For the devoted Elvis fans who adhere to a perpetually positive image of the King, this blog post might be challenging. I’m actually going to share my personal Top 10 Least Favorite Elvis Presley recordings. But let’s be honest. Among the hundreds of presley song recordings that Elvis created, aren’t there at least a handful that you find difficult to listen to? I mean, there are plenty of tunes in his movie soundtrack albums alone that must make even the most dedicated Elvis fan wince. So, let’s have some fun comparing my list of Elvis’s worst recordings with your own.
In making my choices, I first eliminated from consideration all the novelty tunes from his movies. That group includes the likes of “Fort Lauderdale Chamber of Commerce,” “Look Out Broadway,” “Old MacDonald,” “Yoga Is As Yoga Does,” and “He’s Your Uncle Not Your Dad.” Bad as they are, these songs are basically dialogue spinoffs and were never intended to be considered as serious pop recordings.
However, the majority of Elvis’s movie songs are eligible for any fan’s lists of most and least favorite presley song tracks. Remember, some of Elvis’s best recordings were movie soundtrack songs, like “Love Me Tender,” “Teddy Bear,” “Can’t Help Falling in Love,” and “Return to Sender.” Just as several movie songs appear on my list of favorite Elvis recordings, several others are also on my list of my least favorite Elvis recordings. If you want to see a list of elvis presley songs from his vast catalog, many resources are available.
Before starting my list, let me give the criteria I used in choosing the songs on it. In general, it’s just a matter of personal taste. I simply don’t like the sound of these recordings. The underlying reason differs, however. It’s not always that Elvis did a poor job on the tune, although that is the case on some of them. With others, the song itself is so bad that it would have been a loser no matter who recorded it. The list is in descending order, from my tenth least favorite Elvis recording down to my least, least favorite. For a broader look at his discography, consult a presley songs list.
The Countdown: My Least Favorite Presley Songs
10. “Love Me”
Okay, I know this one is considered by many to be one of Elvis’s classic recordings. His delivery on the original 1956 recording is fine, but the syrupy lyrics and rhythm of the song make my hand automatically hit the skip button as soon as I hear the opening notes. And I’m not the only one who considers this presley song a weak track. Composers Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller have claimed “Love Me” was the worst song they ever wrote.
9. “Fountain of Love”
The fault for this track from the “Pot Luck” LP is shared by Elvis and composers Bill Giant and Jeff Lewis. No real man (which Elvis certainly was) should be singing lyrics like, “One thought of you, my heart begins yearning. I feel it turn to a fountain of love.” Maybe Lewis is to blame for the song’s overly soft lyrics, as it was the only Elvis song he co-wrote. As for Elvis, he lost me whenever he went into that high-pitched voice, like he did on “Fountain of Love.”
Elvis Presley Pot Luck Album Cover
8. “Blue Christmas”
Here’s another one of Elvis’s legendary presley song recordings that I never liked. Elvis’s version is considered a Christmas classic, though I’ve never understood why. I blame The Jordanaires for the irritating sound; their wavering “o-o-o-os” on the recording are like fingernails on a blackboard to me. He redeemed himself with a beautiful rendition of “Blue Christmas” on his ’68 Comeback Special. Fans often share their favorite versions or explore lisa marie presley songs on youtube.
Elvis Presley Blue Christmas single cover
7. “Fairytale”
This one is entirely on Elvis. The Pointer Sisters had a beautiful hit with their rendition of the song in 1974. Where was Elvis’s beautiful voice in 1975 when he recorded this presley song? He put way too much volume into the lyrics, like someone who had a couple of drinks to bolster his confidence before taking the mike at a karaoke party. Unfortunately, that was the case with many of his recordings in the final couple years of his life.
6. “It’s Only Love”
First of all, the song itself has neither spirit nor a pleasant melody, which is puzzling, considering it was co-written by Mark James, who gave Elvis “Suspicious Minds,” “Moody Blue,” and “Raised on Rock.” But it’s mostly Elvis’s strained delivery that makes this presley song difficult to listen to. You can hear the effort in his voice from beginning to end. Elvis certainly could sing a wide range of songs, but this one was bafflingly beyond him.
5. “Ask Me”
This presley song was released as a single, so someone must have thought it was a good recording. Originally, though, there must have been some concern, as Elvis’s May 1963 recording of the song was deemed unusable. He went back into the studio to try it again in January 1964, and that was the version eventually released. Again, the high voice, nearing falsetto in places, clashes with my image of Elvis as a hard-driving rock singer. His discography spans many moods, including the heartfelt elvis presley song to his daughter.
Elvis Presley Ask Me single cover
4. “Startin’ Tonight”
I’ve got to call out Lenore Rosenblatt and Victor Millrose for writing this turkey of a presley song. Elvis himself must have cringed when he heard the demo for this one destined for the Girl Happy soundtrack. It was supposed to be a hard rocker, but instead, the lyrics are an embarrassment. Example: “Doncha worry if ya land in jail; I’ll forward your mail if ya can’t make bail tonight.” Enough said.
3. “She Thinks I Still Care”
This country presley song was a hit for George Jones in 1962. For some reason, when Elvis recorded it at Graceland in 1976, he decided to give it a hitch-and-go blues interpretation that totally destroyed the original beauty of the song. During that period, Elvis did the same thing to other country songs, like “He’ll Have to Go” and “I’ll Hold You in My Heart.” Elvis would have been better served to sing these songs in the country fashion for which they were intended. While some interpretations falter, elvis presley the best of elvis presley songs showcase his true brilliance.
2. “Hey Little Girl”
From Harum Scarum, this is absolutely the worst soundtrack presley song of Elvis’s career. It’s the work of Joy Byers, who wrote much better songs for Elvis, including “It Hurts Me” and “Let Yourself Go.” Again, it was designed as a rocker to fit Elvis’s style. But the lyrics are inane and the rhythm is completely absent. No self-respecting pop singer would ever have recorded this. If there was ever a time Elvis should have stood up and said “No,” it should have been when he first heard the demo for “Hey Little Girl.”
1. “Where Do You Come From”
Elvis’s beautiful voice was never more evident than on the many ballads he recorded during the 1960s. For some reason, he changed his style on this presley song. On it, he sounds like he’s pretending to be an opera singer trying to sing a pop ballad. His voice slowly pitches up and down in a decidedly unmusical fashion. I’ve resisted listening to this recording ever since it was first released as a single in 1962. The song only spent one week on Billboard’s Top 100, where it peaked at #99. It was the worst performance of any Presley recording to actually reach the chart.
Elvis Presley Return to Sender single sleeve
But get this! “Where Do You Come From” was still credited with selling over a million copies. The reason? “Return to Sender” on the flip side was the real hit, selling over two million copies. Under some ridiculous accounting system, “Where Do You Come From” was credited with half the total sales, and my least favorite Elvis recording ever wound up with gold record status. Unbelievable!
