Promised Land (Elvis Presley album)

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Promised Land
Studio album by
Elvis Presley
ReleasedJanuary 8, 1975 (1975-01-08)
RecordedDecember 10–15, 1973
StudioStax (Memphis)
GenreCountry
Length28:17
LabelRCA Victor
ProducerFelton Jarvis
Elvis Presley chronology
Having Fun with Elvis on Stage
(1974) 		Promised Land
(1975) 		Today
(1975)
Singles from Promised Land
  1. "If You Talk in Your Sleep"
    Released: May 10, 1974
  2. "Promised Land"
    Released: September 27, 1974
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Christgau's Record GuideB[2]
MusicHound[3]
Rough Guides[4]

Promised Land is the twenty-first studio album by American singer and musician Elvis Presley, released by RCA Records on January 8, 1975. It was recorded in December 1973 at Stax Records studios in Memphis and released on Presley's 40th birthday in January, 1975. In the US the album reached number 47 on the Billboard Top 200 chart and number 1 in Billboard's Top Country LPs chart, as well as the Cashbox Country albums chart. In the UK the album reached #21.

Content[edit]

The material was the second pick from the December 1973 session, as the songs considered strongest had been issued on Good Times. The title track, a cover of the 1965 hit by Chuck Berry, was issued earlier as a single on September 27, 1974, and hit number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the UK top ten. Its flip side, "It's Midnight", reached 9 on the Country Charts. Another hit single from the album was "If You Talk in Your Sleep" reaching 17 on the Billboard Hot 100. "Promised Land" was used for the 1997 film Men in Black.

Reissues[edit]

RCA reissued the album on CD in 2000, and it added all the tracks of the album Good Times as tracks 11–18 (except "Taking Care of Her" and "I've Got A Thing About You, Baby", which are from the July 1973 sessions) – in effect compiling the Stax sessions of December 1973. In 2011, the FTD (Follow That Dream) collectors label released an expanded, 48-track version of the album including outtakes.

Track listing[edit]

Original release[edit]

Side A
No.TitleWriter(s)Recording dateLength
1."Promised Land"Chuck BerryDecember 15, 19732:57
2."There's a Honky Tonk Angel (Who'll Take Me Back In)"Troy Seals, Denny RiceDecember 15, 19733:01
3."Help Me"Larry GatlinDecember 12, 19732:27
4."Mr. Songman"Donnie SumnerDecember 12, 19732:08
5."Love Song of the Year"Chris ChristianDecember 12, 19733:33
Side B
No.TitleWriter(s)Recording dateLength
1."It's Midnight"Billy Edd Wheeler and Jerry ChesnutDecember 10, 19733:21
2."Your Love's Been a Long Time Coming"Rory BourkeDecember 15, 19733:47
3."If You Talk in Your Sleep"Red West, Johnny ChristopherDecember 11, 19732:35
4."Thinking About You"Tim BatyDecember 12, 19733:00
5."You Asked Me To"Waylon Jennings, Billy Joe ShaverDecember 11, 19732:52

2000 CD reissue bonus tracks[edit]

Tracks 1-10 are from the original release
No.TitleWriter(s)Recording dateLength
11."Loving Arms"Tom JansDecember 13, 19732:49
12."I Got a Feelin' in My Body"Dennis LindeDecember 10, 19733:37
13."If That Isn't Love"Dottie RamboDecember 16, 19733:31
14."She Wears My Ring"Felice Bryant and Boudleaux BryantDecember 16, 19733:10
15."My Boy"Bill Martin, Phil Coulter, Jean-Pierre Bourtayre, Claude FrançoisDecember 13, 19733:21
16."Spanish Eyes"Bert Kaempfert, Eddie Snyder, Charles SingletonDecember 16, 19732:22
17."Talk About the Good Times"Jerry ReedDecember 14, 19732:22
18."Good Time Charlie's Got the Blues"Danny O'KeefeDecember 13, 19733:09

Follow That Dream CD reissue[edit]

Disc one
No.TitleLength
1."Promised Land" 
2."There's A Honky Tonk Angel" 
3."Help Me" 
4."Mr. Songman" 
5."Love Song Of The Year" 
6."It's Midnight" 
7."Your Love's Been A Long Time Coming" 
8."If You Talk In Your Sleep" 
9."Thinking About You" 
10."You Asked Me To" 
11."Promised Land" (takes 3, 4) 
12."There's A Honky Tonk Angel" (take 4/composite 5, 3, 8) 
13."Help Me" (take 1 remixed) 
14."Mr. Songman" (take 2) 
15."Love Song Of The Year" (take 1) 
16."It's Midnight" (take 7) 
17."Your Love's Been A Long Time Coming" (take 10) 
18."If You Talk In Your Sleep" (take 5) 
19."Thinking About You" (take 4) 
20."You Asked Me To" (take 3A) 
21."Promised Land" (take 5) 
22."Love Song Of The Year" (takes 3, 4, 6, 7) 
23."It's Midnight" (take 11) 
24."You Asked Me To" (take 2B) 
Disc two
No.TitleLength
1."It's Midnight" (takes 1-4, 8, 9) 
2."Love Song Of The Year" 
3."Thinking About You" (takes 2, 3) 
4."You Asked Me To" (take 1) 
5."Your Love's Been A Long Time Coming" (takes 2, 3, 4) 
6."Promised Land" (take 2) 
7."Mr. Songman" (take 1) 
8."There's A Honky Tonk Angel" (take 1) 
9."If You Talk In Your Sleep" (takes 6, 9 undubbed) 
10."It's Midnight" (take 10) 
11."Thinking About You" (takes 5, 6) 
12."Love Song Of The Year" (take 2) 
13."You Asked Me To" (take 3B) 
14."There's A Honky Tonk Angel" (takes 6, 7, 8 rough mix) 
15."Mr. Songman" (takes 3, 5) 
16."Promised land" (take 6 undubbed) 
17."Your Love's Been A Long Time Coming" (takes 8, 9 unedited undubbed) 

Personnel[edit]

  • Elvis Presley – lead vocals, harmony vocals on "Promised Land"
  • James Burton – lead guitar
  • Johnny Christopher – rhythm guitar
  • Charlie Hodge – acoustic rhythm guitar
  • Jeannie Green – backing vocals
  • David Briggs – piano, Hammond organ, overdubbed tambourine on "Promised Land"
  • Per Erik "Pete" Hallin – piano on "Help Me" and "Love Song of the Year", Wurlitzer electric piano on "I’ve Got a Feelin’ In My Body", clavinet on "Promised Land"
  • Mary and Ginger Holladay – backing vocals
  • Susan Pilkington – backing vocals
  • Norbert Putnam – bass guitar
  • Ron Tutt – drums
  • Voice (Donnie Sumner, Sherrill Nielsen, Tim Baty, Per Eric "Pete" Hallin) – backing vocals
  • JD Sumner & The Stamps (Bill Baize, Ed Enoch, David Rowland) – backing vocals
  • Kathy Westmoreland – backing vocals

Overdubbed

Technical

  • Felton Jarvis – producer
  • Mike Moran, Dick Baxter, Al Pachucki, Mickey Crofford – engineers

Charts[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Allmusic review
  2. ^ Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: P". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 10, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  3. ^ Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel, eds. (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink Press. pp. 892. ISBN 1-57859-061-2.
  4. ^ Simpson, Paul (2004). The Rough Guide to Elvis. London: Rough Guides. p. 150. ISBN 1-84353-417-7.
  5. ^ "Elvis Presley Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
  6. ^ "Elvis Presley Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
  7. ^ "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1975". Billboard. 2 January 2013. Retrieved June 5, 2021.

External links[edit]


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