as this is a two part cd, so shall this review be. are you ready, kiddies? now it begins!!!

harem scarem is not a good movie. nor is it a good soundtrack. it falls in the category of forgotten elvis, simply because it is neither king-of-rock-&-roll good, nor is it fat-man-on-the-toilet bad, it simply lies there, like a forgotten tuna fish sandwich at the carnival. only three tunes stand out: shake that tambourine is most definitely FMOTT bad; generic rock backing with a cringe worthy lyric. one can almost hear elvis weeping into his hands after recording this. hey little girl would be just another blatant come on from the king to one of his unworthy minions, except for the fact that, in the film, he's actually singing this entendre laden swill TO A LITTLE GIRL, making it rather uncomfortable to listen to (you want easy listening? pat boone is waiting!). & so close yet so far is (no foolin) a great great ballad. one can almost see elvis sigh with relief after getting a decent tune to sing, then pound his fist in exasperation after getting the lead sheet to "go east young man".

girl happy. girl happy is the finest elvis soundtrack ever. girl happy is the finest elvis movie ever. girl happy is the greatest elvis ever. sure, okay, you might dismiss the whole thing as mindless escapism & heresy to compare this slight 20+ minutes of material to the finest the king had to offer, but allow me to rebut with this: you are wrong. nothing touches this. you want great rock & roll with minimal investment in time? meanest girl in town, got to find my baby, & startin tonight all fit your bill-not a one over two minutes & action packed HEAR ME action packed! you need stooopid, head scratchworthy babble? why not try ft lauderdale chamber of commerce & spring fever? you dig elvis da stud? cross my heart & do not disturb should be ringin your bells! i know you wanna dance dance dance, so get animal & listen to wolf call & do the clam! in fact the lamest song on here is the most conventional, puppet on a string, but it is but a small price to pay for otherwise perfection. forget heartbreak hotel & hound dog, in the ghetto & kentucky rain, hurt & patch it up. THIS is elvis' peak.

Neither "Girl Happy" nor "Harum Scarum" (both released in 1965) represent the nadir of Elvis' film career (there was a nearly bottomless pit of bad films ahead). And though their soundtracks can't compare to Elvis' contemporary non-soundtrack work, they do offer some excellent, albeit lightweight, pop tunes. Both soundtracks charted ("Girl Happy" peaked at #8, "Harum Scarum" at #14), with "Girl Happy" producing two singles: "Do the Clam" (#21) and "Puppet on a String" (#8).

"Girl Happy" fares well with its summer-themed boys-meet-girls songs. The title track is a fine slice of upbeat summer pop written by Doc Pomus and Norman Meade. "Wolf Call" "The Meanest Girl in Town" and "I've Got to Find My Baby" give Elvis a rock 'n' roll beat, with guitars (both fuzz and twang) and saxophone. Sadly, the CD doesn't provide the eye-candy of Shelley Fabares strutting around to these songs."Do Not Disturb" finds Elvis playing the seductive lothario. "Cross My Heart and Hope to Die" takes a late-night turn at the blues, and "Do the Clam," though having failed to ignite a nationwide craze, finds its bongo- and maraca-driven rhythms still able to fill a dance floor. "Puppet on a String," the album's hit single, is a superb country-piano edged ballad.

"Harum Scarum" has a few medium-high points, but its reliance on dramatic, faux Middle Eastern melodies is at odds with Elvis' talent. Tunes like "My Desert Serenade" and "Go East - Young Man" are songs you'd expect to hear from a mid-liner in a 1960s Las Vegas' lounge (most likely at the Sahara Hotel). "Kismet" is a better fit for Presley's balladeering.

The title tune (called "Harum Holiday," after one of the film's original titles) is a typical production number, with Elvis singing his big plans and dancing up a storm. Other production numbers, like "Shake That Tambourine," are too dependent on their dazzling choreography to shine on CD. "Hey Little Girl," while kicking up a bit of rock 'n' roll should not be confused with similarly titled (and more artistically satisfying) songs by Dee Clark, Professor Longhair, Del Shannon or Icehouse. "Animal Instinct," rhymes "instinct" with "wink," "drink," and "brink," all the while providing Elvis a chance to display his feral side.

As a two-fer, this album offers little more value than a straight-up reissue of "Girl Happy." This German issue appears to be the only version still in print. The 1993 U.S. issue (with a different cover) appears to have been deleted from RCA's domestic catalog. Sound quality is superb, having been remastered from original sound sources.

3-1/2 stars for "Girl Happy," 2 stars for "Harum Scarum."

I know of not one song on the album Harum Scarum that was released as an single. The Music is outstanding on Harum Scarum and the psychedelic era would soon follow. In my opinion the best song on Harum Scarum is "Wisdom of the Ages", and the song "Golden Coins", is almost as creative as was "Wisdom of the Ages". The Beatles song "Norwegian Wood" is much similar to "Wisdom of the Ages", especially the Guitar work. The other songs are also very creative especially "So Close Yet So Far From Paradise", and "Animal Instinct", and "Harum Holiday", both of those songs you will notice Beatle influence. The other songs are also very good songs but not the type of songs that would make it to the top ten. This Elvis album in my opinion is one of the greatest albums ever recorded because it had an impact obviously, and Middle Eastern music afterwards would become a part of rock music. The album "Girl Happy" is another good Elvis album for the most part and is worth buying.

What you have here are two lousy Elvis soundtracks from 1965 on one CD.

Harum Scarum is a very bad soundtrack. None of the song were considered good enough to be released as singles. The one fairly good song is "So Close, Yet So Far (From Paradise)". The only other songs that are somewhat interesting are "Shake That Tambourine" and "Hey Little Girl", which aren't good songs, but at least they have some energy to them.

Girl Happy is another bad soundtrack. "Do the Clam" was released as a single from this album, and was one of the worst songs ever released as an Elvis single. The only good song on the album is "Puppet on a String", which was later released as a single when it started to get radio airplay. A few other songs have a certain goofy charm, such as "Cross My Heart and Hope to Die" and "The Meanest Girl in Town", but they are by no means good songs.

This CD will be of interest only to Elvis fans who have to have everything that the King ever recorded.

I give it five stars simply on the material provided for the Harem Scarem part of the cd. Most of the songs on the Girl Happy section do not interest me in the least. There are some beautiful and haunting songs in the Harum soundtrack, especially "Wisdom Of The Ages" and "So Close Yet So Far" with that far off mystical sound that I wish Elvis would have used more later in his career. Elvis' voice is absolutely supurb, showing his versatility as he always does. I highly suggest this just based on the strength of the Harum Scarum tracks. You just might learn something.