With the new wave of reissued films on DVD I found myself rediscovering movies I watched for the first time in my childhood in the 1950's. Some of the movies I have not seen since my childhood and teenages. This is of great value from a nostalgic point of view but from the music angle this is even more significant.

I recently found myself watching an old Elvis movie  called "King Creole". The music in this early Elvis movie has all the influences Rock Music originated from. Blues, Jazz and soul and even the injection of Spirituals. Naturally watching Elvis the master execute this type of early Rock Music, when Rock "Roll was the hottest property in town was inspirational. But then Elvis was the unique instigator of a the new revolution in popular music.

I watched every number in amazement realising the simplicity of expression and the exciting beat and rhythm in the band behind him.

This was the ultimate in the music genre my generation grew up with, but in reflection it was the true revolutionary music that changed our lives. The sound technology of today was missing. The digital recording techniques were absent too and the sophisticated mixing in the studio was totally not there – they probably recorded the songs as "live takes" - but the spirit and life of the music and the sheer excitement was packed in every song. "Looking for Trouble", "Hard Headed Woman", "As long as I have you" etc brought it all back.

The ultimate realisation for me was that after all these decades and elapsed time, I almost feel in some way music has gone backwards and it is only when we go back to the orgigins of Rock music we rediscover the truth of the music of our generation. All that happened since then has only been an exploration away from the source and rock music in its origins. It seems that every time we revisit the past we find ways to proceed to the future.

Till next time...

M