🎼 For The Good Times V And I Love You So V It's Impossible🎼

[SpyGuyUK]

For The Good Times V And I Love You So V It's Impossible

As some of you may know Elvis Presley and Perry Como both played at The International Hotel in Vegas at the same time in 1970 and Elvis used to go see Perry perform when he was not performing himself and they actually became good friends. That's why Elvis covered and performed some of Perry Como's songs.

Three of those that Elvis performed in concert fairly regularly are For 'The Good Times', 'And I Love You So' and 'It's Impossible'. A difficult choice I know but which of those three songs do you prefer to hear Elvis performing live?

1. It's Impossible

2. For The Good Times

3. And I Love You So

4. All 3 Songs equally as it's 'Impossible' to decide!

Also here is a duet of Elvis and Perry Como performing 'It's Impossible' someone's created on YouTube:

[londonflash]

I didn't know Elvis would attend Como's show and that they were friends.

[londonflash]

It's Impossible was gorgeous in Elvis' hands. Restrained, with more than a hint of his smooth 60s voice in places, and a sumptuous arrangement.

[LSP-4445]

Not sure what my favorite is but the worst is definately (to me) For The Good Times.
Dare I say that I find it boring

[Walter Hale 4]

None of the above means a thing for me especially It's impossible.

Why not include "none of the above" as an option?

However i do appreciate the live Omaha '77 version on AILYS with Kathy Westmoreland's lovely soprano vocals

[jeanno]

None of those tracks really work for me.
Perhaps the out-take of AND I LOVE YOU SO on the "Platinum" collection but that's it.
Pure MOR / C&W Elvis, not my cup of tea.

[LSP-4445]

None of those tracks really work for me.
Perhaps the out-take of AND I LOVE YOU SO on the "Platinum" collection but that's it.
Pure MOR / C&W Elvis, not my cup of tea.

Definately my favorite version&mix of the song and also the sound quality is great despite almost 30 years since its release.

[Greystoke]

Elvis's versions of all three songs are good, especially It's Impossible, which doesn't stray far from what Como did with the song, but it's beautifully arranged and Elvis approached the lyrics with genuine care and consideration. Those cascading strings are especially nice, but Elvis rarely sang with such attentiveness to the words of a song on the concert stage after 1972.

I can't say that I prefer Elvis's version of It's Impossible to Como's, but I like them both. Como's singing is more gentle and perhaps more introspective, although Elvis's approach is no less sincere or heartfelt. And I think what separates them is how distinct both singers individually are.

I've always liked Elvis's studio recording of For the Good Times, although this was also a welcome addition to his concerts in 1972, but I prefer what Como did with the song. This said, Kristofferson's version is my favourite, although I also like what Sinatra did with the song, having recorded it as a duet with soprano, Eileen Farrell, for his 1980 album, Trilogy: Past, Present and Future. Al Green's version is also terrific.

..

..

..

And I Love You So is my least favourite of the three with regards to Elvis, although he did record a good version of the song, and this was also a welcome addition to his concerts, especially in 1975. Latterly, he didn't sing it nearly as well. But I prefer Como's recording. His singing is sublime and he gets to the heart of the lyrics in a way that resonates with me more than Elvis's version.

[SpyGuyUK]

I'm actually going to change my vote as I initially voted all 3 songs as I like them all but I'm going to change my selection to the one I'm into right now and that's 'And I love You So' especially with regards to the live version from 1977 recorded for the Elvis In Concert album. I just love the deeper sound to his vocal range that seems to be present in his later years.

Not just about the song itself but watching Elvis perform the song on stage and the lyrics in the song and I don't know about you guys but when he's singing the lines "People Ask Me How I've Lived Till Now, I Tell Them I Don't Know. I Guess They Understand How Lonely Life Has Been"...Looking at the expression on his face while singing these lines I can't help but wonder what he is thinking...

[Greystoke]

I'm actually going to change my vote as I initially voted all 3 songs as I like them all but I'm going to change my selection to the one I'm into right now and that's 'And I love You So' especially with regards to the live version from 1977 recorded for the Elvis In Concert album. I just love the deeper sound to his vocal range that seems to be present in his later years.

Not just about the song itself but watching Elvis perform the song on stage and the lyrics in the song and I don't know about you guys but when he's singing the lines "People Ask Me How I've Lived Till Now, I Tell Them I Don't Know. I Guess They Understand How Lonely Life Has Been"...Looking at the expression on his face while singing these lines I can't help but wonder what he is thinking...

Sadly, I think he was just trying to get through another song and was barely holding it together in the process. It's a pretty weak performance, in my opinion, and when listening in comparison to live renditions of the same song from just two years earlier, the difference is stark.

..

..

[minkahed]

I'm actually going to change my vote as I initially voted all 3 songs as I like them all but I'm going to change my selection to the one I'm into right now and that's 'And I love You So' especially with regards to the live version from 1977 recorded for the Elvis In Concert album. I just love the deeper sound to his vocal range that seems to be present in his later years.

Not just about the song itself but watching Elvis perform the song on stage and the lyrics in the song and I don't know about you guys but when he's singing the lines "People Ask Me How I've Lived Till Now, I Tell Them I Don't Know. I Guess They Understand How Lonely Life Has Been"...Looking at the expression on his face while singing these lines I can't help but wonder what he is thinking...

Sadly, I think he was just trying to get through another song and was barely holding it together in the process. It's a pretty weak performance, in my opinion, and when listening in comparison to live renditions of the same song from just two years earlier, the difference is stark.

..

..

That comparison between the two versions is pretty sad.

[dsiciliano]

And I love you so studio version is exquisite! Absolutely beautiful... Isn't this the song where you hear Elvis says he wants to sing it to Sheila?

[stevelecher]

Never thought of “For The Good Times” as a Perry Como song.

[TCB Band]

Never thought of “For The Good Times” as a Perry Como song.

Agreed. I didn't even know that Perry Como recorded it until I saw this thread. From the quick research I've done here, it's likely only viewed as a Perry Como song over in the UK. In the US, it would be more associated with Kris Kristofferson and Ray Price.

[pmp]

I'm actually going to change my vote as I initially voted all 3 songs as I like them all but I'm going to change my selection to the one I'm into right now and that's 'And I love You So' especially with regards to the live version from 1977 recorded for the Elvis In Concert album. I just love the deeper sound to his vocal range that seems to be present in his later years.

Not just about the song itself but watching Elvis perform the song on stage and the lyrics in the song and I don't know about you guys but when he's singing the lines "People Ask Me How I've Lived Till Now, I Tell Them I Don't Know. I Guess They Understand How Lonely Life Has Been"...Looking at the expression on his face while singing these lines I can't help but wonder what he is thinking...

More than any other song on that double album, And I Love You So demonstrates how just how poor Elvis was singing by June 1977. His vibrato is out of control - it sounds like he's sitting on top of a tumble dryer - and in the quieter sections he can barely keep on the note at the end of each line. Quiet ballads are always more difficult than powerful ones, and, by this point, he just couldn't perform them well.

[Greystoke]

I'm actually going to change my vote as I initially voted all 3 songs as I like them all but I'm going to change my selection to the one I'm into right now and that's 'And I love You So' especially with regards to the live version from 1977 recorded for the Elvis In Concert album. I just love the deeper sound to his vocal range that seems to be present in his later years.

Not just about the song itself but watching Elvis perform the song on stage and the lyrics in the song and I don't know about you guys but when he's singing the lines "People Ask Me How I've Lived Till Now, I Tell Them I Don't Know. I Guess They Understand How Lonely Life Has Been"...Looking at the expression on his face while singing these lines I can't help but wonder what he is thinking...

More than any other song on that double album, And I Love You So demonstrates how just how poor Elvis was singing by June 1977. His vibrato is out of control - it sounds like he's sitting on top of a tumble dryer - and in the quieter sections he can barely keep on the note at the end of each line. Quiet ballads are always more difficult than powerful ones, and, by this point, he just couldn't perform them well.

I think it's also quite clear that Elvis was trying to sing like he used to, but just wasn't able any more. And, one way or another, this is something he would have had to address going forward if he lived and was still able to perform. The quality of his singing and the standard of his shows had diminished considerably over a brief period of time, and if his voice had completely lost its better qualities and his singing was forever disrepaired, this would have taken some reckoning with.

[Fabbe]

I'd say "It's impossible" - but I like all of them. That '75 version of 'And I love You So' that was shared here is very, very nice. I might like it more than the studio version.

[stevelecher]

I'm actually going to change my vote as I initially voted all 3 songs as I like them all but I'm going to change my selection to the one I'm into right now and that's 'And I love You So' especially with regards to the live version from 1977 recorded for the Elvis In Concert album. I just love the deeper sound to his vocal range that seems to be present in his later years.

Not just about the song itself but watching Elvis perform the song on stage and the lyrics in the song and I don't know about you guys but when he's singing the lines "People Ask Me How I've Lived Till Now, I Tell Them I Don't Know. I Guess They Understand How Lonely Life Has Been"...Looking at the expression on his face while singing these lines I can't help but wonder what he is thinking...

More than any other song on that double album, And I Love You So demonstrates how just how poor Elvis was singing by June 1977. His vibrato is out of control - it sounds like he's sitting on top of a tumble dryer - and in the quieter sections he can barely keep on the note at the end of each line. Quiet ballads are always more difficult than powerful ones, and, by this point, he just couldn't perform them well.

I think it's also quite clear that Elvis was trying to sing like he used to, but just wasn't able any more. And, one way or another, this is something he would have had to address going forward if he lived and was still able to perform. The quality of his singing and the standard of his shows had diminished considerably over a brief period of time, and if his voice had completely lost its better qualities and his singing was forever disrepaired, this would have taken some reckoning with.

I think the short December 1976 tour, especially the Birmingham show with For The Good Times and First Time Ever, showed that Elvis’ voice was not forever disrepaired if he could regain his health. Those two songs showed a resonance in his voice that had been missing a very long time.

[billy jack]

For sure ''And I Love You So'' (undubbed master - take 5). Without overdubs, that is. With overdubs, it becomes less. So here, less is more.

No one can match Al Green's version, ''For The Good Times''. Not even Elvis.

''It's Impossible, a real schmaltz, which fits perfectly in a residency like Las Vegas. Lots of strings, very sweet lyrics, and then that harp. Over the top.

[pmp]

I'm actually going to change my vote as I initially voted all 3 songs as I like them all but I'm going to change my selection to the one I'm into right now and that's 'And I love You So' especially with regards to the live version from 1977 recorded for the Elvis In Concert album. I just love the deeper sound to his vocal range that seems to be present in his later years.

Not just about the song itself but watching Elvis perform the song on stage and the lyrics in the song and I don't know about you guys but when he's singing the lines "People Ask Me How I've Lived Till Now, I Tell Them I Don't Know. I Guess They Understand How Lonely Life Has Been"...Looking at the expression on his face while singing these lines I can't help but wonder what he is thinking...

More than any other song on that double album, And I Love You So demonstrates how just how poor Elvis was singing by June 1977. His vibrato is out of control - it sounds like he's sitting on top of a tumble dryer - and in the quieter sections he can barely keep on the note at the end of each line. Quiet ballads are always more difficult than powerful ones, and, by this point, he just couldn't perform them well.

I think it's also quite clear that Elvis was trying to sing like he used to, but just wasn't able any more. And, one way or another, this is something he would have had to address going forward if he lived and was still able to perform. The quality of his singing and the standard of his shows had diminished considerably over a brief period of time, and if his voice had completely lost its better qualities and his singing was forever disrepaired, this would have taken some reckoning with.

I think the short December 1976 tour, especially the Birmingham show with For The Good Times and First Time Ever, showed that Elvis’ voice was not forever disrepaired if he could regain his health. Those two songs showed a resonance in his voice that had been missing a very long time.

I can't agree on that one. That tour was erratic (including those performances), and Elvis seems to be trying too hard to cover up the vocal issues. He's not singing For the Good Times in the gentle way that he was five years earlier, and he's cutting often off the long notes at the end of lines, and those that remain betray indications of the vibrato that marred much of his singing in the last couple of years.

I agree that his voice could probably have reached some of its former glories (and subtleties) had he lived and got healthy. The issues he was having in control of the voice were probably down (at least in part) to what we will tactfully call "medication" - and codeine and "downers" in particular is known to have exactly that effect on a singing voice. Judy Garland suffered the same issues, as it happens, with the same kinds of medication. She and Elvis shared a considerable amount in this regard. To regain the former qualities of his voice, Elvis would have had to be clean and spent some time in working at his voice, probably with a vocal coach. Would he have been willing to do that? Who knows. Probably one week and not the next.

[billy jack]

I'm actually going to change my vote as I initially voted all 3 songs as I like them all but I'm going to change my selection to the one I'm into right now and that's 'And I love You So' especially with regards to the live version from 1977 recorded for the Elvis In Concert album. I just love the deeper sound to his vocal range that seems to be present in his later years.

Not just about the song itself but watching Elvis perform the song on stage and the lyrics in the song and I don't know about you guys but when he's singing the lines "People Ask Me How I've Lived Till Now, I Tell Them I Don't Know. I Guess They Understand How Lonely Life Has Been"...Looking at the expression on his face while singing these lines I can't help but wonder what he is thinking...

More than any other song on that double album, And I Love You So demonstrates how just how poor Elvis was singing by June 1977. His vibrato is out of control - it sounds like he's sitting on top of a tumble dryer - and in the quieter sections he can barely keep on the note at the end of each line. Quiet ballads are always more difficult than powerful ones, and, by this point, he just couldn't perform them well.

I think it's also quite clear that Elvis was trying to sing like he used to, but just wasn't able any more. And, one way or another, this is something he would have had to address going forward if he lived and was still able to perform. The quality of his singing and the standard of his shows had diminished considerably over a brief period of time, and if his voice had completely lost its better qualities and his singing was forever disrepaired, this would have taken some reckoning with.

I think the short December 1976 tour, especially the Birmingham show with For The Good Times and First Time Ever, showed that Elvis’ voice was not forever disrepaired if he could regain his health. Those two songs showed a resonance in his voice that had been missing a very long time.

A good example of what can cause butterflies in your stomach. It was obvious that Elvis's state of mind had been boosted by a lady named ''Ginger''. This was certainly noticeable during ''For The Good Times'' and ''The First Time I Ever Saw Your Face''.

It sometimes becomes tiring to keep mentioning Elvis' drug use, as an excuse, to find something, that is not even there. There were still moments in the last two years of his life, on stage, that are more than worth listening to repeatedly. Ginger, pills, whatever, the last week of December 1976 were excellent performances, and therefore it is hard to imagine that a completely different person was on stage, six weeks later.

[SpyGuyUK]

'It's Impossible' seems to have won the Poll on which of these songs is the most popular. I would agree with this but I don't know about any of you but I hear 'And I Love You So' much more often as it's on a lot of Concert titles and also the Elvis in Concert soundtrack which I play a lot on vinyl. I just love that live 70's vibe and the richness and deepness of Elvis voice in those later years.