campy Euro-Spy movie made in the mid-60s that featured two American police detectives in Yugoslavia. Just judging by the movie poster, it looks ridiculous - but, then again, I'm the type of person who likes to watch awesomely bad movies.

In this shiver of symphony

the closing shadows turn like a still

a thousand feet across the floor

and in a second I'll never grow old

quiet now quiet now

crying I won't stop

the quivers running down my mind

ha-ah-ah-ah-oh-oh-oh!

close enough

close enough

and I'm feeling tired

(kiss kiss kill kill)

(kiss kiss kill kill)

The actual song lyrics, however, sound more like something out of a dimestore vampire novel. I couldn't find much on the lyrics meaning, so I'm going to go a little rogue and write my own interpretation. The singer is in love with someone who drains her....and she realizes it. But she doesn't want to let go. If he/she's going to kill her, she welcomes it. Like a soft kiss. I always thought that was the most disturbing part of the most recent spate of vampire/werewolf romances. It's like the collective unconscious believes that love has to be painful and even dangerous. Or maybe it's just the same story - we want to believe love changes people for the better, even when we (literally) love a monster. Even after they've done the absolute worst thing they could to you (like murdered you for your tasty tasty blood, metaphorically speaking). Coincidentally, classic rockabilly films usually center around a high-class girl falling for a "greaser." And, wouldn't you know it, the girl usually gets her heart broken.

Just a brief rundown on rockabilly - it's one of the earliest forms of rock'n'roll, which took hold of America during the 1950s, especially in parts of the South. It mixed elements of country music with that of blues. The name itself is a combination of "rock" and "hillbilly," as if you couldn't have figured that out yourself. The sound was popularized by Buddy Holly, Johnny Cash, and - of course - Elvis Presley. One of my first loves. Did you know that Elvis was assigned to the 10th Mountain Division when he was drafted into the Army? Well, I do....but that's because my dad would bring it up all the time because he was also in 10th Mountain Division. Regardless, Elvis was one of my favorite artists growing up, because his sound and his voice was so unique.

Nowadays, rockabilly has become synonymous with the subculture that it birthed. There's a particular style that goes with it, of which I'm quite fond. Femmes have their choice of dressing like a Pink Lady or, if they're feeling fancy, they can squeeze themselves into a "wiggle" dress (this is the actual technical fashion term for that style). In recent years, there's been an explosion in rockabilly style, so if you're life is conducive to dressing in pencil skirts and shimmy dresses all the time, you have plenty of options. Even if you can't do that, a few fit & flare shirt dresses go a long way if you're going for the look (and they're super comfortable). Alternatively, if you identify as the more masculine type, your job is easy - jeans, steel-toed boots, a white t-shirt, and a leather jacket. Fucking classic and super hot.

"Kiss Kiss Kill Kill" Video

"While My Guitar Gently Weeps" by The Beatles (as covered by Girl in a Coma)

George Harrison wrote "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" after The Beatles became immersed in Transcendental Meditation (TM). After months of trying to get in touch with your inner One-ness and becoming infinitely more wise in the process, there's a moment when you become despondent that others don't understand what you understand. In the moment, in feels like it was so easy to get to this point. You've forgotten that - in reality - it wasn't. It was full of a lot of pain and before that moment, your life was an endless string of struggles. That's where Harrison was when he wrote this song. He felt so at peace with himself, but walking through the world, all he saw was people in immense amounts of pain. Suffering that was usually caused by their own inner demons - low self-worth, anxiety, competition with everyone in the world. Lacking in authenticity, not knowing that who they were was more than good enough.

I look at you all see the love there that's sleeping

While my guitar gently weeps

I look at the floor and I see it needs sweeping

Still my guitar gently weeps.

I don't know why nobody told you

How to unfold your love

I don't know how someone controlled you

They bought and sold you.

You've got to understand - in 1968, when The Beatles really got into the TM movement, they had spent several years under the influence of fame and excess. Lost in that world, they became jaded, as anyone would in that situation. They all felt as if they lost their passion for music and, in some ways, their passion for living. So, they went searching for something, like we all do eventually. Well, those who are awake, anyway. The Beatles decided to visit India and study TM under Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. His time there marked a profound change in Harrison and, afterwards, began a period of prolific songwriting. When he came back, he started to read the I Ching and embraced the idea of relativism - that everything is in relation to everything else. Nothing is coincidental. Nothing is an accident. He made a decision to write a song based on the first words he saw when he opened a book, which were "gently weeps." Similar to how Stevie Nicks used bibliomancy to write "Rhiannon." In the lyrics, he laments the universal love for humankind that is dormant in all people but remains unrealized. It was his profound wish that everyone would see and embrace this capability. If Love conquers all, why hasn't it yet? I don't know, George....I don't know.

I look at the world and I notice it's turning

While my guitar gently weeps

With every mistake we must surely be learning

Still my guitar gently weeps.

I don't know how you were diverted

You were perverted too

I don't know how you were inverted

No one alerted you.

A few words about Transcendental Meditation - it's simple to do yet, for some reason, you have to go to a teacher to learn it. Like everything worth doing, the world commodified and commercialized it. The Beatles were partially responsible for that - their very public endorsement as the biggest celebrities of the time created a surge of interest....and, simultaneously, hordes of customers desperate to emulate The Beatles. And once people realize you can make money off something, they'll do it. But, as I said, it's simple to do. You sit in silence, repeating a mantra in your head, for about 15-20 minutes twice a day. Supposedly (and please be aware that I have never taken a paid TM class in my life), the TM instructor gives you the mantras to work with and that's what you're paying for, really. Ancient wisdom. But, my friends, that's what the Internet is for....you can look up mantras and the TM technique yourself. You can decide if it's worth the money to get private TM instruction. But I believe the search for inner peace doesn't have to cost money and I'd be wary of anyone who says otherwise.

I look at you all see the love there that's sleeping

While my guitar gently weeps

Look at you all

Still my guitar gently weeps.

This version of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" comes from Girl in a Coma's "Adventures in Coverland" album, which is exactly what you think it is - an album consisting solely of covers. As I've mentioned, I love Nina Diaz's voice, and GiaC's general style is highly influenced by rockabilly and surf rock. While Harrison's original recordings of the song were more folk music-inspired and the final version that made it to the White album had hints of progressive rock, the twangy guitar in GiaC's version hearkens back to the classic rock that influenced the young George, Paul, John, and Ringo. Additionally, I think Diaz's soulful crooning gives the lyrics more weight, somehow. You can really feel the worldly despair at the end.

Side tangent - While I was listening to this song (both out loud and in my head), I began to think about the idiom "heart of gold." Someone once said I had a heart of gold and I always thought that was a good thing. It sounds like a good thing, doesn't it? You would think it means that  I have a pure, good heart that is precious and valuable and needs to be protected. But then I was thinking that gold is one of the heaviest metals, atomically speaking. A gold bar is extremely heavy - you couldn't easily steal a bar of gold, because no one is that strong. So to be carrying around a heart of gold would be like always carrying this weight around in your chest. That's exactly what it feels like. If that's the case, I suppose it would be better to have a heart of stone. You don't have to carry around so much with you. You'd feel lighter. Oh, the places my mind goes when it's not doing anything....

As I write this, I feel strange. There was an eclipse today, the first New Moon of 2019. I don't know if that means something but an eerie calm has come over me. A sort of peace. A feeling that anything could happen - the world could end tomorrow - and I'd still know everything is going to be okay. And I'm ready for it. I can't describe it but I know it's true somehow. I don't really know what's happening to me. Anyway, I'm putting both the Beatles version and the GiaC version so you can hear the differences between the styles. Enjoy!

Girl in a Coma Version

The Beatles Version

Discover Friday: Girl in a Coma

So.....the radio station I was raving about a few weeks ago....it devolved into typical radio station bullshit, like repeating songs I enjoyed until I wanted to stab my ears, pretentious Whole Foods commercials, and ticket giveaways. Okay, that last one isn't so terrible but I don't ever seem to win those things so fuck 'em. Long story short: I need to start a pirate radio station or something.

Anyway, several good things came out of that post. 1) The radio station retweeted the link, so I now have several new readers, 2) those readers are local and were also kind enough to retweet said post, and 3) some of those people (namely, a person named @DoyleSATX, to whom I will be forever grateful) provided the names of some awesome bands that I didn't find in my cursory Google search for San Antonio music. To those bands....be patient, you will each be written about soon, je promis.  That was a few weeks ago and I apologize for the delay....my day job as a technical writer has been somewhat draining. Today, I literally had to explain to someone that semicolons cannot be used in place of commas. I'm serious. This is my life now.

To start off this Discover the Awesomeness of the SA Music Scene campaign, I wanted to introduce to y'all to a new favorite - Girl in a Coma.

Credit Daniela Rojas
I got this from the Press Kit area, I hope that's okay...Please don't Taylor Swift Me...

I've been think a lot about why I like them so much, mostly while listening to "El Monte" on repeat.  Upon further in-depth analysis, I've boiled it down to this -- these girls' style incorporates: good old alternative indie a la The Smiths (they list Morrissey as a big influence), some post-punk goodness (I heard "Love Song" on the radio - the Cure version, not the 311 cover -- and I was like, "yeah, they sound kind of like that...sometimes), hints of surf rock (similar to The Pixies....especially the "naming songs in Spanish but singing them in English" thing), and the occasional rockabilly twang.  At first listen, Nina Diaz's voice sounded familiar but I couldn't quite place it. It was driving me crazy. The closest artists I can compare it to would be with Sia and Lorde, a sort of mid-range croon that you could imagine at home in the background of a 1950s dance hall.

Girl in a Coma released their first album, Both Before I'm Gone, in 2007 and was a success, landing them on Billboard's Heatseekers chart at #23.  Their first single, "Clumsy Sky," won an Independent Music Award.  They are signed with Blackheart Records, which may sound familiar - it is the record label founded by Joan Jett, patron saint of female rockers. Since then, they have released three more albums, including one with only covers. That album includes covers of two of my favorite songs.  First, there is "Walking After Midnight" by Patsy Cline, a go-to for me when I'm feeling particularly lonely, which GIAC's puts a sultry rockabilly twist on. Second, they did a cover of "As the World Falls Down," which is everyone's favorite song from Labyrinth (if it's not, then you have no soul). It turns David Bowie's glam rock lullaby into a dreamy indie ballad and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

Definitely a great band in my book. I'm sure they're going to keep being awesome and I'm excited to hear more of their work. When pay day rolls around, I'll spend a few bills to help these ladies keep rockin' ....and I hope you'll feel inclined to do the same. Check out more GIAC stuff here.

Enjoy the following song and keep on listening, Music Sluts!