Wednesday, 12 February 2014

LOVE ME TENDER? NOPE!



Just about everyone knows the song LOVE ME TENDER by PELVIS PARSLEY (or whatever his name is), but did you know that the tune originally belonged to a 19th century composition called AURA LEE?  Here's Mr. VELVET himself, JIM REEVES, singing it live sometime back in the 1950s (I think) on some show or other.

This clip looks as if it's been filmed directly from the TV broadcast, so the quality of sound and vision isn't all that great, but isn't it interesting to hear the original version of the song?

'TEAM-UPS & TENSES' - PART SIX of 'POT LUCK' MARVEL COVER GALLERY...

Images copyright MARVEL COMICS

Some might say it's redundant given that SPIDER-MAN readily identifies the publisher, but I can't help thinking that 'MARVEL' should be far more prominent in the above cover's rather bland masthead.  However, that's just a personal observation and no one's obliged to agree with me on the matter.  Anyway, here's yet another batch of British Marvel weeklies (although it's possible that MARVEL ACTION HOUR was a fortnightly comic, but I can't quite recall) to satiate your rabid desire for all things Marvel from many years ago.

It would be interesting to know what the sales figures were on these titles, because, with the possible exception of TEAM-UP, I can't imagine that any of them lasted for very long.  British Marvel seems to have lost its way a bit during this period, and nothing much matched the excitement that early issues of MWOM and SMCW managed to create in readers back in the early '70s.  You have to give them credit for trying, I suppose, but, for the most part (with a few honourable exceptions), it wasn't until PANINI took over the task of producing U.K. titles that 'British Marvel' at last fulfilled its potential as far as presentation goes.

But let's not get ahead of ourselves.  Instead, let's focus on these pulsating periodicals from the past, when we were all younger, brighter-eyed and bushy-tailed, with optimism for the future burning in our hearts.  Wouldn't it be great to re-experience those elusive, enchanted emotions from so very long ago?  Well, now's our chance!  So, everyone clasp hands and focus upon the covers enclosed within this post - with any luck, we'll return to an earlier era together!

Spot the Marvel boo-boo.  The date should read 18th