Anytxt Searcher

The Searchers' debut LP doesn't sound quite like any other album they ever issued. All of their Pye Records albums were rushed, but not like this – faced with an extraordinarily popular hit right out of the box in the guise of "Sweets for My Sweet" (which rose to Number One on the U.K. charts), the group cut 11 more finished tracks in one day, drawn from the best part of their stage act…

He was a boy from Tupelo who grew up to become the biggest star in music. Along the way, he absorbed a staggering range of influences, creating a revolutionary sound in his lifelong search for self-expression. Following his creative journey from childhood through the final 1976 Jungle Room recording sessions, Elvis Presley: The Searcher includes never-before-seen photos and footage from private collections worldwide, stunning atmospheric shots taken inside Graceland, Elvis’ iconic home, and more than 20 new interviews with Priscilla Presley and the many artists, session players, producers, engineers and directors who knew him or who were profoundly influenced by him.

Though rooted in the traditions of North Indian classical music, this album adds a subtle modern twist that makes it more digestible to Western ears. Soul Searcher consists of one 50-minute track that swells and recedes, evolving into an epic composition of almost otherworldly beauty. The music combines all the common elements of traditional Indian music – syncopated tabla rhythms, droning tamboura, dazzling vocals – with Shankar's breathtaking violin melodies, then adds keyboards courtesy of Peter Gabriel, who featured the violinist's talents prominently on Passion.

Being a consummate professional and ultimate musician, Eubanks is able to work within his confined parameters and make tunes such as "Forgotten Future" and "Poem for a Sleeping Child" a pleasant and interesting listen. The producers here were obviously trying to re-create some of the appeal that Pat Metheny achieved by using Mark Ledford's voicings, but it comes up flat here. Another "diet jazz" recording from GRP with hints of Eubanks' genius spread thinly throughout.

The new multi-part documentary Elvis Presley: The Searcher, directed by Thom Zimny and airing on HBO on April 14, pushes past the larger-than-life image of The King of Rock and Roll, portraying him instead as a man and an artist "who wanted to heal, to find that thing that was always felt to be missing, and to do it through the music."