Customer Reviews

Gravelands

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

First, I do not want to hear about how an Elvis impersonator singing a cover of Nirvana's "Come As You Are" is a sign of a coming apocalypse because that honor already belongs to the Paul Anka version of "Smells Like Teen Spirit." Second, if I enjoy an immensely overweight Elvis impersonator fronting a reggae band doing Led Zeppelin songs, then I am clearly not going to have a problem with this guy from Belfast passing himself off as The King, especially since postal carrier James Brown is doing it totally straight (okay, not totally given the album title and the quips during "Blockbuster," but he did not do Paul Simon's "Graceland" with new lyrics so that earns points). Third, for the most part here the whole idea is to do songs that Elvis never did, with one small conceit: they also have to be by those who have joined Elvis in the great big rock band in the sky (e.g., Kurt Cobain, Ronnie Van Zant, Jimi Hendrix). So you get to hear songs Elvis never got to sing as only The King can do them. Okay, obviously there are lots of other Elvis impersonators out there who COULD have done this, but they did not, so Brown gets credit for that too. Finally, I could add that I pick the Beatles over Elvis as being at the top of the rock pantheon, but I have liked wacky Beatles covers from George Burns doing "For the Benefit of Mr. Kite" to Sean Connery's "In My Life."

Three tracks in and you should know if you consider "Gravelands" complete fun or utter sacrilege. There is some slight lyric tweaking for "Come as You Are" (e.g., "Memories" instead of "Memoria"), but Brown's baritone and phrasing make it work as far as I am concerned. When you listen to "Sweet Home Alabama" you will probably find yourself wishing this were a concert album, because the song would be perfect for a live performance by Elvis in Vegas. Then the King jumps off the deep end with "Voodoo Chile (Slight Return)," which is a fave this summer (Bo Bice did it as part of the American Idols tour just to shake things up for das kinder). As long as he is in deep water, the King then does AC/DC's "Whole Lotta Rosie," which also begs to be done live, followed by a rollickin' version of Sweet's "Blockbuster," which suggests Elvis would have some problems with glam rock ("I just haven't got a clue," the King growls at one point), but you have to admit Brown is trying to cover all of the bases here.

After Eddie Cochran's "Something Else," James Brown does soul, ala the King, with Otis Redding's "Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay" and Marvin Gaye's "I Heard it Through the Grapevine." This is followed by Bob Marley's "No Woman, No Cry," and the Frank Sinatra standard "New York, New York," complete with faux crowd noise that is actually something of a let down because once you have heard the King rock hard this song has become bubblegum music. Knowing that this album is released in other countries with twice as many songs including "Riders of the Storm" is painful news because that would have been a great track to replace this one. The final track is a nice homage to Elvis by doing Big Arthur Crudup's "That's Alright Mama" just like the original, down to the comments before the tape rolls. Finally, credit must be given to the boys in the band, which includes Paul Guerin (guitar), Lee Pomeroy (Bass), Keith Weir (Keyboards), and Steve Emney (Drums), for making sure the King has solid musical accompaniment and this album cannot be dismissed on that basis either. All things considered, "Gravelands" has to exceed your expectations.

This may not appeal to everyone, in fact many will say it is tasteless or e'en that "The King" is a philistine, but I say "No!". This is a fantastic album of covers, specifically covers of songs by the dead, sung in the style of Elvis Presley, (also one of the dead: curiouser and curiouser, said Alice). Because it is selected on the strict premise that the original singer has to be departed, and nearly all the good ones have gone the way of the dodo, the music is varied and never boring. "The King" has had to choose out of some of the best writers and singers ever recorded, and has done so quite wisely. His rendition of "Come as you are" will, no doubt, enrage hard core Nirvana fans, but others are up there with the originals. Outstanding renditions include "Love will tear us apart" (Joy Division) and "Working Class Hero" (John Lennon). This is not just a gimmick album. Some may think it is just for laughs or parties, or e'en just for Elvis fanatics, but no, I think is is more valuable than that. Why? Well, it feeds our curiousity. Anyone who has ever heard Elvis has asked "What would have happened if he'd not gone to the toilet that night?" and this in someway answers that. Also, "The King" has quite a nice voice, which can be both strong and subtle. He pulls it off well, as the variety of music covers any non-Elvis sounds. There are bad points, including "No woman, no cry" and the backing track is generally poor. The highlights (apart from those already mentioned) are "Song of a Siren" and the end rendition of "That's alright Mama". Apart from being an album for Elvis fans, this also has the benefit of exposing those who buy it to the music of a variety of artists they may not ever have heard (a Nirvana fan will hear Thin Lizzy for example). And as this is the music of the long, and the not so long dead, it reminds us of the musical past. I loved it, and I am not an Elvis fan, nor am I into any of the other dead people whose work are on it, I bought it as an experiment, and it worked. It was one of my best buys in 1998, and I still listen to it regularly, and it has inspired me to listen to other types of music. Thank you, thank you, "King", I wish you were my postman.

Ok I know this isn't Elvis but .... Well, you just gotta hear this to believe it! While I liked Elvis back in the 50's and early 60's, like many I must admit that those movie songs he recorded were for the most part nothing worth purchasing. Critics have often remarked about the potential that Elvis had to continue as the "King of Rock", yet how he let that slip away. Well never mind imagining what Elvis could have been. This CD demonstrates EXACTLY what Elvis could have done. I've heard many impersonators (Tony Roi & Allen were 2 of the best) but James "The King" Brown has them beat hands down!

How refreshing to hear what some real rock songs would have sounded like if Elvis took his throne seriously in the 70's and if he were yet alive today to do so. The only thing that turned me off a bit was how the artist goes by the name, "The King", but since it seems his name is James Brown -- well, I guess using that might be even more confusing.

I can see this guy doing Aerosmith songs and making them hits all over again. The only thing better than that is if he would sing a song I wrote with Aerosmith in mind which is called, "Knee Deep In Love". Anyway I think his next CD should contain nothing but songs that Elvis never sang. Maybe that would be a good title for it, "The Songs Elvis Never Sang, Volume 1" On top of all this he even looks good!!! That should be a plus with the ladies.

The King is James Brown, an Irish postman. He was discovered singing Elvis songs at a karaoke bar. A record producer had the idea to record the Nirvana song "Come As You Are" with an Elvis impersonator, and he was struck by how much Brown sounded like Elvis. Yes, he actually does sound a lot like Elvis. Anyway, after they recorded the Nirvana song, they decided to record a whole album of songs by dead rockers. Yes, it's an album of songs by dead people sung by an Elvis impersonator. Somewhat surprisingly, the songs are played "straight". The songs aren't played for laughs at all. They are somewhat interesting for the most part, with "Come As You Are" being the best of the lot. If that sounds like something you would be interested in, here it is.

I first bought the original issue CD (subtitled Dressed To Kill) which originally had Riders On The Storm/The End as the final track. Apparently the remaining Doors vetoed it and the general issue did not contain this track. It is wonderful (added tracks were Song To The Siren, Sweet Home Alabama, Something Else, Whole Lotta Rose and New York, New York. Also an undocumented track, That's Alright Mama). I have both issues and saw The King at the Liquid Rooms in Edinburgh in December 1998 - awesome with all these Elvis lookealikes with their plastic quiffs - an incredible experience! The King is an Irish postman on leave from the Post Office. When is his new album coming out? There must be a mine of new material since his excellent follow up to Gravelands, Return To Splendour (correct spelling!!).

James Brown (Yes, that's his real name) does the best Elvis voice impersonation ever. He absolutely nails "The King" as he sings songs originally recorded by other now-deceased performers: Marvin Gaye, Eddie Cochran, Jimi Hendrix, Ronnie Van Zant, Kurt Cobain, Frank Sinatra, et al. And when you hear him sing "That's Alright Mama", you'll swear you're listening to something from the original Sun sessions. Great for Elvis fans or anyone who enjoys good parody. Also, check out his follow-up album "Return To Splendor". Very good album; recommended.

One of our radio stations played a track as a hoot, but they liked it so well they play it all the time-whole lotta Rosie. The music, everything is excellent. This is good sound and rockin'. And i was never an elvis fan. The CD with the extra tracks has "working class hero"

This album is simply amazing, the concept is not only hilarious (an elvis impersonator singing songs by other dead artists in an elvis way) but the quality of the performances is outstanding.

Parodies of this type aren't new, there was Dread Zeppelin doing Led Zeppelin songs in a Bob Marley way and several others, but this one stands about the others because the songs are done in a more serious way.

The band backing this Elvis is incredible, each song sounds like a fresh reworking of the original, and the production is top notch. The US version only has 11 tracks but the UK one has 18, so try to find the import.

What i find cool about this is that had Elvis lived he would have probably done some of these very songs himself. He never did write any of his songs, in his early days most of his songs were written specifically for him by others and then in his later (Vegas) years he did mostly covers, including lots of really cheesy stuff or stuff that was popular on AM radio at the time. So i think had he lived he would have kept putting out album like that, they would probably have been those sold only on tv type things lol.

Anyway, as for the songs, the first track is a cover of Nirvana's "Come As You Are" and this alone is worth the price of the album, this one blows the Nirvana one away, it's subtle yet has far more depth to it and gets the lyrics across much better, it simply shows that even an average at best song by a crappy overrated grunge band who could barely play instruments can still sound good when done in a professional way by musicians who obviously can play and a singer who can sing instead of just shout.

Other highlights include a take on AC/DC's "Whole Lotta Rosie" which also features a kickass playing by the band. "Whiskey in the Jar" which is a classic irish folk song that was a hit for Thin Lizzy in the 70's sound fantastic with an Elvis voice singing it (go figure lol). The take on T-Rex's "20th Century Boy" sounds almost like those recent real Elvis remixes that were on his 30 #1 hits and 2nd to none hits collections. And the closing track (on the UK release anyway) is a note for note cover of Elvis's own "That's Alright Mama" and it sounds simply amazing, it's like the orignial being recorded by Elvis himself with his voice still in it's prime but on modern equipment.

This and the followup album "Return to Splendor" are must have for Elvis fans and people who enjoy hearing classic rock tracks
covered by other artists, get it!

I think that anyone who listens to this cd is going to be extremely surprised, especially if you are an Elvis fan. The band that accompanies the vocals are top-notch, but Jim Brown's vocalization as "The King" will really make you shake your head in disbelief; in other words, he sounds so much like Elvis, it's scary. Gravelands is definately not your typical novelty type cd, as they have recorded mainstream songs such as "Come as you are" by Nirvana, "Whole Lotta Rosie" by AC/DC, "Voodoo Child" by Jimi Hendrix, just to name a few. I think this cd will really make you wonder just what the real Elvis would have sounded like if he had not died.

After growing up and listening to Elvis music as a kid, I've begun to venture into the realm of Elvis impersonators. I can say for one thing about "The King", he is one of the best that I've heard thus far. He makes you feel like the real Elvis is still alive and well, and that his music is can even be better them today's popular music. This guy's music is awesome!!!!