"High Heel Sneakers"

[Juan Luis]

Great blues song written and recorded by Robert Higginbotham (Tommy Tucker) in 1963 and released in 1964 (Checker 1067), using the title “Hi-Heel Sneakers”, reached #11 on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart.
The song has been covered by hundreds of acts including (albeit unreleased at the time) by the Beatles and The Rolling Stones.
Jerry Lee Lewis, Stevie Wonder, and Jose Feliciano's covers are standouts, in my opinion.

The 1968 "Guitar Man" (reached # 41 Billboard Hot 100 and #11 UK) B-side was recorded by Elvis Presley in Nashville on September 11, 1967. Produced by Felton Jarvis with Jim Malloy assisting behind the console. Charlie McCoy is standout on harmonica, and Chip Young on guitar as well as Harold Bradley.

I first heard this number on 1980's "Reconsider Baby" compilation, and have loved it ever since. One can hear Elvis having a blast and the familiar growl that was to be heard later that year with his "comeback" TV special. Great stuff!

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More of this right here. http://www.elvis-collectors.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=93230

[King Volcano]

"Put that wig hat on your head"

Love it

[Juan Luis]

"Slap that wig right on your head"! Sounds like an Elvis ad-lib. Not found on the original recording. We will surely find out if I am mistaken.

[Domino]

I was just going to give my thread from June a plug when I see you got it already plugged.Thanks.
Just checked a few lyrics from other recordings and I'd say maybe your right about it being an Elvis ad lib.
Great revisit to a great song.

[Cheiro]

One of my favorites.

[brian]

This is one of the best covers Elvis ever did and it may be the most bad ass recording he ever did. It's one of my absolute favorites. The longer unedited version is my favorite.

[poormadpeter2]

It is indeed a great recording, with the unedited version being the best - although, considering it was released as a single side, it's hardly surprising it was edited to some degree. It's odd that it the song got passed up when it came to Let's Be Friends or Almost n Love camdens. Never have quite understood that.

[Juan Luis]

It is indeed a great recording, with the unedited version being the best - although, considering it was released as a single side, it's hardly surprising it was edited to some degree. It's odd that it the song got passed up when it came to Let's Be Friends or Almost n Love camdens. Never have quite understood that.

Yes. A rare B-side making first appearance on long playing album in 1980 IIRC, Elvis Aron Presley 8 LP box set.

[midnightx]

A strong recording from a period where Elvis was missing in action as a bona fide recording artist, which unfortunately makes the recording somewhat of a under-the-radar, forgotten track.

[elvis-fan]

Nice post, Juan!

He laid down some quality tracks in late '66 and early '67... it's too bad his management
wasted an opportunity to showcase some of these tracks on their own in an album...

Guitar Man
Big Boss Man
Mine
Just Call Me Lonesome
Hi-Heel Sneakers
You Don't Know Me
We Call On Him
You'll Never Walk Alone
Too Much Monkey Business
U.S. Male
A Little Less Conversation

[Mister Moon]

It is indeed a great recording, with the unedited version being the best - although, considering it was released as a single side, it's hardly surprising it was edited to some degree. It's odd that it the song got passed up when it came to Let's Be Friends or Almost n Love camdens. Never have quite understood that.

Yes. A rare B-side making first appearance on long playing album in 1980 IIRC, Elvis Aron Presley 8 LP box set.

"Elvis Aron Presley" (8 LP set), in 1980, was the first place I ever got this track, but I had become familiar with it on a cassette copy of the "Elvis In Demand" LP that a friend of mine had lent me. That album was originally released in 1977 as a compilation done by the OEPFC of Great Britain :

https://www.discogs.com/es/Elvis-Presley-Elvis-In-Demand/release/3812331

It's a great track, no doubt, but a little too raw for general consumption, even in its edited format. That's probably why it's never been reissued too much.

[rollinson1]

Great song choice Juan Luis.The first time I heard this song was on The Elvis Aron Presley 8 LP set and I loved it.

elvis-fan wrote

He laid down some quality tracks in late '66 and early '67... it's too bad his management
wasted an opportunity to showcase some of these tracks on their own in an album...

Guitar Man
Big Boss Man
Mine
Just Call Me Lonesome
Hi-Heel Sneakers
You Don't Know Me
We Call On Him
You'll Never Walk Alone
Too Much Monkey Business
U.S. Male
A Little Less Conversation




The Elvis comeback was well under way. If only Elvis' studio output from 66-68 had been released in a more artistic manner along the lines of Ftd's Guitar Man disc one or BMG's Tomorrow Is A Long Time. The single then would have hopefully got more airplay and not stayed under the radar as midnightx put it. Jaun Luis, that growl in his voice you mention made me think that maybe this would have fit well into the '68 Special along with Big Boss Man & Let Yourself Go & A Little Less Conversation

[Juan Luis]

Nice post, Juan!

He laid down some quality tracks in late '66 and early '67... it's too bad his management
wasted an opportunity to showcase some of these tracks on their own in an album...

Guitar Man
Big Boss Man
Mine
Just Call Me Lonesome
Hi-Heel Sneakers
You Don't Know Me
We Call On Him
You'll Never Walk Alone
Too Much Monkey Business
U.S. Male
A Little Less Conversation

Yes. It was rather late 1967 as in this recording, released in early 1968.

[Mike Windgren]

Hi there!! .

Great single, Elvis getting ready for the upcoming 1968 NBC-TV Special . Thanks for the topic Juan Luis!. Bye for now .


Guitar Man/Hi-Heel Sneakers. RCA Victor 47-9425. Released on January 3rd, 1968.

Source: http://www.keithflynn.com/recording-sessions/discography_1960.html

[Mister Mike]

Great track. The first time I heard it was on this LP:

[TeddyGirl]

It is indeed a great recording, with the unedited version being the best - although, considering it was released as a single side, it's hardly surprising it was edited to some degree. It's odd that it the song got passed up when it came to Let's Be Friends or Almost n Love camdens. Never have quite understood that.

Yes. A rare B-side making first appearance on long playing album in 1980 IIRC, Elvis Aron Presley 8 LP box set.

"Elvis Aron Presley" (8 LP set), in 1980, was the first place I ever got this track, but I had become familiar with it on a cassette copy of the "Elvis In Demand" LP that a friend of mine had lent me. That album was originally released in 1977 as a compilation done by the OEPFC of Great Britain :

https://www.discogs.com/es/Elvis-Presley-Elvis-In-Demand/release/3812331

It's a great track, no doubt, but a little too raw for general consumption, even in its edited format. That's probably why it's never been reissued too much.

I also heard this excellent track for the first time on Elvis In Demand, an underrated collection in my opinion.

[Juan Luis]

Forgot to mention first track recorded by Elvis with electric sitar, courtesy of the great Harold Bradley.

[Mister Moon]

It is indeed a great recording, with the unedited version being the best - although, considering it was released as a single side, it's hardly surprising it was edited to some degree. It's odd that it the song got passed up when it came to Let's Be Friends or Almost n Love camdens. Never have quite understood that.

Yes. A rare B-side making first appearance on long playing album in 1980 IIRC, Elvis Aron Presley 8 LP box set.

"Elvis Aron Presley" (8 LP set), in 1980, was the first place I ever got this track, but I had become familiar with it on a cassette copy of the "Elvis In Demand" LP that a friend of mine had lent me. That album was originally released in 1977 as a compilation done by the OEPFC of Great Britain :

https://www.discogs.com/es/Elvis-Presley-Elvis-In-Demand/release/3812331

It's a great track, no doubt, but a little too raw for general consumption, even in its edited format. That's probably why it's never been reissued too much.

I also heard this excellent track for the first time on Elvis In Demand, an underrated collection in my opinion.

It was a strange collection of tracks, mixing the sublime and the mediocre, the well-known and the obscure (for its time). It was also the place where I discovered "Tomorrow Is A Long Time".

[r&b]

Its a good one and it was my favorite Elvis 2 sided single since Bossa Nova Baby/Witchcraft. I wish Elvis had gone down this path a lot more often than he did.

[Juan Luis]

Hi there!! .

Great single, Elvis getting ready for the upcoming 1968 NBC-TV Special . Thanks for the topic Juan Luis!. Bye for now .


Guitar Man/Hi-Heel Sneakers. RCA Victor 47-9425. Released on January 3rd, 1968.

Source: http://www.keithflynn.com/recording-sessions/discography_1960.html

Yes. He was definitely on his way!

[drjohncarpenter]

As posted on Domino's lovely topic last June:

The 1967 Presley cover showed he was finding himself again, cutting a song with some grit after years of Hollywood soundtrack garbage. And when was the last time RCA put out a strong, tough, single A- and B-side? 1968 started out very strong for Elvis.

Guitar Man b/w High Heel Sneakers, released January 13, 1968.





It's also worth noting that even Elvis had a little sitar in his music in the heady year of 1967, as we hear some electric guitar sitar on "High Heel Sneakers" played by Nashville session pro Harold Bradley at RCA's Studio B.




EMM #18, March 1993

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Thanks to archival releases we know Elvis riffs on the Bobbie Gentry single, "Ode To Billie Joe," during the session. It was blowing up all over the radio, and he wanted to tease friend Lamar Fike, who was in the studio and apparently had a chance to land the publishing on it, but did not get it.

Gentry and Presley cultivated a friendship in the 1970s, read about it here:
http://www.elvis-collectors.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=81221&p=1494359#p1494359

[Juan Luis]

I was just going to give my thread from June a plug when I see you got it already plugged.Thanks.
Just checked a few lyrics from other recordings and I'd say maybe your right about it being an Elvis ad lib.
Great revisit to a great song.

I took into account your important post from the start! So far it indeed seems that was an original Elvis ad-lib. Thank you.

[Mike C]

And, we can thank the late Chip Young for "pitching" the song to Elvis as the session began - much to the chagrin of the Presley publishing team.

[Chucky99]

What a great bluesy song.I play this quite often in the car.

[jurasic1968]

Great song and great single. If Elvis performed both songs on TV in January 1968 both could be Top 10 hits. But The Colonel's mind was still in the past and only in the movies. He was in a frenzy to search new film studios for Elvis but none of them was interested.