July 03 - Memories That Linger on CD

The new Panther records import record label announced the release of the double CD set 'Memories That Linger In My Heart', featuring the December 10, 1975 performance as recorded from the audience in Las Vegas.

Publicity stated: December in Las Vegas in the 1970´s has not really been a time where it would be easy to sell out concert venues. Unless you were considering bringing a musical phenomenon to town for the holiday season. Exactly this happened in 1975. When Elvis played Vegas in August of this year, it was a short-lived engagement as the “King” gave up after just 5 appearances because of pure exhaustion. Fans who eagerly awaited his iconic presence were disappointed, yet hope remained alive that Elvis would be back soon. And the contract had to be fulfilled anyway, so the Colonel and the Hilton management decided to bring Elvis back in December of the same year.

To make it short, the whole engagement in December of 1975 was nothing less than a rescheduled triumph! What you will hear on our new double CD set is (for the first time) the complete show of December 10 (there was only 1 show that day, at 10.00 PM). On previous releases of this concert the producers were not willing to invest in a second CD so they simply cut out some dialogue – which is a shame of course.

There are many highlights in the very good sounding audience recording of this evening. A more loose show with Elvis seemingly having a good time interacting with the audience. Plus the one or the other surprise, such as Elvis obviously playing a prank on people at the beginning of the show by going from 'See See Rider' into 'Can't Help Falling In Love' (including the so-called 'Closing Vamp'!) – as if the show would already be over after just 2 songs! And then, when you could have expected that he would go straight into 'I Got A Woman' after the usual “Wells” he presented another surprise: a spontaneous, nice version of 'When My Blue Moon Turns To Gold Again'. A hilarious moment indeed! 

The song 'Just Pretend', a musical pearl from 1970 was brought back this season as a regular in the setlist after not having been performed since November 72 in Hawaii. A seemingly spontaneous request shortly before the end of the show, the “dramatic” tune 'My Way' became a duet between Sherill Nielsen and Elvis because Elvis did not remember the lyrics and made Sherill sing for him in certain parts. 

And regarding the quality of our new CD: needless to say that the recording of this show is newly remastered and speed-corrected. Enjoy this show with its very entertaining nature, and make sure early to get your copy of this new Panther Records release from your favorite dealer!

Tracks CD 1: 

01.         Also Sprach Zarathustra

02.         See See Rider

03.         Can’t Help Falling In Love

04.         Closing Vamp #1

05.         When My Blue Moon Turns To Gold Again

06.         I Got A Woman / Amen

07.         Love Me

08.         Fairytale

09.         And I Love You So

10.         Trying To Get To You

11.         All Shook Up

12.         Teddy Bear / Don’t Be Cruel

13.         You Gave Me A Mountain

14.         Polk Salad Annie

Disc 2:

01.         Introductions – Johnny B. Goode

02.         Drum Solo (By Ronnie Tutt)

03.         Bass Solo (By Jerry Scheff)

04.         Piano Solo (By Glen D. Hardin)

05.         School Day

06.         School Day (Reprise)

07.         Just Pretend

08.         How Great Thou Art (With Reprise)

09.         Softly As I Leave You

10.         America The Beautiful

11.         Mystery Train / Tiger Man

12.         My Way

13.         Blue Christmas

14.         Can’t Help Falling In Love #2

15.         Closing Vamp #2

(Source: Various)

July 02 - Glorious Blu-ray's from Down Under

Two of Elvis' movies were released on Blu-ray in Australia: 'Change of Habit' ViaVision and a 4K/UHD edition 'Blue Hawaii' by Paramount. 

Publicity for 'Change of Habit' stated: Elvis Presley in his final film role! An inner-city doctor falls in love for a social worker who turns out to be a nun preparing for her final vows. Could he change her life, could she forget her vows and follow her heart ...

Elvis Presley in his final film role! An inner-city doctor falls in love for a social worker who turns out to be a nun preparing for her final vows. Three young nuns, trained as medical social workers, and keeping secret the fact that they are nuns, are assigned to a ghetto clinic to assist a young doctor. This secret poses many hilarious and dramatic moments for the nuns.

Publicity for 'Blue Hawaii' stated: Paramount brings Elvis Presley’s eye-popping 1961 Technicolor musical to 4K Ultra HD with HDR-10 and Dolby Vision. 

Ex-G.I. Chadwick “Chad” Gates is coming home to Hawaii. Though his mother (Angela Lansbury) expects him to take over the family business, Chad would rather wear an aloha shirt than a white collar. When he goes to work as a tour guide at his girlfriend’s agency, it isn’t long before a group of amorous gals fights for his attention. 

Disc 1 contains the 4K Ultra Hi-definition version of the feature film. The second  Blu-ray contains the film plus commentary By Historian James L. Neibaur, a 'Blue Hawaii' Photo Scrapbook and the Original Theatrical Trailer as bonus features. The 4K Blu-ray is region free, the 2K Blu-ray comes with a region 2 code.

The specs:

Video

Codec: HEVC / H.265 (62.39 Mbps)

Resolution: Native 4K (2160p)

HDR: Dolby Vision, HDR10

Aspect ratio: 2.35:1

Original aspect ratio: 2.35:1

Audio

English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1 (48kHz, 16-bit)

German: Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono

French: Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono

Subtitles

English, English SDH, French

Discs

4K Ultra HD

Blu-ray Disc

Two-disc set (1 BD-66, 1 BD-50)

The Glory of Vinyl

The Flaming Star fan club released the 'Glory of SUN' LP on black and on splattered vinyl.

Publicity stated: Flaming Star is proud to present our very latest release!

‘Glory Of Sun’ is an exclusive double LP in a gatefold sleeve, created for Elvis fans who want to experience the original mono sound as it was meant to be heard.

All tracks have been specially remastered for this release using classic analogue studio equipment and vintage tube technology, to create a warmer, more natural sound and to preserve the dynamics of the recordings. The result is a richer and more vivid listening experience, close to the original Sun recordings.

The release also includes an extensive discography with details about master recordings and first releases, as well as exclusive liner notes  ‘From Tupelo to Sun: The Spark That Ignited Rock ’n’ Roll’  placing the music in its historical context.

Tracks side 1: That's All Right / Blue Moon Of Kentucky / I'll Never Let You Go (Little Darlin') / I Love You Because (alt take 2) / Harbor Lights.

Side 2: I Don't Care If The Sun Don't Shine / Good Rockin' Tonight / Tryin' To Get To You / Just Because / Blue Moon.

Side 3: Milkcow Blues Boogie / You're A Heartbreaker / I'm Left, You're Right, She's Gone / Baby Let's Play House / Tomorrow Night.

Side 4: Mystery Train / I Forgot To Remember To Forget / I'm Left, You're Right, She's Gone (Slow version) / I Love You Because (Unprocessed Master Edit) / When It Rains It Pours.

(Source: Elvis Information Network / Various)