Design
The CD comes in a thin cardboard sleeve with a basic, but original design, mixing the 'It Happened at the World's Fair' and 'Roustabout' cover art. Or is this just an example that even the cover art of these soundtrack albums is interchangeable?
If done properly, using the original elements, the portrait from 'It Happened at the World's Fair' would have been used for the new design.
Content
The original title tracks are a rebuild using seven takes and eight splices, extended with a very long fade-out and a with a little surprise at the end when Elvis sings "I'm A Raving Maniac". Nicely done.
The follow-up is less strong. Whatever you do to 'Take Me To The Fair', it remains a mediocre song which is supposed to sound happy, but it sounds fake. Splicing it up does not improve it.
I must admit I kind-of like the organ on 'It's Carnival Time', even though it could have been used in a Benny Hill TV sketch ... Although it is unavoidable with this kind of release, this is one of the few tracks on which you hear the different takes and sources used to create a new mix.
The second version of 'Roustabout' has more spunk than the version the producers selected for the movie and soundtrack. If only our man had sung this with a raw edge, it would fit both the theme and the music.
'One Broke Heart For Sale' is one of the better songs from the soundtrack album, again mainly extended but nicely done with a bit of an abrupt ending.
'One Track Heart' starts of almost acapella, and builds up nicely using takes 4 and 11, but the song is just too mediocre to really take off. The same goes for 'Hard Knocks' which has some potential as a song, but I don't hear the hard knocks the singer experienced in the performance. Where is the Elvis from a few years earlier who could perform these songs with the raw edge they need?
'Beyond The Bend' is one of the few tracks on which we get a bit of studio chatter, which adds to the listening experience, but again, a low-quality song and sub-par performance ... I pressed "next song" early in the song.
Up next another great song, 'Little Egypt', rebuilt from Elvis' first three takes, creating a nice version. I might have given the bass and saxophone a more prominent place in the mix, they really add to the sound-picture of this song.
'How Would You Like To Be?' is a nice little children's song, and nicely performed by Elvis. But these kinds of songs shouldn't have a place on an adult album.
'Carny Town'. What a bad song this is. The producer used the band messing up as a fitting ending, they still took too long. 'What A Wonderful World' follows, another song Elvis shouldn't have recorded ... too bad the producers decided to extend it while they also could also have edited a short(er) version.
'A World of Our Own' is slightly better and hearing Elvis sing you can hear he really uses his voice. An enjoyable song, nicely extended by the producers.
'Poison Ivy League' is featured as an alternate master, but shouldn't have been featured at all as it is a bad song. Fortunately 'Cotton Candy Land', spliced from takes 3 and 4 has a nice feel, and is sung well by our man.
If only Elvis had performed 'Relax' like he did with 'Fever' this could have been a very very good song. But this version doesn’t cash in on the potential of the song. It is the same for 'I'm Falling In Love Tonight' which in itself has more potential than what we hear. I almost dozed off listening to it, 'I'm Falling In Sleep Tonight' is a more appropriate title. There is no splicing that can turn this around.
On 'Wheels On My Heels' I hear a little 'county' in Elvis' voice, but again, a sub-par song. We know Sid Tepper and Roy Bennett can do better ... the same goes for 'Big Love, Big Heartache' by Mark Barkan (who passed away this year) and Dolores Fuller who wrote better songs for Elvis.
A little hidden gem on this set is 'They Remind Me Too Much Of You', a good song, a good performance and good editing by the producers.
The album ends with 'There's A Brand-new Ending' and 'Happy Ending' but the ending can't come early enough. Where the first song is not that bad the latter is.
Conclusion
A compliment must be made to the producer, the mixes are done very well, you barely hear the splices. But the mediocre quality of the songs won't make me play this CD again.