Elvis Book Review

Elvis Presley's The First Noel

Elvis Presley's The First Noel

Illustrator: Bruce Whatley

Published in hardback by Harper Collins Publishers

ISBN 0-06-028126-X

I have always considered Elvis's recording of "The First Noel" to sound rather strained. Strange, then, that exactly this number should be used as the inspiration for this peculiar little book, "Elvis Presley's The First Noel."

The book is, in fact, nothing more than the text of the carol, accompanied by some pleasant, though uninspiring illustrations by award-winning book illustrator Bruce Whatley.

So what's the attraction for Elvis people? Well, the dust-jacket is adorned on the back with an early picture of Elvis, showing him standing outside the Tupelo shack holding a trolley. Of course, if that were the only attraction, then sales would probably be less than desired, so included with the book is a BMG Special Products CD (DPC12148) containing Elvis's version of the carol. The CD comes in a sealed plastic holder, attached to the inside of the back cover of the book. The CD is a seasonal red, with gold lettering announcing "Elvis Presley's The First Noel," along with a couple of green sprigs of holly. Strangely, the 1971 recording is listed on the CD as having been "recorded prior to 1972" -- presumably BMG couldn't even be bothered to check on the exact year.

Elvis sang only the first two verses of "The First Noel," but the book clearly needed padding out, so three additional verses are printed.

It all looks like exploitation going a bit too far, if you ask me: there's Elvis's name, a minimal CD, and a popular Christmas carol to help bring the cash in, of course. But, if someone really wants to cash in in this way and be original at the same time, then why not take "Santa Claus Is Back In Town," hardly your traditional carol, and produce a book of illustrations to accompany that -- with all the innuendo packed into that little gem, something really special could be produced!

David Neale

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