FUNKY FINGERS

[Keith F]

Hey Keith F,

Have you heard Feelings?

I've heard Part of it.

It was played to me over the phone in the mid 80's along with clips of other songs that have all now been released, so I have no doubt in my mind that it will be eventually released. Among the other songs played to me were "Hearts Of Stone" which actually sounded better than it did when it was released, "Columbus Stockade Blues" which turned out to be only a few lines in between takes when released, and "It's Different Now".

These three titles spring to mind as I'd never even heard of their existence until then, as I already had a list of what I thought was unreleased up to that point in time, so to hear them was very exciting!

[jeanno]

KEITH :
So did you hear also PART of "Funky Fingers"?
What does it sound like? I mean, is it R&B, Country, Pop...

[ElvisAhlgren]

That's very interesting to hear. This proves they ARE holding back songs despite the claims that they have nothing unreleased. Or should we interpret this as it's the collectors sitting on all the goodies and that it takes a lot of negotiating to get the material? Or is it the rights to the songs that is the big problem?

Obviously there are unreleased songs and the people knowing anything don't want to or are not allowed to tell us. It makes you wonder why. Is it really that good keeping unreleased stuff just to be able to release something new every 5 years? Will sales really be better this way? What about the lost sales? Fans are getting old and who can say that Elvis be as popular in the future as he is today?

BMG:s only interest seems to be to release compilation albums so why can't they give us what's available and then they can keep on releasing the greatest hits packages?

[Keith Richards, Jr.]

Hey Keith F,

Have you heard Feelings?

I've heard Part of it.

Yes! This is the best news I've heard in at least three years! Maybe the songwriter didn't lie after all when he told some newspaper that the song had been found...

Thanks, Keith!

One can only hope that Ernst as tracked it down - or that he will do it soon - and that it's in decent quality (and that it lasts for more than 15 seconds). It's amazing that there still is unreleased stuff out there.

But "Feelings" isn't on the "official" studio tapes, is it? I thought BMG had all the tapes from this session?

Keith Richards, Jr.

[drjohncarpenter]

This proves they ARE holding back songs despite the claims that they have nothing unreleased. Or should we interpret this as it's the collectors sitting on all the goodies and that it takes a lot of negotiating to get the material? Or is it the rights to the songs that is the big problem?

The only thing proven in this topic is that Tony Joe White copyrighted a song called "Funky Fingers." As for the other questions: somewhat, and no.

DJC

[ColinB]

Most of the interest in Elvis by the general public is nostalgic.

They love all the old hits !

If Ernst/BMG found a brand new studio-recorded song in perfect audio, it wouldn't have any great commercial value.

We fans might get excited about it, but the public wouldn't !

[Renan]

I've heard Part of it.

But you heard with Elvis vocal on the track?

I ask that because I know a person that in the 80´s claimed he listened to 3 unreleased songs from the June 70 sessions, and maybe one of these songs is Funky Fingers!

[Keith F]

Just to set the record straight, I've never said that I'd heard "Funky Fingers"

[Joe Car]

Most of the interest in Elvis by the general public is nostalgic.

They love all the old hits !

If Ernst/BMG found a brand new studio-recorded song in perfect audio, it wouldn't have any great commercial value.

We fans might get excited about it, but the public wouldn't !

I don't know about that Colin, there's a ton of us fans!

[Scatter]

Keith, any possibility that the snippet of "Feelings" that you heard was one of the many fakes put forth by impersonators???

I'm not questioning your ability to recognize the real thing, mind you.............but over a vintage 1980s phone and landline, and just a piece of the song at that, it might be pretty easy to pass something off as genuine without detection.

[Renan]

Just to set the record straight, I've never said that I'd heard "Funky Fingers"

I know that.

[Gregory Nolan Jr.]

I can see how an "unreleased" track or two can be used to "spike" a new box or set, but at this point, I certainly hope Elvis' version of "Feelings" would be strictly an FTD-affair, if not just bootleg.

Hearing Elvis warble "Feel-ings...woh, woh, woh ..Feelings..." would do nothing for his already battered "Vegas" image that too many walk around with.

Not even Elvis could save that dog, with no offense to Renan.
But "Funky Fingers" at least sounds like a better tune -or jam.


P.S.
Doc's tale about SNL and Simpson rings a bell. Colin Quinn was pretty bad as an anchorman, but I've seen him be quite funny in his own settings.

[Juan Luis]

Feelings was a monster hit in 75/76 and had Elvis completed and released the song at that time it would have been as bad as if he recorded today the TITANIC song! FEELINGS Lyrics .....

Feelings, nothing more than feelings,
Trying to forget my feelings of love.
Teardrops rolling down on my face,
Trying to forget my feelings of love.

Feelings, for all my life I'll feel it.
I wish I've never met you, girl;
You'll never come again.

Feelings, wo-o-o feelings,
Wo-o-o, feel you again in my arms.

Feelings, feelings
Like I've never lost you
And feelings like I've never

Have you again in my heart.

Feelings, for all my life I'll feel it.
I wish I've never met you, girl;
You'll never come again.

Feelings, feelings like I've
Never lost you
And feelings like I've never have you
Again in my life.

Feelings, wo-o-o feelings,
Wo-o-o, feelings again in my arms.
Feelings...

[Gregory Nolan Jr.]

Did you have to do that? Like we've forgotten?

[Juan Luis]

I just thought....well, people are so anxious to hear it from Elvis

[Gregory Nolan Jr.]

Gotcha.


"Trying to forget my...feelings of lo-ve..!"

[drjohncarpenter]

...but over a vintage 1980s phone and landline, and just a piece of the song at that, it might be pretty easy to pass something off as genuine without detection.

My thought exactly.

DJC

[Daryl]

This proves they ARE holding back songs despite the claims that they have nothing unreleased. Or should we interpret this as it's the collectors sitting on all the goodies and that it takes a lot of negotiating to get the material? Or is it the rights to the songs that is the big problem?

The only thing proven in this topic is that Tony Joe White copyrighted a song called "Funky Fingers." As for the other questions: somewhat, and no.

DJC

I agree, Doc. I know this is somewhat of an older thread but the the skiping of the two master serial numbers has always bothered me. I highly doubt RCA would use their own master serial numbers on a Monument recording artist like Tony Joe White. Those recordings by Tony Joe White likely never were going to be filed in the RCA vaults. RCA would probably only use their own master serial numbers on their own recording artists only, regardless of whether another record label's artist was recording in their studio. The one thing I think needs to be considered that most people haven't considered as far as the two missing master serial numbers is that they don't have to strictly have a prefix of ZPA4 to go along with 1611 and 1612. I think the only character that is a definite in the prefix is the letter Z, which represents the year 1970. For all we know, whatever the two master serial numbers were assigned to could have been a country recording artist, which would change the second letter in the prefix to a W or another genre. Do we even know whether 1611 and 1612 were recorded in Nashville? I think it's not a safe assumption to say for certain. Even if they were recorded in Nashville, we wouldn't be able to tell by looking at a 45 RPM single or an album as the album or single would have an M or an S in place of the number 4 to indicate a mono or stereo release. If I remember correctly, the A in ZPA4 refers to the original master tape. On any record release by RCA at the time, this could be changed to a K for a 45 RPM single release or an R for an album. So basically what I'm saying is that you could have any number of combinations for the prefix to those two numbers.

ZPA4
ZPA5
ZPA3
ZCA4
ZCA5
ZCA3

This could go on and on...depending upon whether you were referring to the actual master tapes or a single release or an album release. Are there any experts on all the RCA album and single releases that were put out in 1970. It's my understanding that these numbers came down from New York. It's more likely that the two numbers appeared as a single release with the numbers being ZPKM-1611 and ZPKM-1612 or ZCKM-1611 and ZCKM-1612 depending upon whether the artist was deemed a pop or country artist. The two numbers could also have appeared as the numbers on two sides of a RCA album with prefixes like ZPRS-1611 and ZPRS-1612. Does anyone have a list of all the RCA albums that were released during 1970 along with the master serial numbers for each side of the album.

[drjohncarpenter]

IIRC, Ernst has already clarified the numbering issue in a past interview.