My Seven Favorite Elvis Presley Christmas Songs

The "best" when it comes to music, is almost always a matter of opinion. The best guitar, the best musician, the best recording studio, such questions will always receive a range of answers depending upon who you ask. This list is attuned to my tastes. There are plenty of fantastic songs I had to leave off; such decisions make these lists very personal. Elvis released a wealth of wonderful Christmas recordings to enjoy at Christmas or at any other time during the year and I thank him and everyone involved for it.

Elvis' draft notice! What a Christmas present.

7. Blue Christmas - This is likely Elvis' most popular Christmas song. It's become a Christmas standard. I like the song. It's free-wheeling and sung smoothly by E, who knew it had to be a little tongue-in-cheek

6. If I get Home on Christmas Day - This song is a very tender ballad about a man who sings of returning home to the person he loves. The song boasts one of Elvis' best vocals from Elvis Sings the Wonderful World of Christmas. I've always liked it. Elvis' voice is very rich here and there's more than a little hope in the lyrics.

5. It Won't Seem Like Christmas (Without You) - The pitter patter at the beginning and every now and then in the body of the song can be a little distracting. Nevertheless, this is a great song. E takes the fairly mediocre lyrics and makes something special out of them with his delivery alone. I listen to this song a lot and always enjoy it.

4. I'll Be Home for Christmas - I consider this to be Elvis' best vocal performance on Elvis' Christmas Album. This is a song, like Blue Christmas, which so many artists have done. It was originally recorded by Bing Crosby. Elvis' is my favorite version by far. The song is short, at less than two minutes. I can listen to this song on a loop. E really goes for this one and he certainly delivers.

3. Holly Leaves and Christmas Trees -  This song isn't very well known. It was written by Memphis Mafia member Red West. I find it exceptional. Elvis' phrasing and smooth, restrained delivery are spot-on. The ending gets me every time. "I'll think of how - how it used to be. Holly leaves and Christmas trees. Used to mean so much to me."
  
2. Santa Claus Is Back in Town - This song was written by the fantastic songwriting team of Leiber and Stoller (who wrote many hits for Elvis, including Hound Dog and Jailhouse Rock). They wrote this one in a grand total of fifteen minutes at the insistence of Colonel Parker. This is Elvis' best rocker off Elvis' Christmas Album. It's got that bluesy something something, too. I'd mark this song as a little less known than Blue Christmas, but I consider it superior. Just listen to the lyrics, full of fun and innuendo. Elvis had a ball with this one.

1. I'll Be Home on Christmas Day - My number one favorite Elvis Presley Christmas song. I've got to be honest, this wasn't even a tough decision. I'll be Home on Christmas Day is one of Elvis' best songs, period. I'm always captivated by it from start to finish. It's a virtuoso performance from E, who wrings every ounce of emotion, every drop of forlorn longing from the song. The narrator of the song says, "But if I could only borrow one dream from yesterday - I'd be on that train tomorrow." Does that make the entire song a dream of sorts? He calls it a dream from yesterday, so would it really be as simple as getting on a train and heading home, or is he singing of an opportunity already missed? I don't know. I just want to listen to it again.

 

Thank you, Elvis. Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without your music to inspire it, and us. 

Elvis Presley Autographs

Fans have wanted their own piece of Elvis since the beginning. Something to remember him by. Something given to them by him. Girls would scream and faint when he started throwing scarves into the audience. Fans wanted autographs everywhere he went. His signature scrawled out on an item he touched and put his name to. What fan wouldn't want that? That's the opinion of this avid autograph collector, at least.

E was a willing autograph signer. He made time for fans that would congregate outside Graceland's gates. He'd sign autographs and take pictures with them. Elvis was famous for virtually the entirety of his adult life, which works out to a little over twenty years. He signed autographs during that entire period. In all likelihood, E gave thousands upon thousands of autographs to eager fans.

Even so, the demand will always be greater than the supply when it comes to Elvis. Plenty of those autographs he gave have been accidentally destroyed or tossed over the years. Then you've got to figure that many of these autographs still reside with their original owners.

When there's money to be made and not enough supply to meet demand, something else always steps in. In the case of autographs, something absolutely terrible. I'm talking about forgeries. In 2010, PSA/DNA, one of the best authentication companies out there, named Elvis the entertainer most forged.

authentic Elvis Presley autograph example

Even just a scrap of paper with E's name on it, if it's authentic, is worth close to $1,000 or even more. That's a lot of dough.

authentic Elvis Presley autograph example

A signed picture of Elvis will set you back at least a couple grand or more. My pockets feel lighter already.

authentic Elvis Presley autograph example

How about a signed check from Elvis? We're talking a few grand.

authentic Elvis Presley autograph example

A handwritten note from E with his signature is worth more than $10,000. They're exceedingly rare. Elvis almost never wrote them. The above letter was written by Elvis on a plane before his meeting with President Nixon. It's currently housed at the Nixon Presidential Library.

authentic Elvis Presley autograph example

A signed contract is usually $10,000 or more. Depending on the content, sometimes much more. The above contract is the agreement to buy Graceland and sold at auction for $25,000.

Exercise extreme caution when purchasing an Elvis Presley autograph. Please read A Collector's Guide to Elvis first. http://www.rrauction.com/ is a good place to buy Elvis autographs from because their items have a money back guarantee and come pre-certified by music industry autograph authenticator Roger Epperson. Most autographs on eBay are forgeries. If they don't come with PSA/DNA or JSA (generally considered to be the most accurate authentication companies) authentication, an opinion can be had from Roger for $15 at http://www.rogerepperson.com/.

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In conclusion, owning an Elvis autograph is a heck of a lot of fun. They're great display items and conversation starters. Don't let the forgeries out there scare you. Be smart, do your homework, be ready to plunk down an unholy amount of money, and find yourself a great Elvis item.

In Elvis' Own Words

E's bible sold at a UK auction in September. He had a habit of writing in his books. He often marked passages dear to him and jotted down notes as he went.

"To judge a man by his weakest link or deed is like judging the power of the ocean by one wave." - Elvis Aaron Presley

Kind of puts it all into perspective, doesn't it?

The Man and His Christmas Music

This will be my first attempt blogging about Elvis. I'd like to jump right into a topic. Since Christmas is right around the corner, it only makes sense to start there.

Elvis loved Christmas. He started a tradition at Graceland which lasts to this day. Elvis recorded two Christmas albums in his lifetime, Elvis' Christmas Album and Elvis Sings the Wonderful World of Christmas. E also released a Red west penned single in 1966 entitled "If Every Day Was Like Christmas."

Both albums are absolute Christmas classics. The Christmas season is just about the only time I'll fiddle with the buttons on my car radio and find an Elvis song playing on a random station. E certainly left his mark on the genre.

It's been said that Elvis wasn't particularly thrilled to be singing Christmas music during the studio sessions of each album. The FTD releases don't really bear that out. Other than breaking into other songs he liked, which E often did when the band was moving behind him and the mood felt just right, he approaches the material earnestly.

I'm going to break from convention a little bit and say right now that I prefer Elvis' 1971 effort, Elvis Sings the Wonderful World of Christmas, to his also fantastic Elvis' Christmas Album. Tracks like "Santa Claus is Back in Town," "Here Comes Santa Claus," "I'll Be Home for Christmas," and "Blue Christmas" from the latter are indispensable at this time of year, and any other for that matter.

With that said, Elvis Sings the Wonderful World of Christmas still gets the edge in my book. E's voice had matured. The songs on the album had more depth. Just listen to Elvis' bluesy, somberly hopeful "I'll Be Home on Christmas Day." It's a highlight on an album with a lot of highlights. Better yet, listen to one of the alternative takes with the extra verse which didn't make the master.

My playlists have more and more silver bells and chestnuts roasting as the days roll by. I love this season. I love the music Elvis left us to enjoy it with.