Presley returned to television on May 12 as a guest on the Frank Sinatra Timex Special for the second star ironic, given the criticism Sinatra is not so far from the rock and roll. Also known as Welcome Home Elvis show was recorded at the end of March, the only time throughout the year Presley perform before an audience. Parker received an unheard of $ 125,000, the cost of eight-minute song. Release attract a wide audience.
GI Blues, the soundtrack of Elvis's first film since his return, is the number one album in October. His first LP sacred material, her hand in mine, followed two months later. Reaching number 13 on U.S. pop charts and number 3 in the United Kingdom, the remarkable figure for the gospel album. In February 1961, Presley performed two benefit performances for the event in Memphis, on behalf of 24 local charities. During lunch, before, RCA presented a plaque that indicates global sales of more than 75 million records. Nashville session of 12 hours in mid-March produced almost all of the studio album after Presley, for all tastes. As described by John Robertson, it illustrates the Nashville sound, style, cosmopolitan control that will determine the state of music in the 1960s. Presaging much of what comes to Presley during the decade of the next fifty years, this album is mostly a "pot-pourri, the pleasure of playing down the music that was once Elvis birthright." This will be the sixth number one LP. Other charity concerts, raising funds for a memorial at Pearl Harbor, took place March 25 in Hawaii. It became Presley's last public appearance for seven years.
Lost in Hollywood
Parker is now owned by Presley pushed into heavy shooting schedule, focusing on the form, simple budget operetta. Presley had insisted on pursuing a more serious, but when the two films in the vein is more dramatic-Flaming Star (1960) and Wild in the Country (1961)-less commercially successful, he returned to the formula. Among the 27 films during the 1960s, there are some other exceptions. His film is almost universally highlight, a spokesman dismissed them as "the god of bad taste" However, they are almost all profitable. This Wallis, who produced nine of them, saying: "A picture Presley is the only sure thing in Hollywood."
Presley film in 1960, 15 accompanied by a soundtrack and another 5 by the soundtrack EP. rapid production of film release schedule and he often played in a period of three years affected by music. According to Jerry Leiber, the soundtrack is clear formula before leaving the army Presley. "Three walks, a medium tempo [number], an up-tempo, blues and boogie break" Over the decades, the quality of the soundtrack songs grow "worse" Julie Parrish, who appeared inParadise, Hawaiian Style (1966) . says he hates a lot of songs chosen for his films. The Jordanaires' Gordon Stoker explains how Presley would withdraw from the studio microphone ". The material was so bad that he feels like he can not sing "The majority of films featuring the album track or two authors who are respected as a team of Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman. But in general, according to biographer Jerry Hopkins, the numbers seem "written on order by people who never really understood Elvis or rock and roll. Regardless of the quality of the "songs, have argued that Presley generally sang well, the commitment critic Dave Marsh to claim otherwise. "Presley did not try, it might be more prudent in dealing with subjects like" no place for the Rumba in Cars "and" Rock-a-Hula Baby. "In the first half of the decade, three of The album Soundtrack Presley hit number one hits, and some of the most popular songs of his films, like "Can not Help Falling in Love" (1961) and "Return to Sender" (1962). ("Viva Las Vegas", the title song of 1964, was a minor hit as a side-B, and becoming very popular these days.) But as for artistic merit, return on sales. decreased over the five years period from 1968 to 1964 by Presley's only a ten hits:. "Crying in the Chapel" (1965), a number of gospel albums recorded in 1960 non-film, from June 1962 Press Pot Luck and November 1968 release of the soundtrack to the television special marking the return one LP of new material released by Presley: gospel album How Great Thou Art (1967) This earned him his first Grammy for Best Sacred Performance As described in The New Rolling Stone Album Guide, Presley is "arguably the greatest singers of gospel of his time [and white ..] really the last rock & roll artists to gospel music as an important component of personality that his secular songs. "
Shortly before Christmas 1966, more than seven years since their first meeting, Presley proposed to Priscilla Beaulieu. They married May 1, 1967, in a brief ceremony at their suite at the Aladdin Hotel in Las Vegas. The flow formulation and assembling the soundtrack to the film rolling. It was only in October 1967, when the party soundtrack LP recorded the lowest sales for a new album, Presley, RCA Director has acknowledged the problem. "By then, of course, the damage was done," as historian Connie Kirchberg and Marc Hendrickx said. "Elvis was considered a joke by serious music lovers and have belongs to all, but fans the most faithful. "
1970-1977