Lisa Marie Presley duets with her late father Elvis! I don’t know about you, but I find duets with dead people a little on the creepy side? Nevertheless, this little-known Elvis tune reminds me of what an incredibly soulful and nuanced singer Elvis Presley was. Lisa Marie wisely allows him to shine in the performance.

Here’s a press release explaining were you can download the track and find out more about Lisa Marie and her upcoming tour (I wonder if she’ll do one of those skeery hologram deals?) The music video debuted today and it’s at the bottom of the page. Elvis Presley Enterprises is owned by American Idol parent company, Core Media.

NASHVILLE – Monday, October 15, 2012 – Lisa Marie Presley will world premiere her new video “I Love You Because,” an emotional duet with her late father Elvis Presley, on CMT and CMT.com on Thursday, October 18th during the 8 and 10 a.m. ET/PT music hours.  At the suggestion of renowned producer T-Bone Burnett, Lisa recorded the Elvis song in August for the 35th anniversary of her father’s death.  The video was only intended to be viewed by some 25,000 fans in attendance at the 35th Anniversary Concert at the FedEX Forum in Memphis, but following a warm reception by fans, Presley agreed to share the video with CMT.

The single “I Love You Because” from Sony Legacy will be available for purchase digitally beginning October 16th , and the full video will be available on iTunes on October 25th .  Additionally, Lisa Marie announced she will hit the road for two weeks in November in support of her new album Storm & Grace, starting November 1st in Tunica, Miss., and ending November 17th at Carnegie Hall in New York, NY.

“I Love You Because” was first recorded by Elvis on July 4th and 5th, 1954 at SUN Studio. The session started on the 4th and ended early on the morning of the 5th in Memphis, Tenn., the same day he recorded “That’s All Right.”  Producer Sam Phillips did not think “I Love You Because” was the right song for Elvis’ first single, so it eventually found its way to his first album released in 1956.  Following its first studio recording, the song was never performed again by Elvis.  Lisa Marie recorded her vocals to the song on August 8, 2012 at The Village in Santa Monica, Calif., after consulting with producer T-Bone Burnett who presented her with the idea of “I Love You Because” as a special song for her fans.

“We were really moved when we saw this video during Lisa Marie’s recent Nashville visit, and asked if we could premiere this to fans on CMT,” said Leslie Fram, SVP of Music Strategy, CMT.  “Lisa Marie and her team were thrilled and so gracious to allow this to be shared with our fans.”

The video for the track was a personal project for Lisa Marie, in which she introduces her four children as the continuation of her father’s legacy.  She recorded the vocals to the song on August 8th , 2012, and made the video over the course of just four days in time to debut it August 16th , 2012 at the 35th Anniversary Elvis Concert at the FEDEX FORUM in Memphis.  Lisa Marie Presley’s four-year-old twin girls Finley and Harper, as well as her son Benjamin (19) and daughter Riley (23), are featured in never-before-seen family photos, along with Lisa Marie and Elvis.

 
  • Montavilla

    Ghoulish, I agree.  I don’t know how the artists feel, but when I see Natalie Cole and Lisa Marie Presley putting out records with their dead fathers, all I can think is that they’re exploiting the memories of their dads.

    I did like when Brian May (and later Adam) sang with the projections of Freddie Mercury.  But that was during a concert, and Brian’s song (an audience sing-along) was set up to acknowledge their fans’ relationship to Freddie and the sorrow that everyone feels about his loss.  Even not being there live, I can see what a beautiful and profound moment it must have been.  

    Maybe it’s like that with Natalie and Lisa Marie in concert.  I don’t know.  But the recordings are distasteful to me.  

  • fuzzywuzzy

    “Nevertheless, this little-known Elvis tune reminds me of what an incredibly soulful and nuanced singer Elvis Presley was. Lisa Marie wisely allows him to shine in the performance.

    I don’t think that she had a choice. lol

  • GinaBallerina

    Long live The King!  Truly one of the most gifted vocalists of all time!

    It’s just crazy how much Lisa Marie looks like him…

  • jinxx315

    I think when Natalie Cole sang with her dad Nat it was nice. Tastefully done and a sort of tribute. I never really cared for Lisa Marie though. 

  • ptslittlecomment

    This is not the first time Lisa Marie has released a video of dueting with her dad. She has done this before with “Don’t Cry Daddy” and “In the Ghetto” and probably others.

  • iluvai

    I think this is all about the daughters wanting to connect with their dads. Imo, singing with their dads posthumously gives them something special that none of their fans can do.   I can’t imagine vying for my dad’s attention with millions of admirers.

  • iluvai

    Can you imagine how Lisa Marie could really exploit her father??   I think she has been under the radar for 40 years. Good for her and good for her mom. :)