October 12 - Charts October 2024 - Week 2

Another slow week for Elvis in the U.S. with Elvis' releases pretty much at the same positions as last week, in Greece Elvis' lost more than just a few places unfortunately. 

Official U.K. charts:

• Official Album chart: 'ELV1S 30 #1 Hits' dropped 3 spots, from No. 54 to No. 57. 
• Official Streaming Album chart: 'ELV1S 30 #1 Hits' remained steady at No. 44.
• Official Physical Singles chart: 'Welcome Home Elvis' dropped over 17 places, off the chart from last week's placing at No. 83. 
• Official Music Video chart: 'The King of Rock and Roll' fell of the chart after last week's re-entry at No. 30.

Irish IRMA charts: 

• Official Irish Album chart: 'ELV1S 30#1 Hits' climbed 4 places, from No. 81 to No. 77. 

Billboard charts:   

• Billboard Top 200 Album chart: 'ELV1S 30 #1 Hits' dropped 8 places to No 191.  
• Billboard Top Country Album chart: 'ELV1S 30 #1 Hits' dropped 1 spot to No. 34.  
• Billboard Top Rock & Alternative Albums chart: 'ELV1S 30 #1 Hits' remained steady at No. 45. 

October 12, 2002, twenty five years after Elvis’ passing the 'ELV1S 30 #1 Hits' album entered the Billboard album chart. And in 2024, the album is stil present.

Greek charts:

• Greek IPFI Album chart: 'ELV1S 30 #1 Hits' dropped off the Top 75 chart from last week's No. 45 position.

Extra charts this week, for the Lisa Marie Presley biography. On Amazon's Best Sellers Rank the book is: 

• # 1 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
• # 1 in Love & Loss
• # 1 and #2 in Memoirs (Books)
• # 1 #2 and and #3 in Actor & Entertainer Biographies

On October 17, the book was No. 2 on the NY Times Combined Print & E-Book Nonfiction, behind Melania Trump's biography.

(Source: Billboard / Official Chart Company / IRMA / UK Mix Forum/ IPFI / Amazon / NY Times)

October 11 - Elvis On Record 2 Released

Paul Alner's 692-page hardcover book 'Elvis On Record Volume 2' has been released. 

This second 692-page full color book in the series - volume 1 was released earlier this year - features every known variation of every record issued in the United Kingdom from 1966 up to 1981. Utilizing press promotions, reviews and charts, the volume builds a unique overview of this period. 

It is a Limited Edition with only 175 numbered copies available.

The book is available through >>> Elvis 4 Sale where you can also see example pages.

You can read the interview I did together with the Elvis Information Network on the first volume of the book >>> Paul Alner - Elvis On Record Volume 1.

(Paul Alner on Facebook)

October 10 - Welcome The King To The Rodeo

Just released by the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo import record label is the Limited Edition LP / CD set '38th Annual Houston Livestock Welcomes The King To The Rodeo'. This combo package contains a remastered version of the audience recording of the March 1, 1970 7 PM Show and is limited to 125 copies. 

Publicity stated: Experience the magic as Elvis delivers an unforgettable, electrifying performance in one of the most iconic concerts. Feel the energy, hear the hits, and witness history in the making at the biggest show in Texas. Remastered audience recording to achieve the best sound for this unique show that marked the closing of Elvis’ performances at the Houston Astrodome in 1970.

Side A: Opening - Blue Suede Shoes / I Got a Woman / Long Tall Sally / Elvis welcomes the audience / Don’t Cry Daddy / Heartbreak Hotel / Hound Dog / Love Me Tender / Kentucky Rain / Release Me

Side B: Walk a Mile In My Shoes / I Can’t Stop Loving You / Polk Salad Annie / Group Introductions / Suspicious Minds / Can’t Help Falling In Love / Outro / Love Me Tender (Instrumental).

Rejects Volume 1 - 1954 - 1959

On the back of their recent 'Follow That Dream - The Complete Sessions' CD the Miracle Surface import record label announced the release of the LP 'Rejects Volume 1 - 1954 - 1959' as "coming soon", but no this year. More information when available. 

(Source: FECC / Miracle Surface)

Review Love Me Tender and Corazón de Madera 45's

Two new novelty re-issue 45’s from France, or should I say Belgium and Spain?

Continuing their worldwide hit-single and Extended Play re-issues, the French V.P.I. record label has re-issued a collectible single from Belgium: ‘Love Me Tender.’ And collectible it certainly is when I look at the £475 price tag at the Elvis Shop London.

Design

This single comes as close to the original 1957 version as it gets. If you pick the black version, the only difference is the color of the label on the vinyl; everything else is a 1-to-1 reproduction. There isn’t even a reference to the V.P.I. label, just RCA and Disel, the company that pressed the Belgian singles.

For fun, I picked the yellow vinyl, matching the font color on the cover. Housed in a cardboard cover and white paper inner sleeve, the label paid attention to the details.

Content

Elvis’ first movie didn’t get a full soundtrack album, just the four songs from the movie on single and Extended Play. Based on the ‘Aura Lee’ Civil War ballad, ‘Love Me Tender’ was a fan favorite from day one and topped the charts worldwide shortly after its release in 1956. Let’s be honest, following Elvis’ version, many covers followed, but few could stand in the shadow of his performance.

Being the “Rock and Roll rebel,” this song must have won over some of his female fans’ mothers, while the more upbeat country-themed songs like ‘Let Me,’ ‘Poor Boy,’ and ‘We’re Gonna Move’ probably appealed to the girls' fathers, making Elvis a household name.

Corazón de Madera

Together with the single above, we got a Spanish version of ‘Wooden Heart,’ titled ‘Corazón de Madera,’ from 1962. This marks the second re-issue of this song, following the release of the 1961 edition last year.

Design

When I reviewed that single, my only remark was that the label could have gone back to the first of the five different releases of this single as issued by RCA Spain in 1961 and 1962, but the label went the other way, picking the fifth version.

Looking at the design of this single, it surprised me how modern it looked, especially when compared to the other four editions, which have a typical sixties or even 1957 LP design. 

Again, it’s a faithful reproduction, with only the catalogue number missing from the front. And if I have to be critical, the images could have been a bit sharper, but if that’s all I can find to critique…

Content

As for the music, I gave the B-side a few more spins than the title track, which is too folky for my taste. It always surprised me what a big hit ‘Wooden Heart’ was on this side of the Atlantic so shortly after the war. For the color, I picked the red vinyl, again, matching the cover.

Conclusion

These novelty records are fun additions to any collection and will look great playing on your record player or jukebox. I’m curious to see if the label will eventually release all the variations of the ‘Wooden Heart’ single to complete the collection.

Availability

You can order >>> 'Love Me Tender' and >>> 'Corazón de Madera' from the French V.P.I. web-shop or from Bennies Fifties, >>> 'Love Me Tender' and >>> 'Corazon de Madera' .

If you like these re-issues, the label has already announced the November 15, 2024 release of the >>> U.S. ‘Peace in The Valley’ EP and the >>> Italian ‘Il Re Del Rock & Roll’ single. I’m especially looking forward to the latter, as the cover is in my Top 5 all-time favorite designs.

October 09 - The Last Tours Released

The Follow That Dream collector's label released the 'Elvis - The Last Tours' 4-CD-set. This 5-inch digipack features a selection of performances from February 1977, as recorded by the engineer. 

The set contains recordings from the West Palm Beach (February 13), St. Petersburg (February 14), Montgomery (February 16), Columbia (February 18), Johnson City (February 19) and Charlotte (February 20/21). All recordings are Mono. 

If you order 'Elvis - The Last Tours Vol. 1' 4-CD-set from the Danish Memphis Mansion you get a bonus CD containing all the Kasey Casem radio promo spots from 1977. Both bonus items are limited to 100 copies. 

CD 1 - West Palm Beach, Florida: Little Sister - You Gave Me A Mountain - Blue Suede Shoes - O Sole Mio / It’s Now Or Never - My Way - All Shook Up - Teddy Bear / Don’t Be Cruel - And I Love You So - Fever - Blueberry Hill - Hurt - Hound Dog - Jailhouse Rock - Can’t Help Falling In Love - Closing Vamp

 St. Petersburg, Florida: If You Love Let Me Know (Late Start) - You Gave Me A Mountain - O Sole Mio / It’s Now Or Never - All Shook Up - Teddy Bear / Don’t Be Cruel - And I Love You So - Fever - My Way - Blueberry Hill - Love Letters - School Day - Hurt - Hound Dog - Can’t Help Falling In Love - Closing Vamp

CD 2 - Montgomery, Alabama: You Gave Me A Mountain -  O Sole Mio / It’s Now Or Never - Little Sister - Teddy Bear / Don’t Be Cruel - My Way - Polk Salad Annie - Hurt - Hound Dog - Where No One Stands Alone - Unchained Melody - Can’t Help Falling In Love - Closing Vamp

Columbia, South Carolina: Fairytale - You Gave Me A Mountain - Jailhouse Rock - O Sole Mio / It’s Now Or Never - Trying To Get To You - Little Sister - Teddy Bear / Don’t Be Cruel - Are You Lonesome Tonight - That’s All Right - My Way - Release Me - Can’t Help Falling In Love - Closing Vamp

CD 3 - Johnson City, Tennessee: If You Love Let Me Know (Late Start) - You Gave Me A Mountain - Jailhouse Rock - O Sole Mio / It’s Now Or Never - Little Sister - Teddy Bear / Don’t Be Cruel - My Way - Hurt (Late Start) - Polk Salad Annie - Can’t Help Falling In Love - Closing Vamp

Charlotte, North Carolina: Love Me - Fairytale - You Gave Me A Mountain - Jailhouse Rock - O Sole Mio / It’s Now Or Never - Little Sister - Teddy Bear / Don’t Be Cruel - My Way - How Great Thou Art - Hurt - Hound Dog - Unchained Melody - Can’t Help Falling In Love - Closing Vamp

CD 4 - Charlotte, North Carolina: Are You Lonesome Tonight (Late Start) - Reconsider Baby - Love Me - Moody Blue - You Gave Me A Mountain - Jailhouse Rock - O Sole Mio / It’s Now Or Never - Little Sister - Teddy Bear / Don’t Be Cruel - My Way - Release Me - Hurt - Why Me Lord - Can’t Help Falling In Love - Closing Vamp

Order 'The last Tours Vol. 1' 4-CD-set >>> from the Memphis Mansion and get the bonus CD.

If you pre-order the delayed 'California Holiday' 2-LP >>> from the Memphis Mansion there is a bonus 45 RPM waiting for you.

Stereo For Christmas

The MRS re-issue of 'Elvis' Christmas Album' which comes on CD and on 180 Gr. Chrystal white spattered vinyl with glitters, has been released.  

The LP can be ordered from >>> Amazon (associate link).

(Source: Henrik Knudsen)

Review Back in L.A. LP

Alongside the release of the ‘New Script, Same Stage’ 2-LP set, the Millbranch import label also issued ‘Back In L.A.’, a deluxe double LP set featuring the May 11, 1974, evening show performance. 

The publicity for this release stated: “During the production of our album ‘Kansas City Revisited’, we were amazed at what can be achieved with modern studio techniques and the expertise of our recording engineer to restore these types of recordings.”

 
Having enjoyed their previous releases, I found this reason enough to pick up their latest offering of this L.A. performance, now making its debut on vinyl.
 
Design
 

Like the aforementioned ‘New Script’ album, the Millbranch label went all out with this lavish Deluxe package, and “deluxe” it certainly is! It comes in a modern-designed gatefold sleeve featuring Elvis on the cover, stepping toward the viewer and looking directly at you from the stage. Although I wish a sharper version of the cover image had been available, as this one is a bit grainy, it still captures the essence.
 

Inside, you'll find more pictures and memorabilia. The great black-and-white shot of Elvis performing showcases how simple the stage setup was in those days. essentially just a specially built stage with a curtain in front to make it look more appealing. There were no massive stages or light shows back then; Elvis had to carry each show (with a little help from his musical friends, of course).

 

The package includes printed inner sleeves that detail the meetings with Led Zeppelin, who attended this show, and excerpts from a 1956 interview with Lou Irwin when Elvis first performed in Los Angeles at the Shrine Auditorium. The interview is included on the LP as a bonus, along with  ‘Trying to Get to You’ and ‘The Wonder of You’ (both improved versions) from his 1970 performances at the “Fabulous Forum,” as it was locally known.
 
To top it off, the producers added a 20-page, LP-sized booklet covering Elvis’ L.A. performances in pictures,  you’ve got to love those screaming girls from the '50s and the fringe suit from the '70s, along with text. It’s great to read comments from newspapers, like “Elvis Presley will have to clean up his show - or go to jail,” reminding us how it all started.
 

I opted for the clear vinyl for this album, and I have no complaints. The 150 Gr. vinyl is flat, as it should be, and plays with little noticeable noise or static. I love how the clear vinyl appears to be spinning backward when played.
 
Content
 
This concert has been released before on various bootleg labels, such as ‘City of Angels’ (Audionics, 2015), and officially on the Follow That Dream collectors label as ‘Live In L.A.’ (2007). It has been reviewed several times.
 
For this release, the producers returned to their tape transfer of the original reel-to-reel soundboard tape. Although the tape isn’t in top condition, the experienced audio engineer from Holland who worked on the audio, managed to improve the sound significantly, and stayed true to the original Mono sound,  not using DES this time. Using expertise gained from her work on the Kansas City performances, this concert now has more depth than the previous releases. The producers managed to add some warmth to the overall sound, and blended Elvis' voice in better with the musicians. 

Thanks to vinyl mastering, the sound is more voluminous, resulting in a fuller experience. And with the speed corrected, Elvis’ performance sounds more energetic than in earlier versions.

 
Unfortunately, the original tape has some flaws, and some limitations are still noticeable; the sound remains a bit sharp, and the performance could benefit from more bass. Just listen to ‘Suspicious Minds’ or the finale of big show numbers like ‘I Can’t Stop Loving You’, and you’ll hear it. However, what wasn’t recorded can’t be added later. Thankfully, the crowd’s atmosphere is present, enhancing the overall enjoyment of the performance.

 

Elvis, too, contributes to this enjoyment, as he was in great shape and mood for the show, both vocally and physically. With members of Led Zeppelin in the audience, he interrupts ‘Funny How Time Slips Away’ to tell his musicians, “Wait a minute… If we can start together, fellas, because we’ve got Led Zeppelin out there… Let’s try to look like we know what we’re doing, whether we do or not!”
 
On these two vinyl discs, we get a listenable show, much in line with what we know from the March 1974 tour, with the setlist hardly changed, but with Elvis in better shape and spirits. Some highlights include ‘Love Me’ and ‘Why Me Lord’, both featuring reprises, and ‘Steamroller Blues’, with Duke Bardwell on bass.
 

On ‘Hound Dog’, Elvis humorously remarks, “You guys weren’t together, man! I ain’t gonna take the blame for it!” showing there’s still some work to be done to impress Led Zeppelin. ‘An American Trilogy’ is a standout performance, including the L.A.-specific lyric “look away, Disneyland.”
 
Conclusion
 
This reissue of the 1974 L.A. performance is an upgrade from previous versions. The show is entertaining, the package is impressive, and it can easily compete with Jimmy Carpenter’s work for the Follow That Dream label. While the audio is better than before, it’s still not perfect, but it’s as good as it gets given the source material.
 
Overall, it’s "A Whole Lotta Love" from me for delivering a deluxe package like this!

You can order the 'Back in L.A.' Deluxe 2-LP from >>> Bennies Fifties.

October 08 - From Here to the Great Unknown

The book 'From Here to the Great Unknown - A Memoir' by Lisa Marie Presley and Riley Keough, has been released and climbed to No. 1 on Amazon's best-seller list. 

Description: Born to an American myth and raised in the wilds of Graceland, Lisa Marie Presley was never truly understood, until now. Before her death in 2023, she’d been working on a raw, riveting, one-of-a-kind memoir for years, recording countless hours of breathtakingly vulnerable tape, which has finally been put on the page by her daughter, Riley Keough.

Keough listened to many hours of tape recordings her mother had recorded for the book. “She listened as Lisa Marie told story after story about the unconditional love she felt from her father, about being upstairs at Graceland, just the two of them, a sanctuary from the chaos of her life,” according to Random House.

The 304-page book also will address “Lisa Marie’s complicated relationship with her mother Priscilla” and about growing up in the public spotlight including her marriages to Michael Jackson and Nicolas Cage. Presley also talked about “the shattering loss of her son, Riley’s brother Benjamin Keough, to suicide.”

Note: The U.K. version of the book omitted the part about the sexual abuse of Lisa Marie Presley by Michael Edwards. 

Keough said in a statement, “Few people had the opportunity to know who my mom really was, other than being Elvis’s daughter. I was lucky to have had that opportunity and working on preparing her autobiography for publication has been a privilege, albeit a bittersweet one. I’m so excited to share my mom now, at her most vulnerable and most honest, and in doing so, I do hope that readers come to love my mom as much as I did.”

Also set for release on that date is an audiobook edition including what Random House says are “never-before-heard recollections in Lisa Marie’s own voice.

Random House indicated that Keough “carried a guilt” that the memoir had not been finished at the time of Presley’s death and feared the world “would never know the loving, joyful, and caring woman that she knew and grieved”.

About the authors: Lisa Marie Presley was a singer and songwriter who was born in Memphis and raised at Graceland as the only child of Elvis and Priscilla Presley. She released three studio albums throughout her music career, 'To Whom It May Concern', 'Now What', and 'Storm & Grace', the first of which was certified gold. Lisa Marie passed away in January 2023.

Riley Keough is an Emmy, Golden Globe, and Independent Spirit Award-nominated actress. She is known for her work in 'Daisy Jones & the Six', 'Zola', and more. She also co-directed 'War Pony' (2022), which won the Caméra d’Or for best first feature at Cannes, and cofounded the production company Felix Culpa with Gina Gammell. She is the eldest daughter of Lisa Marie Presley and sole trustee of Graceland.

The book will also be published in translation in 8 additional languages, including: Spanish by Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial, German by Penguin Verlag, Portuguese (Brazil) by Rocco, Dutch by Spectrum Life, Finnish by Johnny Kniga, French by JC Lattes, Polish by Marginesy, and Estonian by Tanapaev. Other languages to follow.

The audiobook edition is narrated by Riley Keough and celebrated actor, Julia Roberts with several audio pieces from the cassette-tapes that were recorded by Lisa Marie Presley and used by Riley Keough to finish the book.

When you purchase the new Lisa Marie Presley and Riley Keough memoir through Elvis Presley's Graceland for an exclusive signed lithograph by Riley. 

Elvis author Alana Nash posted on Facebook "I found Lisa and Riley's book profoundly moving. Still, lots of things go unsaid, including Lisa’s difficult split from Scientology, her contentious custody battle with Lockwood (ongoing at Lisa’s death), and Priscilla’s audacious lawsuit against her granddaughter for control of Lisa’s estate. Tellingly, there are no pictures of Priscilla in the book.

I loved little glimpses into her relationship with Elvis, too, like this one, which got cut from my piece for length: "He once smacked her hand (“I felt like my life was over”), and later, she awoke from sleep to find him standing next to her bed. “He was holding a puppet, a basset hound, making it mouth the words while he sang ‘Can’t Help Falling in Love’ to me.” When he was done singing, my dad hugged me and said he was sorry.” 

Even if I were not interested in Elvis, and if I had not met and interviewed Lisa, I would find much of this book unforgettable. I know it will stick with me for a long, long time."

You can pre-order the book from >>> Amazon (Associate link).

Best Sellers Rank in Amazon Books as of 11.31 am ET, October 11, 2024

# 1 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

# 1 in Love & Loss

# 1 and #2 in Memoirs (Books)

# 1 #2 and and #3 in Actor & Entertainer Biographies

October 07 - Cissy Houston Died

Acclaimed gospel singer and two-time Grammy winner Cissy Houston died. She was 91.

Houston, born Emily Drinkard and the mother of the late Whitney Houston, was in the well-known vocal group, the Sweet Inspirations. With the Sweets and solo, she sang backup for artists like Otis Redding, Lou Rawls, The Drifters, Dionne Warwick, Van Morrison, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Chaka Khan, Dusty Springfield, Beyoncé, Paul Simon, Roberta Flack, Aretha Franklin and many others. 

Elvis Presley invited the quartet to sing backup during his now-legendary series of Las Vegas concerts. It was during Cissy Houston' s soprano obbligato on 'Are You Lonesome Tonight?' that Elvis started laughing at the mid night show on August 26, 1969. Elvis changed the lyrics to be funny, and then cannot keep a straight face the rest of the song. He seems to be somewhat amused by the soprano performance by Cissy Houston's who sings her part perfectly. This performance was released on the Elvis Aron Presley 8-LP box set in 1980, and as a single.

After those shows, Houston said, "we would jam with him for an hour, singing gospel. He really loved it, had a feel for it and was tickled to have four 'church sisters' backing him up." 

As a token of his gratitude, Presley (whom Houston's husband affectionately called Elvis Pretzel) presented Houston with a bracelet engraved on the outside with her real name and on the inside with his pet name for her: "Squirrelly". 

Cissy Houston contributed to the "Where No One Stands Alone" album.

(Source: NY Times / LA Times / Facebook)

Review Golden Elvis

In October 2023 RDM-Edition released the first album in their ‘Mono II Stereo’ CD series, and now, a year later we hold the 4th CD in our hands. Being fans from the first moment, we looked forward to this coupling of the first two volumes Elvis’ classic Golden Albums. 

 
By Rogier van Luyken and Kees Mouwen
 
Design
 

With a title like this, the attractive design is spot on, it doesn’t get more “golden” than this. Designer David Parker hid elements from all of ‘Elvis’ Golden Records’ LPs throughout the design. For us (knowledgeable) fans the task is to spot them. 

He also wrote the liner-notes which amply cover the history of the albums featured on this compilation, providing the context behind these songs. In line with the title of the album, the CD isn’t a replica vinyl CD, but a gold plated CD, a nice detail. 
 
Content
 
The history of ‘Elvis’ Golden Records’ is well known - if only because volume 1 is considered to be the first ‘Greatest Hits Album’ to be released - and volume 2 because of its iconic cover. In a review for AllMusic, Bruce Eder commented on volume 1: “Each of the 14 songs had earned a Gold record award for a million sales, a record unequaled at that time by anyone else in Rock and Roll ... Elvis' Golden Records does give a bite-sized glimpse of where Elvis had come from and where he was going (for better or worse) musically on the eve of heading into the Army.” If this would have been Presley’s musical legacy, it would have been legendary! Fortunately we know he was to become even more successful returning to music and movies 1960.
 
The main reason to buy this album is of course the new Stereo mixes by Anthony Stuchbury, created from the original Mono versions. Stereo versions of these albums have been released on CD before (1984), using the “electronically reprocessed stereo” sound, but even RCA retracted these and replaced them in the original monophonic versions as the simulated Stereo versions simply weren’t good enough. 

But now, 40 years later, we get these albums again, but as newly created Stereo Mixes. And this time around, they sound as they should! As on previous releases by this producer, these mixes were not created using “Digitally Extracted Stereo” techniques to create stamps of each element and placing the instruments and backing vocalists to the right of left speaker and Elvis in the middle to create a stereo effect. No these mixes were created using various tools - and a set of “golden ears” as the producer stated in an interview, not wanting to give his secrets away - mixing of all the vocals and instruments in their proper place, consistent with the original Masters recorded at the sessions, to present an authentic analogue stereo sound. 
 
This is where these mixes differ from most new stereo mixes. On some songs you hear that Stuchbury managed to add real depth to the listening experience, that is something else than creating a stereo effect. As we all know, some of the original mixed-down Mono versions lacked some brightness that you can now hear in these new versions. And of course the producer made some ‘producer’s choices’ when he thought that would benefit the presentation of the song, but this has been the standard ever since Sam Philips added his slap-back effect relaying his recordings through an extra tape-recorder to make his songs sound fuller. 

 
The audio on this disc sounds very fresh as it has been cleaned where possible, without losing the original elements. Listening to other mixes - and with respect to those producers, as it is always hard to use new technology on old and classic recordings without having access to the original tapes, which weren’t always released without faults - we don’t hear any artifacts, echo’s or reverb as on other newly created mixes. 
 
Some examples of the above is the mix of 'Any Way You Want Me' which does not sound as spatial as some of the other songs on this set all elements more or less mixed together behind Elvis. This is because the original version of this song was recorded / released too loud and a little distorted, so there was no perfect master available. And what about that squeaky sound in the background of ‘Don’t’ which the producer left in. That is DJ Fontana’s  foot-pedal, which could have used some WD-40 oil. 
 
But enough on the mastering and mixing of these classics, we buy these new mixes to enjoy Elvis of course. Here are some of the observations we made while listening to this compilation of compilation albums:
 
There is some overlap on some on songs with previous ‘Mono II Stereo’ releases such as ‘Hound Dog’, ‘Don’t Be Cruel’, ‘Too Much’, ‘Love Me’ and others. So far, we presume that these are the same masters used for the previous releases that are also used for this new release. However, they do fit in the concept of this album of course: a great collection of songs that doesn’t want to make you skip any of the titles and just play it straight all the way through. And listening to these songs presented like this, there is plenty to explore.

There are some glorious ‘Mono II Stereo’ songs on this new release and they are no less than a true work of art by Anthony. Although released before, ‘Heartbreak Hotel’ is guaranteed goosebumps as Elvis’ voice shines so wonderfully; it is as if he’s standing next to you in the room. 

Among the new material presented here, some stand out among the others. ‘Loving You’ sounds nothing short of amazing (warm, rich and Elvis’ voice sounds out of this world), ‘Treat Me Nice’ is a highlight, it's like you never heard before and could have been recorded yesterday. ‘That’s When Your Heartaches Begins’ really benefits from Anthony’s craftsmanship and he lifted the master to a whole new level. The same goes for ‘I Beg Of You’ and ‘Doncha’ Think It’s Time’, these are now our to go to versions from now on! 

A couple of songs do not match the outstanding ones as just summed up. Besides the afore mentioned ‘Anyway You Want Me’ there is also ‘A Fool Such As I’ that seems a bit lower in volume compared to other tracks and lacks a bit of bass / warmth. Same goes for ‘I Got Stung’. All in all Anthony delivers another work of art and let’s a whole lotta songs shine like never before. 

An importsant note, to enjoy this release in the best possible way we advise you to play it on a loud volume though a good stereo-set in your living room, not on a computer or through (small) headphones. Elvis in the fifties doesn’t get much better.

Conclusion
 
It is amazing what technology can do, but that couldn’t happen without the care and observant detail for where everything should go on the final master. Our compliments to Anthony Stuchbury and David Parker for the presentation of the audio and package, and to the RDM-Edition for releasing this album like this. It can easily compete with the (mono) releases on Elvis’ official record label, which strangely still hasn’t embarked on a Mono to Stereo release. But hey, who are we kidding, this album actually blows the originals out of the water as this ‘Golden Elvis’ really shines. 
 
And yes, we do realize that these are alternative mixes, not replacing the originals, but it simply offers a great new listening experience, matching today’s stereo audio standards, but without losing the original analogue Elvis sound. 

Go to the >>> RDM-Edition website to listen or pre-order the CD for just 15,00 Euro!

October 06 - Keeping The Show Alive

The SR import record label released the vinyl / CD combo package 'Keeping The Show Alive', featuring the January 27, 1973 Midnight Show performance, as recorded at the Las Vegas Hilton. 

Publicity stated: This new set comes in 5 different Limited Edition variations of 120 copies each. All variations have the same cover design, but different bonus items like the color vinyl - black, blue, green, pink or red - a 30 x 30 cm art-card, a "thank you" card, two different stickers and a bonus CD.

LP - January 27, 1973 Midnight Show:

Side A:  See See Rider - I Got A Woman - Until It’s Time For You To Go - You Don’t Have To Say To Love Me - Steamroller Blues - You Gave Me a Mountain - Fever - Love Me - Blue Suede Shoes - Love Me Tender

Side B: Johnny B. Good - Hound Dog - What Now My Love - Suspicious Minds - Introductions - I’ll Remember You - I Can’t Stop Loving You - An American Trilogy - Burning Love - Can’t Help Falling Love

CD - February 5, 1973 Midnight Show:

See See Rider - I Got A Woman / Amen - Until It’s Time For You To Go - You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me - Steamroller Blues - You Gave A Mountain - Fever - Love Me - Blue Suede Shoes - Love Me Tender - Johnny B. Good - Hound Dog - What Now My Love - How Great Thou Art - Suspicious Minds - Introductions - I Can’t Stop Loving You - An American Trilogy - Can’t Help Falling In Love.

Sunday Elvis

Elvis graced the cover of the Sunday Times magazine with 'Elvis, Priscilla, Lisa Marie and the battle for Graceland' as the cover story. 

After the star left the building in 1977 and with the money running out, his ex-wife made the controversial decision to turn his mansion into the tourist behemoth it is today.

Who Magazine

Riley Keough and here mother Lisa Marie Presley are featured on the cover of the Australian Who magazine. The tabloid-like cover hints at new secrets to be revealed in Lisa Marie's biography.

The promotion of the book, which is due October 8th has started. You can pre-order the book by clicking on the cover in the right menu. 

(Source: Pascal Matteo / Facebook)