An excerpt of website copy written for a collectors record shop website.

This is one of a series of articles focusing on specific artists, in this case Elvis Presley. We have tried to inject a 'conversational' tone into the writing, making it easier for the reader to digest - a good tip when dealing with text that includes many facts and figures.

On this page you will find all you need to know about collecting Elvis Presley LPs from the 1950s. I will cover all the albums from this period, plus the variations in covers and track listings (the US and UK releases often differed). Finally I will talk a little bit about the wonderful EPs that were issued at the time and which are hugely collectable today in their original picture covers (again, many variations between countries). One other point that needs to be made: your collection can be as authentic and original (expensive) as you want it to be. Original albums in good condition fetch high prices, however it is still possible to build a nice collection on a tight budget by sticking to later reissues with the original cover artwork.

ROCK N ROLL
Okay, so let's start by discussing the first LP… This is the famous one with the black & white picture and pink and green lettering (copied over 20 years later by The Clash on their London Calling album). Although titled simply 'Elvis Presley' on the cover, the album somewhere picked up the subtitle 'Rock N Roll' (subsequently Rock n Roll No1). Interestingly, the US version had a different track listing to it's UK counterpart; the UK issue featuring a slightly more upbeat collection of numbers. Original copies of either LP nowadays fetch at least £75.00. However, it is possible to find later - '70s or '80s - French or Italian reissues which have the original cover artwork.

This is by far the cheapest way of obtaining a copy of this one. In 1972, RCA Victor were revamping their catalogue and reissued the UK edition of 'Rock N Roll', this time in a different cover (1968 picture, Yellow cover with red lettering) with some sleeve notes explaining their intentions to 'stock up' the Elvis back catalogue. This LP in itself has become relatively collectable but can be picked up from around a fiver. Interestingly, the sleeve notes mention a 1959 UK Release titled simply 'Elvis' which appears to be the equivalent of the US album from the same year 'For LP Fans Only'. This LP, it was suggested, was based on the original 'Rock n Roll' album with the addition / subtraction of a few tracks…. It's starting to get confusing. Still, to the collector, there are essentially 3 versions of this LP: the US one, the UK one and the 1972 UK reissue featuring the different cover.

ROCK N ROLL NO2
Moving on to the next LP. Released in October 1956, this was titled simply 'Elvis' in the US and subtitled 'Rock n Roll No2' almost everywhere else. Most editions featured the same sideways-on studio shot. However, the UK version (released on HMV) features a completely different shot and I have seen at least 2 different colour backgrounds for this one. Prices for original copies are in line with the first LP but again there are various european reissues available which feature the more common US cover (some show the track listing on the front cover also). I have 2 editions of this, one a French reissue from the late 70s in Mono; the other a Spanish one (with track list on cover) in the once-popular 'electronically reprocessed' stereo. Again, this album was reissued in 1972 as part of RCAs catologue revamp, this time with a 'head and shoulders' shot taken from the original cover and a stylized surround in blue with the tracks listed in a 'chrome' effect either side of the photo. These were generally available in the ERS format; it was felt in the 1970's that original Mono recordings were somewhat 'flat' by comparison to modern stereo and consequently the 'Electronically-Reprocessed-Stereo' treatment was given to almost all old recordings that were being reissued at the time. This gave the tracks a slightly strange echo effect that sounded almost 'live'. However, the fad soon disappeared as collectors realised it was preferable to listen to the records as originally intended in mono format. This is good news for the collector on a budget who can find 'original-cover' reissues in ERS for a fraction of the price of a more authentic Mono copy.

LOVING YOU
Moving on, the next LP release was 'Loving You' (1957), the first of the 'Original Soundtrack' albums. For the UK, this album was released as a 10" mini-LP containing 8 songs (the film songs plus 'True Love'). In the US, a full length 12" LP was released; this became the standard 'Loving You' album throughout the world once the original UK edition was phased out. Side One featured all 7 songs from the film; side two contained 5 'bonus' studio tracks. Original copies of this are costly but again, there are countless reissues to choose from. In fact I believe this particular album had one of the longest 'production runs' of all and has been available pretty much since the day of its release. Consequently, there are loads of editions of this LP.

There are a couple of things you should look out for: firstly, the cover photo varies considerably in colour and quality; secondly, some releases have a black border on the cover which departs slightly from the typical '50s' look (especially with the 70s RCA logo in the corner). Consequently as you thumb through the Elvis section at a record fair you can be faced with some quite startling variations of this cover. The edition in my collection is a late 70s pressing complete with all original sleeve notes, but with the black border and 70s logo… plus of course it has the bright orange rather than black label. Oh, and its in ERS too... Actually, I must try to find an earlier (or later) copy of this one that would have a more authentic feel to it. (Note, some later editions of 1950's LPs reverted back to the original black and silver label and 50s logo).

CHRISTMAS ALBUM
The next release, in December 1957, was the 'Christmas Album' which featured one side of popular and rock n roll christmas tracks and one side of religious / traditional material. I can remember this being reissued sometime in the early 80s on the RCA International label. This was a lower-priced range of reissues (£2.99 rather than £5.69) which included many of the 60s 'film' albums that hadn't been pressed for a while (Girl Happy, Clambake, Spinout etc). These LPs had bright green labels and gave the collector an ideal opportunity to stock up on the various missing items that may not have been available for a few years. There was a downside however: many of the RCA International releases did not include the original sleeve notes / back cover. Instead you had a simple track listing plus a list (with photos) of the other releases in the series. Only the 'film' LPs still retained their original back covers. Consequently, the Christmas Album reissue did not feature original sleeve notes on the back cover. The original US edition featured a totally different cover and a later reissue (58/59) had a different cover again.

GOLDEN RECORDS VOL 1
The next release early in 1958 was Golden Records Volume 1. This was the biggest selling (and still is) Elvis LP of all time. The original cover shows a red background with a narrow black border. 'Hanging' from the ceiling we see several gold records suspended on fine wires. One of the records contains a photo of Elvis. I have a late 80s reissue of this which is a perfect reproduction of the original record, even down to the black label. However, in the mid-70s this album was re-released with a different photocover (from 68 TV Special) and strangely, a different track listing. All tracks were in ERS. This was a classic example of an attempt to 'update' the presentation of an old product. Remember, 50s music and fashion was not necessarily regarded as chic retro in the '70s and it was obviously felt that a more up-to-date presentation would be an advantage here. Consequently, this reissue is not particularly sought after by collectors and can be picked up very cheaply at record fairs nowadays. The original red / gold cover LP is the most prized; yesterday I spotted this on CD, along with 4 bonus tracks: still the biggest seller.

KING CREOLE
The next release was another 'Soundtrack' LP, this time from 'King Creole'. One thing which should be explained : the 'Original Soundtrack' label on these LPs was a misnomer as it was glaringly obvious in many cases that different versions of the songs were used in the actual films. This detail never seemed to deter RCA from proudly declaring 'taken from the original soundtrack' at every opportunity. In truth, nobody really cared anyway as long as the records were good. The 'King Creole' LP is unique amongst the 50s material in that it features a New Orleans brass/jazz sound strongly on many tracks (the film was set in New Orleans). This LP remained virtually unchanged over the years (apart from the logo and label). My copy hails from the early 80s and is a faithful reproduction with the dark yellow background, cool picture and original sleevenotes. I think this was an RCA International release with the green label (or is it black - I can't remember…) Anyway, again this is a record that enjoyed a pretty constant long production run.

GOLDEN RECORDS VOL 2
At this point in time, a 'stock' of recordings had been made which would be released in a steady trickle throughout the 2 years EP would spend doing National Service. There were 2 albums of 'New/Old' material in addition to a string of successful hit singles which resulted in the release of a Golden Records Vol 2 LP released late in 1959. Chronologically, I'm not sure in which order these LPs appeared, so I'll start by discussing the Golden Records one first. Featuring the now famous photo of Elvis in gold lame suit and given the subtitle '500000 Elvis fans can't be wrong' this again proved to be a massive seller worldwide. I have a copy of this which is a perfect reproduction of the original. There were several different back cover designs and this one happens to be a reproduction of one which did not contain any sleeve notes for some reason.

One strange anomaly with this LP is that there seems to be various versions with different track listings; for a start, the original US release contained 10 songs only (omitting the 'film' tracks which, it was assumed, fans would already have in their LP collection). The UK release contained 14 tracks in total which included songs from both 'Loving You' and 'King Creole'. I also have a mid 70s reissue of this LP which has a completely different 'head & shoulders' shot, no writing on the front cover and a confusing track listing which gives the tracks in a different order to the actual running order… Furthermore, the running order differs from the 50s release and (I think) there are also additions/deletions of tracks too. The back cover shows a 1968 photo and again, this appears to be an effort to update the product. And again, prices are low for these ERS LPs. Strangely, Volumes 3 & 4 were reissued in their original form; only the first 2 volumes in these series were given the 'update' treatment.

FOR LP FANS ONLY / A DATE WITH ELVIS
The last 2 LP releases of the 50s were similar in concept and content: the first was the curiously-titled 'For LP Fans Only'. The second was 'A Date With Elvis'. Both LPs contained a mixture of old 'Sun' recordings and lesser known album / flipside / EP tracks. 'For LP Fans' (as stated above) seems to be based on the debut Album with a few additions and changes. Curiously this album when released in the US contained only 10 tracks; in the UK there were 14. 'A Date With Elvis' is almost a 'volume 2' to 'LP Fans'; same concept of repackaging some lesser known songs that fans may have missed from their collection. My copies of these LPs are late '80s faithful reproductions of the original UK albums with black label / silver logo. Sleeve notes are included on 'A Date With..' although not the original text. A footnote: the 'Date' LP was reissued on the RCA International label in the early 80s, minus it's sleeve notes and with the lime green label.