Elvis was called the "King of Rock and Roll". He owes much of his immense success as a singer to many Black artists who came before him but never received credit, so there is some degree of controversy over his essentially stealing their style and popularizing it with white people. He was never one of my favorite artists, but I must admit he has a lot of good songs. His music career began in 1954, in Memphis, Tennessee. He was also an actor in a lot of movies, a few of which I may have seen when I was quite young, but now I don't remember them or have much interest in ever seeing them again, nor any that I haven't already seen. He died in 1977, but it has been a popular belief among many people that he's still alive. (I'm not one of those people, but I do enjoy seeing the concept occasionally played up in movies or TV shows.)

tek's rating:

ELV1S: 30 #1 Hits
AllMusic; Amazon; Apple Music; Discogs; Spotify; Wikipedia

This is a posthumous greatest hits collection, released in 2002. The copy I have has a bonus disc with a "Post-Army Interview", which I don't plan on listening to. This album was followed the next year by a companion album called "2nd to None", which I don't have and I'm not sure whether I'm interested in getting, but we'll see. The liner notes contain information about each of the songs on the album (but not lyrics).

1. "Heartbreak Hotel": This song is okay, but not one of my favorites. Mostly what it has going for it is familiarity.

2. "Don't Be Cruel": Now this one is a bit more fun, in addition to its familiarity. (But it would save time to just mention when a song isn't familiar to me.) It might be one of my favorite Elvis songs. But also, I might slightly prefer Cheap Trick's cover, I'm not sure.

3. "Hound Dog": This one is also kind fun, I'd say my appreciation is somewhere between that of the first two tracks.

4. "Love Me Tender": This isn't rock & roll. It's a tender ballad, which is nice enough, but not one of my favorites.

5. "Too Much": I'm not sure if I've heard this before. It's okay, but not something I can see becoming memorable to me.

6. "All Shook Up": This one's good, but not quite a favorite.

7. "(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear": I've always really liked this one. Might be a favorite. It's just some sweet, silly fun.

8. "Jailhouse Rock": This is more fun than I remembered, but still not a favorite.

9. "Don't": This is another ballad, and one I don't think I've ever heard. I don't especially care for it.

10. "Hard Headed Woman": I have no idea whether I've ever heard this, and while it doesn't sound too bad, I don't really like it. It definitely sounds very "Elvis", though.

11. "One Night": I don't think I've heard this, and I feel pretty neutral about it.

12. "(Now and Then There's) A Fool Such as I": I don't think I've heard this, and I feel neutral about it.

13. "A Big Hunk o' Love": This is yet another one that doesn't sound familiar to me. I guess it's okay.

14. "Stuck on You": I've probably heard this before, but it's not really memorable to me. I feel neutral.

15. "It's Now or Never": Finally back to a song I know I've heard, and it's another ballad. It's got a distinctly Italian vibe that's a nice change of pace. I like it, but it's still not a favorite.

16. "Are You Lonesome Tonight": Another familiar ballad. I like it, but it's not a favorite. It's got a spoken part that I feel neutral about. It's got a bit of a country feel.

17. "Wooden Heart": I don't think I've heard this before. I think it has a polka vibe. I'm not sure what I think about it. Part of it is in German.

18. "Surrender": This doesn't sound familiar, but it reminds me very slightly of something you might hear as a James Bond theme.

19. "(Marie's the Name) His Latest Flame": This is also unfamiliar to me. I guess it's okay.

20. "Can't Help Falling in Love": This is a ballad, and one of my favorites, though I'm not sure whether I prefer this version or the cover by UB40.

21. "Good Luck Charm": I don't think I've heard this before. It feels a bit country, to me. It's not bad.

22. "She's Not You": I don't think I've heard this. I don't really care for it much.

23. "Return to Sender": This is another familiar song. It's good, but not a favorite.

24. "(You're the) Devil in Disguise": I had completely forgotten about this song. It's pretty fun.

25. "Crying in the Chapel": I don't know this one. Sounds a bit like a hymn or gospel. I feel neutral about it.

26. "In the Ghetto": OMG I had really completely forgotten this song, but I remember it now that I hear it again. It's a country/gospel sort of song, and very depressing.

27. "Suspicious Minds": I might have heard this before, I'm not sure. It's not memorable to me. I don't know what to think about it. At 4:29, it's the longest song on the album, and after listening to a bunch of songs in the 2-3 minute range, I'm just waiting for this to end. Not because it's bad, but because I'm impatient.

28. "The Wonder of You": I'm pretty sure I've never heard this. It's okay I guess. Seems to be a live recording in front of an audience.

29. "Burning Love": This is another familiar song. It's pretty good.

30. "Way Down": I don't think I've heard this before. It's okay. It's his last single before his death, recorded in 1976. It's hard for me to associate Elvis with the 70s.

Bonus Track: "A Little Less Conversation (JXL Radio Edit Remix): This remix was released in 2002, a few months before this album. I like it a lot. And I tend to associate it with an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond (although I can't remember for sure whether it was this version or the original version).

Well, I was surprised by just how many of the songs were unfamiliar to me. And they will likely remain unfamiliar to me, even if they're not bad. I guess I mainly have the album for the songs I already knew, which are all good.