Presley's RCA Cover
Recording cover versions of songs was standard practice during the 1940s and 1950s, and "Blue Suede Shoes" was one of the first tunes RCA wanted their new performer, Elvis Presley, to record. "Heartbreak Hotel" and "Shoes" rose on the charts at roughly the same time. RCA, with its superior distribution and radio contacts, knew it could probably steal a hit record from Phillips and Perkins. For his part, when Presley, who knew both Perkins and Phillips from his days at Sun Records, gave in to pressure from RCA, he requested that they hold back his version from release as a single. The Elvis version features two guitar solos by Scotty Moore, along with Bill Black on bass, and D.J. Fontana on drums.
According to Scotty Moore, when the song was recorded, "We just went in there and started playing, just winged it. Just followed however Elvis felt." According to reports confirmed by Sam Phillips, RCA producer Steve Sholes agreed not to release Presley's version of the song as a single while Carl's release was hot.
Presley performed the song on national television three times in 1956. The first was February 11 on Stage Show. He performed it again on his third Stage Show appearance on March 17, then again on the Milton Berle Show on April 3. On July 1, Steve Allen introduced Elvis on The Steve Allen Show, and Presley, appearing in formal evening wear, stated "I think that I have on something tonight that's not quite right for evening wear." Allen asked, "What's that, Elvis?" "Blue suede shoes" was the answer, as he lifted his left foot to show the audience. Presley mentioned blue suede shoes a second time on this show: in a song during the "Range Roundup" comedy skit with Steve Allen, Andy Griffith, and Imogene Coca, he delivers the line, "I'm a warnin' you galoots, don't step on my blue suede shoes."
Moore has said that Presley recorded the song to help out Perkins after his accident. "Elvis wasn't really thinking at that time that it was going to make money for Carl; he was doing it as more of a tribute type thing. Of course Carl was glad he did. It really helped as his record started going down."
"Blue Suede Shoes" was the first song on the groundbreaking album Elvis Presley, which was released in March. RCA released two other records with "Blue Suede Shoes" the same month: one an Extended Play with four songs, RCA EPA 747, and a 2x extended play version with eight songs, RCA EPB 1254.
RCA released the Presley version as a single on September 8. This single reached No. 20, whereas the Perkins version had topped the chart.
In 1960, Presley re-recorded "Blue Suede Shoes" for the soundtrack of the film G.I. Blues. While Elvis' character's group "The Three Blazes" plays a ballad at a Frankfurt night club ("Doin' The Best I Can" by Doc Pomus & Mort Shuman), a bored GI plays "Blue Suede Shoes" by Elvis Presley on the jukebox, remarking that he wants "to hear an original". When another soldier tries to unplug the jukebox, the entire place erupts into a fight. This studio re-recording marked one of only a few occasions in Presley's career in which he agreed to re-record a previously issued song.
In 1999, Presley's version was certified Gold by the RIAA.
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