Issue No. 23 of Johnny Be Good features one of 45 songs from the book, Anatomy of a Song: The Oral History of 45 Iconic Hits That Changed Rock, R&B and Pop, by Marc Myers. Read John Pearson's review here. Order from Amazon here. Listen to the book on Libro (9 hours, 34 minutes). Each blog will spotlight a song from the book and a guest blogger’s color commentary. Click here to subscribe. Each issue of Your Weekly Staff Meeting will highlight the latest blog.
Almost!
Today’s guest blogger: Bill Butterworth
Song: #23 of 45
Title: "Suspicious Minds”
Musician: Elvis Presley
Released: August 1969
I APPRECIATED THIS:
The Butterworth Family has its share of Elvis fans, myself as well as my five kids who have enjoyed his songs and his movies throughout the years. We created a dividing line in his music—early Elvis and later Elvis, crassly known in our home as Skinny Elvis and Fat Elvis.
“Suspicious Minds” represents the apex of his later years, along with “In the Ghetto” and my personal favorite, “Hunka Hunka Burning Love,” as we called it in our little world.
Read more in Marc Myers’ WSJ article, “Caught in a Trap: Elvis's Last No. 1 Hit” (Aug. 30, 2012). “Suspicious Minds” was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999.
Listen to “Suspicious Minds” by Elvis Presley.
MY FAVORITE NOTES & QUOTES:
Mark Myers writes in his book that Presley’s music in the 1960s "had steered clear of soul influences, weaving instead through a range of genres that included rockabilly, spirituals, and movie soundtracks. But by 1968, Presley had lost his touch. His last No. 1 pop hit had been released in 1962.”
“Suspicious Minds” came along at just the right time for the King. The songwriter was Mark James, who not only wrote the song, but recorded it and released it before Elvis ever saw it. James had good fortune, since his version never really caught on, so it was wide open for Elvis to embrace.
Myers shares a fascinating behind-the-scenes snippet about the actual recording session with a quote from Mark James. “I wasn’t at Elvis’s recording session for the song. Days earlier I had walked into the control room and sensed he was uncomfortable with me being there. . . I didn’t want to jinx the song, so I stayed away.”
MY PERSONAL CONNECTION:
It was early 1977 and I was living in south Florida. I was teaching at a small college, but had a strong fascination with music. I had been writing Gospel songs for almost 10 years—sounds pretty impressive, but the truth is I was writing the music off guitar chords, so as one publisher put it, my writing was primitive.
Several years before I had joined the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP for short) in order to connect with a group that would ensure I would be receiving the proper royalties for my work. As I write this blog, I am looking at a framed check stub from ASCAP. It’s for 10 years of back royalties from NBC radio and it’s for 17 cents.
Back to early 1977. To my surprise, I was visited by an ASCAP executive from Nashville who connected with members to be sure they were happy with their services. This gentleman honestly admitted that he was unfamiliar with my work, so I played him a few tunes that had been recorded by various artists. I got around to a ballad that really spoke to him. “Has anyone else recorded this song?” he asked, a sense of urgency in his voice.
“Nope,” I replied.
“Well if it’s okay with you, I have someone who I think would be interested in this song and I know he’d do a great job with it.”
“Sounds good,” I said. “Who’s the artist?’
“Elvis,” was the one-word reply.
“He’s looking for new material for a Gospel album he’s putting together. He’d love your song.”
And that’s how a tiny little song of mine was put into the hands of the King of Rock and Roll.
Just like a high school athlete who claims, “I almost went pro!” and then points to the knee injury or the steel plate, I almost got my song recorded by Elvis.
But the King died before he could get to it.
So, instead of living the life of luxury as I live off my royalties, I simply have a really good story to share at parties.
JOHNNY BE...GOOD, BETTER, OR BEST?
• GOOD: “Suspicious Minds” is a good song. Like I said, it’s no “Burning Love,” but it works. It’s no Babe Ruth, but a solid Roger Maris.
• BETTER: One can find almost as many books written about Elvis as there are books about Abraham Lincoln. You deserve an Elvis binge watch/read in your life. Go for it!
• BEST: For me, the Best Scenario would have been if Elvis had lived on, recorded my song, and we would’ve become best friends. I can just see him offering me one of his grilled steaks, with a quarter-pound stick of butter melting on top of it. What would I say to him? “Thank you. Thank you very much.”
Just imagine…if Bill Butterworth’s song had been recorded by Elvis! So we imagined this photo…if Bill and Elvis had become friends! Almost!
THIS ISSUE'S COMMENTARY BY Bill Butterworth
BILL BUTTERWORTH ended up writing over 100 songs—many of which were published by Zondervan and arranged for choirs. However, he didn’t make music his career choice. Instead, he has made a career of speaking, writing, and ghostwriting. For close to 40 years, he has traveled to all 50 states and lots of foreign countries, encouraging people with his wit and wisdom.
Bill has spoken to an extensive list of Fortune 500 companies, including Microsoft, Disney, Ford, and American Express. He’s spoken at hundreds of churches over the years as well. And of course, his favorite gig has been in front of 28 of the 32 teams in the National Football League. He’s a big fan.
On the writing side, he’s written over a dozen books under his own name, plus more than 60 books as a ghostwriter. (He also wants to write your book, so contact him at [email protected].) Read John Pearson's review of his book, Everyday Influence.
Bill and Kathi live in Texas. They have five children, all grown up and married, along with 11 grandchildren.
NEXT UP!
Song #24 of 45, “Whole Lotta Love,” by Led Zeppelin, with commentary by Ed Barrett.
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It all started in 2023, when John Pearson read and reviewed a "fun" book, Anatomy of a Song: The Oral History of 45 Iconic Hits That Changed Rock, R&B and Pop, by Marc Myers. Read John's review here. Order from Amazon here. Listen to the book on Libro (9 hours, 34 minutes).
If you'd enjoy being one of 45 guest bloggers, along with John Ashmen, Dick Nelson, Suzy West, Dave Barton, Patsy Barton, Paul Palmer, Bill Butterworth, Jim West, Melinda Schmidt, Jason Pearson, Gary Rea, Callista Dawson, John Walling, Ed Barrett, Larry Beatty, Skye Matlock, and others, read more here and contact John Pearson. Click here to subscribe to this blog and enjoy the toe-tapping musicians in each weekly blog post—reminding you of these iconic songs of yesteryear.