Roots Revolution: Louisiana Hayride
These 1954-56 live recordings of a young Elvis Presley (still a teen on many of them) appearing on theLouisiana Hayrideradio show out of Shreveport, Louisiana, have long been considered some of rock's most important documents, despite their often shrill and distorted sound quality. Their sonic limitations and legal status (most were recorded prior to Presley signing with RCA) have also kept them marginalized. Those sound problems (the original crude recordings were made solely through the singer's vocal mic, which often obliterated Presley's acoustic guitar andBill Black's bass) inspired Tomato Records to commit what some may consider heresy on nine of the best-sounding recordings--that is, recruit contemporary musicians to recreate the muffled guitar and bass parts and dub them back into the mix. The results are both subtle and unobtrusive, giving the historic performances some much-needed immediacy. If the includedHayrideintros and promos and Lucky Strike commercial give the collection some additional perspective, they also help pad the running time of what is an otherwiseverybrief CD. Still, a burnished Presley in his Sun prime (including Presley's landmark firstHayrideappearance, showcasing both sides of his first Sun Records single, "That's All Right, Mama" and "Blue Moon of Kentucky") is hard to resist.--Jerry McCulley