RCA

Review: THAT’S THE WAY IT IS CD [The Elvis Beat newsletter]

/ TY

I was 18 when I wrote this review back in 1993 for The Elvis Beat #5, my official Elvis Presley Fan Club newsletter.

That’s The Way It Is (RCA), recorded by Elvis Presley, produced by Felton Jarvis. Recorded June 1970, RCA Studios (Nashville) and August 1970, International Hotel (Las Vegas). Released: December 1970. Re-released: 1993 (CD).

That’s The Way It Is continued Elvis’ string of awesome studio work which had started at the Memphis sessions in January 1969. It is definitely one of the most outstanding albums of his career.

Over half of the twelve songs on the album were recorded in June 1970 at RCA’s Nashville studios, a recording session which eventually yielded the bulk of the songs on three albums.

The rest of the songs were taken from his Summer 1970 Las Vegas engagement, which was filmed for the documentary Elvis: That’s The Way It Is.

All twelve songs on the album are so great that favorites cannot even be chosen. Elvis does his own distinct versions of several previously recorded songs of other artists which far exceed the originals – “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin'” and “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” for example.

Fans of this album should also obtain the videos Elvis: That’s The Way It Is, which contains all of the songs in one form or another, and Elvis: The Lost Performances, which features excellent live versions of “Twenty Days And Twenty Nights” and “Just Pretend.”

Songs:

  1. “I Just Can’t Help Believin'”
  2. “Twenty Days And Twenty Nights”
  3. “How The Web Was Woven”
  4. “Patch It Up”
  5. “Mary In The Morning”
  6. “You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me”
  7. “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin'”
  8. “I’ve Lost You”
  9. “Just Pretend”
  10. “Stranger In The Crowd”
  11. “The Next Step Is Love”
  12. “Bridge Over Troubled Water”

Rating: 10 out of 10

New 70s Elvis CDs released [The Elvis Beat newsletter]

/ TY

I was 18 when I wrote this piece back in 1993 for The Elvis Beat #5, my official Elvis Presley Fan Club newsletter.

The latest additions to RCA’s “Elvis In The 90s” series have arrived at record stores. The new trio, available separately, consists of:

  • That’s The Way It Is
  • Elvis Country
  • Elvis Now

All three of the albums were originally released in the 1970s, but they have been digitally remastered and released on CD for the first time.

Only days away is the year’s biggest Elvis release, ELVIS: From Nashville To Memphis – The Essential 60s Masters I. Reviews of the three new 1970s CDs appear elsewhere in this newsletter.

From Nashville To Memphis . . . [The Elvis Beat newsletter]

/ TY

I was 18 when I wrote this article back in 1993 for The Elvis Beat #5, my official Elvis Presley Fan Club newsletter.

ELVIS: From Nashville To Memphis – The Essential 60s Masters I, a new 5-CD boxed set, will appear in record stores on September 28. The collection is the follow-up to the highly successful 1992 release ELVIS: The King Of Rock ‘n’ Roll – The Complete 50s Masters, which earned platinum status and three Grammy nominations.

The Essential 60s Masters I follows the same format established by The Complete 50s Masters. Along with the five CDs will be a new 94-page booklet that will contain recording session data, a 1960s discography, and liner notes by Peter Guralnick. Also included will be a page of stamps depicting Elvis’ 1960s record covers.

According to promotional material, the CDs will feature “Elvis Presley’s finest 60’s performances from Nashville plus the complete 1969 Memphis Sessions.” In addition, the set will contain 19 previously unreleased/alternate performances for a total of 130 digitally remastered tracks.

The unreleased/alternate songs will include:

  • “I’ll Remember You”
  • “Guitar Man/What’d I Say”
  • “This Time/I Can’t Stop Loving You”
  • “In The Ghetto”
  • “Suspicious Minds”
  • “Kentucky Rain”
  • “It’s Now Or Never”
  • “Love Me Tender/Witchcraft” (duet with Frank Sinatra)

The collection brings the world a little closer to achieving RCA’s goal of having every Elvis song available on compact disc. Future releases are to include The Essential 60s Masters II and the long-awaited 70s boxed set.

Review: AS RECORDED AT MADISON SQUARE GARDEN CD [The Elvis Beat newsletter]

/ TY

I was 18 when I wrote this review back in 1993 for The Elvis Beat #4, my official Elvis Presley Fan Club newsletter.

As Recorded At Madison Square Garden (RCA), recorded by Elvis Presley, produced by Felton Jarvis. Recorded June 10, 1972, Madison Square Garden (New York). Released: June 1972. Re-released: 1992 (CD).

As Recorded At Madison Square Garden was Elvis’ first live album to consist of one complete concert, instead of songs excerpted from several different shows. This was also his first live album not recorded at the Las Vegas International Hotel. The result is a front row seat for the listener to hear Elvis in concert at Madison Square Garden.

From the rumblings of “Also Sprach Zarathustra” (the theme from 2001: A Space Odyssey) that opens the album to the announcement that Elvis has left the building that closes it, listeners are taken on a journey back to 1972 to witness Elvis at his near best.

He performs his standard hits (as usual a little different than previous versions) and a variety of new songs as well, the best of which is “The Impossible Dream.”

Songs:

  1. “Also Sprach Zarathustra”
  2. “That’s All Right”
  3. “Proud Mary”
  4. “Never Been To Spain”
  5. “You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me”
  6. “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin'”
  7. “Polk Salad Annie”
  8. “Love Me”
  9. “All Shook Up”
  10. “Heartbreak Hotel”
  11. “Teddy Bear/Don’t Be Cruel”
  12. “Love Me Tender”
  13. “The Impossible Dream”
  14. “Introductions By Elvis”
  15. “Hound Dog”
  16. “Suspicious Minds”
  17. “For The Good Times”
  18. “American Trilogy”
  19. “Funny How Time Slips Away”
  20. “I Can’t Stop Loving You”
  21. “Can’t Help Falling In Love”
  22. “End Theme”

Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Review: LOVE LETTERS FROM ELVIS CD [The Elvis Beat newsletter]

/ TY

I was 18 when I wrote this review back in 1993 for The Elvis Beat #4, my official Elvis Presley Fan Club newsletter.

Love Letters From Elvis (RCA), recorded by Elvis Presley, produced by Felton Jarvis. Recorded June 4-8, 1970, RCA Studios (Nashville). Released: May 1971. Re-released: 1992 (CD).

Despite the fact that Love Letters From Elvis was billed as an album of romantic songs, this is not “Love Me Tender” to the 12 power. In fact, along with the ballads, there are two religious songs and three up-tempo songs that are delivered equally as well as the love songs.

“Love Letters” is a re-recording of his 1966 single and is superior to that version. By far, the best song on this album is “This Is Our Dance,” which is very different from Elvis’ post-1971 ballads which tend to be sentimental pieces reflecting his problems with Priscilla.

Elvis picks up the pace with “Cindy, Cindy,” a song previously recorded with slightly different lyrics by Ricky Nelson under the title “Get Along Home, Cindy.”

The album concludes with “Life,” a song that manages to tell the complete story of the universe in under four minutes.

Love Letters From Elvis suffers from overpowering instrumentation on many tracks, a problem which was corrected for the most part on his future albums.

Songs:

  1. “Love Letters”
  2. “When I’m Over You”
  3. “If I Were You”
  4. “Keep Your Hands Off Her/Got My Mojo Working”
  5. “Heart Of Rome”
  6. “Only Believe”
  7. “This Is Our Dance”
  8. “Cindy, Cindy”
  9. “I’ll Never Know”
  10. “It Ain’t No Big Thing”
  11. “Life”

Rating: 7.5 out of 10

Review: ELVIS IN PERSON CD [The Elvis Beat newsletter]

/ TY

I was 18 when I wrote this review back in 1993 for The Elvis Beat #4, my official Elvis Presley Fan Club newsletter.

Elvis In Person (RCA), recorded by Elvis Presley, produced by Felton Jarvis. Recorded August 22-26, 1969, International Hotel (Las Vegas). Released: November 1970. Re-released: 1992 (CD).

Elvis was at his musical best in the years 1968 and 1969, a period encompassing the ELVIS televions special, the Memphis sessions, and his triumphant return to live performances. The Elvis In Person CD, arguably his best album, captures the Summer 1969 Las Vegas concet engagement that brought him back before an audience after years of movies.

The contents of Elvis In Person had previously been released as Record One of the two-record set From Memphis To Vegas/From Vegas To Memphis in late 1969.

He performs every song on this album with the skill of a true master, from rockers like “Johnny B. Goode” to beautiful ballads like “Words.” With only one or two exceptions, each song on Elvis In Person is the greatest live rendition ever released by him. Never before and never again was Elvis so unbelievably awesome as he was in 1968 and 1969.

Although his subsequent live albums certainly deserve merit, none would exceed the magic of this album. After so many years of mediocre movie soundtrack albums, Elvis was finally back.

Songs:

  1. “Blue Suede Shoes”
  2. “Johnny B. Goode”
  3. “All Shook Up”
  4. “Are You Lonesome Tonight”
  5. “Hound Dog”
  6. “I Can’t Stop Loving You”
  7. “My Babe”
  8. “Mystery Train/Tiger Man”
  9. “Words”
  10. “In The Ghetto”
  11. “Suspicious Minds”
  12. “Can’t Help Falling In Love”

Rating: 10 out of 10

Review: BACK IN MEMPHIS CD [The Elvis Beat newsletter]

/ TY

I was 18 when I wrote this review back in 1993 for The Elvis Beat #4, my official Elvis Presley Fan Club newsletter.

Back In Memphis (RCA), recorded by Elvis Presley, produced by Felton Jarvis and Chips Moman. Recorded January 13-23 and February 17-21, 1969, American Sound Studios (Memphis). Released: November 1970. Re-released: 1992 (CD).

Back In Memphis was the second album released from Elvis’ early 1969 Memphis sessions that produced some of his best studio work. The contents of Back In Memphis had been previously released in November 1969 as Record Two of the double album From Memphis To Vegas/From Vegas To Memphis.

As was typical of his entire career, Elvis performs a variety of musical styles on this album, and as usual, pulls it off with perfection. His best performances on Back In Memphis are “Inherit The Wind,” “Stranger In My Own Home Town,” and “You’ll Think Of Me.”

However, Elvis’ best recordings from the Memphis sessions had already been released either as singles or on the first album, From Elvis In Memphis, and when compared to those works, Back In Memphis is a slight disappointment.

Songs:

  1. “Inherit The Wind”
  2. “This Is The Story”
  3. “Stranger In My Own Home Town”
  4. “A Little Bit Of Green”
  5. “And The Grass Won’t Pay No Mind”
  6. “Do You Know Who I Am”
  7. “From A Jack To A King”
  8. “The Fair’s Moving On”
  9. “You’ll Think Of Me”
  10. “Without Love”

Rating: 7 out of 10