From Elvis In Nashville

[rockinrebel]

I'm personally grateful that they had this producer rework all of these nashville recordings. Honestly its been ages since i've ever heard a real improvement in any Elvis mixes that actually made an impression upon me. With that being said, I do think sales wise it would have benefitted by being a singular cd similar to the stax release. As fan though, I'm really impressed with the work he did on the country numbers and I actually wound up liking a few of the ttwii tracks.
One thing that struck me here and on various 70s releases is how some of his best work were the result of Elvis picking something from that songbook in his brain and just jamming. It shouldn't be a surprise I guess because that type of spontaneity lead to That's all right mama. The difference being is that Philps or Moman were able to see the value in that and push for a master take, whereas felton basically just hit record and threw some sweeteners on top.

I guess we should be grateful to Felton that he did keep the tapes rolling at all times, as I agree that some of the one take jams were amongst Elvis' best later work. The new release also proves that the 'sweeteners' were not really necessary. I never really understood the love for Got My Mojo Working, particularly with the overdubs added, but the new mix on this set really brings the performance to life.

I'm going off topic a little here, but I have written in the past that when Elvis had both Dylan & The Beatles on his mind during the 1971 sessions, it's disappointing that Felton didn't encourage Elvis to get copies of the lyrics and work out proper arrangements. So, what we are left with are just unfinished glimpses of what might have been.

The one take jams are pure Elvis though, and even with Chips at the helm, whilst the likes of I'll Hold You In My Heart and Stranger In My Own Hometown were not representative of the contemporary hit material that Elvis went to American to record, they are certainly wonderful performances and session highlights.

Yes and isnt that a sad testament to his 70's catalog, when un-rehearsed jams are among his best work, so at least I thank Felton for that. One of telling things about this new set is Mojo, when at the end Elvis says we grew up on this mediocre sh*t or something like that. Sad, if he only realized the greatness of that simple stuff and that it may have been the best thing recorded that day. Lets move onto 'Life' now!

It's a bit of a paradox really. We know Elvis went for the overall feel, rather than the flawless take (although sometimes he achieved both in one take, with Reconsider Baby being a prime example). But if we look at Faded Love, whilst Elvis did try out a short country version at an earlier point in the session, I don't think what he actually produced with the studio band could have been bettered by going for multiple takes, and the same could probably be said for I Washed My Hands In Muddy Water, and even Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On.

However, his takes on Mojo or the later Don't Think Twice would certainly have benefitted from further rehearsal and acces to the lyric sheets, but sadly Felton never encouraged this.

As much as I enjoy the June 1970 recordings, I think it was fortunate that the Elvis Country album evolved due to Elvis' dissatisfaction with some of the new material on offer, as this lifted the overall standard of what was eventually recorded.

When Elvis returned to Nashville during 1971, less inspired than he had been the previous year, the alarm bells really should have been ringing though, as any enthusiasm Elvis may have had for a folk themed album doesn't appear to have been encouraged, and the secular material on offer was uneven at best.

So, Felton's approach gave us rough cut diamonds in the piano songs and the jam on Don't Think Twice, but none of these were really commercial enough to build an album around that would have been a worthy follow up to Elvis Country.

It was business as usual from that point onwards though, with the publishing companies providing the majority of the material, and Felton hoping that Elvis was either inspired enough to elevate it, or that he would dip back into that songbook of his old favourites that ultimately provided the highlights to a number of his sessions.

Seriously Felton's approach sucked. He was simply a yes man and guy in place to keep things as peaceful and upbeat as possible. Words from Lacker himself. Think about it, we actually are thanking a producer for keeping a tape machine rolling to capture studio moments, Great, but big deal. His job as producer should have been to inspire these moments into full blown masters, and as you say get lyrics sheets, encourage genre type albums after 1970 especially since Elvis Country was so well received. I think if anyone needed a good producer with a vision after 1970 it was Elvis. Felton was imply not in the class of other 70's producers, who probably would have given anything for that chance. Elvis had no vision either as recording artist, so all the blame cant go to Felton.

Excellent post. Elvis had the 'goods' but his finest work was most often produced when he had someone to guide him and he benefitted greatly from collaborative efforts. Without that collaborative effort, Elvis was limited to whatever songs were kicking around in his head which was usually gospel or country. It is a shame that he viewed Mojo as medicore....heck as the Doc pointed out even RCA was considering it as the best of the bunch and was considered for single release, despite it being just a jam session that happened to be caught on tape. That says a lot.

Whilst there were some questionable single choices from the June / September 1970 recordings, I don't think Mojo was ever considered the best of the bunch.

It was actually passed over for two albums, and only appears to have been considered for single release when RCA started compiling the session leftovers for the release of the Love Letters album in the summer of 1971.

So, it might well have been the best performance on the Love Letters album, but certainly not from the entire sessions.

I'd still be interested to know whether a mono single edit of Mojo was ever prepared too, as for me, the track as it appeared on the Love Letters album would have needed a tighter edit for any proposed single release.

Sorry, I meant 'bunch' in the broader sense that out of the slew of recordings he did, RCA was looking at it for a possible single release as opposed to so many other songs that he had cut during that session. My fault in the generalization. However, I still feel it says a lot that execs, (not Elvis who figured it was mediocre nor Felton who didn't push for a master) felt that this loose jam session would be more suitable for single release than an actual master recording.

I certainly see your point, and I think this was also discussed in the original thread when DJC shared the proposed single artwork.

My take on this is that there had been too many ballads released as singles since the success of The Wonder Of You, and by this time, with diminishing returns on these singles, and the promotion of the TTWII & Elvis Country albums effectively over, RCA were looking for an uptempo, roots based choice amongst the masters they had left.

Assuming live recordings were off the agenda, the only decent option was Mojo, but some of the single choices from this period of Elvis' career are questionable to say the least.

Elvis' 'mediocre sh*t' comments at the end of the jam may well have been tongue in cheek. We can give him the benefit of the doubt on this one, as Hands Off had also been taped during an earlier informal session, whilst Mojo was reprised during the TTWII rehearsals, so there was definitely some love for the material there.

Elvis' feelings about Life, however, are pretty clear from the session tapes, and yet this song was chosen as a single release before the release of the Love Letters album in May 1971. I can only assume that Elvis no longer chose his own single sides by this stage of his career, but if this was the case, why did it take RCA until the summer of 1971 to realise that something needed to change?

In terms of Elvis' record releases, the comeback momentum was lost very quickly due to some very poor decisions.

[Ryan73]

I'm personally grateful that they had this producer rework all of these nashville recordings. Honestly its been ages since i've ever heard a real improvement in any Elvis mixes that actually made an impression upon me. With that being said, I do think sales wise it would have benefitted by being a singular cd similar to the stax release. As fan though, I'm really impressed with the work he did on the country numbers and I actually wound up liking a few of the ttwii tracks.
One thing that struck me here and on various 70s releases is how some of his best work were the result of Elvis picking something from that songbook in his brain and just jamming. It shouldn't be a surprise I guess because that type of spontaneity lead to That's all right mama. The difference being is that Philps or Moman were able to see the value in that and push for a master take, whereas felton basically just hit record and threw some sweeteners on top.

I guess we should be grateful to Felton that he did keep the tapes rolling at all times, as I agree that some of the one take jams were amongst Elvis' best later work. The new release also proves that the 'sweeteners' were not really necessary. I never really understood the love for Got My Mojo Working, particularly with the overdubs added, but the new mix on this set really brings the performance to life.

I'm going off topic a little here, but I have written in the past that when Elvis had both Dylan & The Beatles on his mind during the 1971 sessions, it's disappointing that Felton didn't encourage Elvis to get copies of the lyrics and work out proper arrangements. So, what we are left with are just unfinished glimpses of what might have been.

The one take jams are pure Elvis though, and even with Chips at the helm, whilst the likes of I'll Hold You In My Heart and Stranger In My Own Hometown were not representative of the contemporary hit material that Elvis went to American to record, they are certainly wonderful performances and session highlights.

Yes and isnt that a sad testament to his 70's catalog, when un-rehearsed jams are among his best work, so at least I thank Felton for that. One of telling things about this new set is Mojo, when at the end Elvis says we grew up on this mediocre sh*t or something like that. Sad, if he only realized the greatness of that simple stuff and that it may have been the best thing recorded that day. Lets move onto 'Life' now!

It's a bit of a paradox really. We know Elvis went for the overall feel, rather than the flawless take (although sometimes he achieved both in one take, with Reconsider Baby being a prime example). But if we look at Faded Love, whilst Elvis did try out a short country version at an earlier point in the session, I don't think what he actually produced with the studio band could have been bettered by going for multiple takes, and the same could probably be said for I Washed My Hands In Muddy Water, and even Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On.

However, his takes on Mojo or the later Don't Think Twice would certainly have benefitted from further rehearsal and acces to the lyric sheets, but sadly Felton never encouraged this.

As much as I enjoy the June 1970 recordings, I think it was fortunate that the Elvis Country album evolved due to Elvis' dissatisfaction with some of the new material on offer, as this lifted the overall standard of what was eventually recorded.

When Elvis returned to Nashville during 1971, less inspired than he had been the previous year, the alarm bells really should have been ringing though, as any enthusiasm Elvis may have had for a folk themed album doesn't appear to have been encouraged, and the secular material on offer was uneven at best.

So, Felton's approach gave us rough cut diamonds in the piano songs and the jam on Don't Think Twice, but none of these were really commercial enough to build an album around that would have been a worthy follow up to Elvis Country.

It was business as usual from that point onwards though, with the publishing companies providing the majority of the material, and Felton hoping that Elvis was either inspired enough to elevate it, or that he would dip back into that songbook of his old favourites that ultimately provided the highlights to a number of his sessions.

Seriously Felton's approach sucked. He was simply a yes man and guy in place to keep things as peaceful and upbeat as possible. Words from Lacker himself. Think about it, we actually are thanking a producer for keeping a tape machine rolling to capture studio moments, Great, but big deal. His job as producer should have been to inspire these moments into full blown masters, and as you say get lyrics sheets, encourage genre type albums after 1970 especially since Elvis Country was so well received. I think if anyone needed a good producer with a vision after 1970 it was Elvis. Felton was imply not in the class of other 70's producers, who probably would have given anything for that chance. Elvis had no vision either as recording artist, so all the blame cant go to Felton.

Excellent post. Elvis had the 'goods' but his finest work was most often produced when he had someone to guide him and he benefitted greatly from collaborative efforts. Without that collaborative effort, Elvis was limited to whatever songs were kicking around in his head which was usually gospel or country. It is a shame that he viewed Mojo as medicore....heck as the Doc pointed out even RCA was considering it as the best of the bunch and was considered for single release, despite it being just a jam session that happened to be caught on tape. That says a lot.

Whilst there were some questionable single choices from the June / September 1970 recordings, I don't think Mojo was ever considered the best of the bunch.

It was actually passed over for two albums, and only appears to have been considered for single release when RCA started compiling the session leftovers for the release of the Love Letters album in the summer of 1971.

So, it might well have been the best performance on the Love Letters album, but certainly not from the entire sessions.

I'd still be interested to know whether a mono single edit of Mojo was ever prepared too, as for me, the track as it appeared on the Love Letters album would have needed a tighter edit for any proposed single release.

Sorry, I meant 'bunch' in the broader sense that out of the slew of recordings he did, RCA was looking at it for a possible single release as opposed to so many other songs that he had cut during that session. My fault in the generalization. However, I still feel it says a lot that execs, (not Elvis who figured it was mediocre nor Felton who didn't push for a master) felt that this loose jam session would be more suitable for single release than an actual master recording.

I certainly see your point, and I think this was also discussed in the original thread when DJC shared the proposed single artwork.

My take on this is that there had been too many ballads released as singles since the success of The Wonder Of You, and by this time, with diminishing returns on these singles, and the promotion of the TTWII & Elvis Country albums effectively over, RCA were looking for an uptempo, roots based choice amongst the masters they had left.

Assuming live recordings were off the agenda, the only decent option was Mojo, but some of the single choices from this period of Elvis' career are questionable to say the least.

Elvis' 'mediocre sh*t' comments at the end of the jam may well have been tongue in cheek. We can give him the benefit of the doubt on this one, as Hands Off had also been taped during an earlier informal session, whilst Mojo was reprised during the TTWII rehearsals, so there was definitely some love for the material there.

Elvis' feelings about Life, however, are pretty clear from the session tapes, and yet this song was chosen as a single release before the release of the Love Letters album in May 1971. I can only assume that Elvis no longer chose his own single sides by this stage of his career, but if this was the case, why did it take RCA until the summer of 1971 to realise that something needed to change?

In terms of Elvis' record releases, the comeback momentum was lost very quickly due to some very poor decisions.

Well I definitely think you're onto something. Even at the 72 MSG press conference they noticed the lack of hard rocking songs and were asking why he didn't do them anymore. This would obviously be due to the perception created by the trend of his releases from 1970....Kentucky Rain, The Wonder of You, I've lost you, You don't have to say you love me, I really don't want to know, Rags to Riches, Life, I'm Leavin, It's Only Love, Until it's time for you to go and so forth with only The Wonder of You making the top ten. I can only assume that after the success of the 69 sessions, that RCA figured Elvis' knew what he was doing and gave him that 'experimental' year which proved not to be as successful and much momentum had been lost. Again, a rocker like Burning Love got him back on the charts and would prove to be his last top ten hit of his career.

[pmp]

When Elvis returned to Nashville during 1971, less inspired than he had been the previous year, the alarm bells really should have been ringing though, as any enthusiasm Elvis may have had for a folk themed album doesn't appear to have been encouraged, and the secular material on offer was uneven at best.

I don't think this is correct. When Elvis was recording in March, all he recorded was material for the folk album, but it's quite clear he had set that idea aside by the time of the May sessions where, no matter what Felton encouraged, he was going to do what he wanted or do nothing at all. What's more, it's clear that the emphasis of the sessions had been changed from outside - the Christmas album and the gospel album were now first on the agenda, and suggesting three themed albums - plus singles - come out of one session is no doubt asking too much for anyone

All of that said, Elvis was only three songs away from the folk album by the time the sessions ended - two songs if a lengthy version of Don't Think Twice was included.

Amazing Grace
The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face
I'll Take You Home Again Kathleen
Don't Think Twice
Until It's Time For You To Go
For Lovin' Me
Early Mornin' Rain

[ORION]

All of that said, Elvis was only three songs away from the folk album by the time the sessions ended - two songs if a lengthy version of Don't Think Twice was included.

Amazing Grace
The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face
I'll Take You Home Again Kathleen
Don't Think Twice
Until It's Time For You To Go
For Lovin' Me
Early Mornin' Rain


Don't forget "I'm Leavin."

[Buddy]

Agree with that. As much as I have been enjoying this new set, and especially its great sound, not everything is a success. Some of the songs sound better in their original release,

I' m now a fan since 45 years. My conclusion after all these years hearing his concerts, outtakes, master takes (dubbed or undubbed) etc. is that the released "versions" on his original 1954 to 1977 albums/singles are very most of the times the best and the ones I like/Love to listen to.
Of course there are (to my ears) are a very few where I like an Alternate Take or a live version from another date a bit more but not so much that I can not understand that they have not choosen it.
Of course it is interesting to listen to the recording process from Take 1 to tje final version or to listen to undubbed versions to hear the pure sound as it was recorded in the studio.
But we all know that Elvis loved that orchestra sound and wanted to have it "big" on his records from 69 on. So it is normal that they/he "left enough space" while recording for the overdubs and so to me the majority of that undubbed stuff sounds not really ready for releasing. While listening to it you very soon realize "something is missing".
A while ago my best friend and me made a challenge. We both put 2 CDs together (each 80min long) with nur all time most beloved Elvis songs. We both did that on our own. It was very very difficult for both of us. We agreed that de dont think about what critics would say, or which Song "had to be on it" because it is a classic or was so successful.
NO!! JUST the songs WE LOVE PERSONALLY and the ones/versions we still love since years and still love to play very often and both of us wrote a booklet to it "WHY" WE have choosen this or that, why it is so special for us
On christmas eve we will open each others set. Im very excited, especially about the ones we both have choosen....

By the way:
When you see your own "Essential collection of your all time favorites" i was surprised to see your own "taste" so clearly right in frontof you : - )

And one thing is also vety clear now that just 5 % (it have been 3 out of 60 songs) of it all I have choosen Alternate versions which I love/prefer more than the official released ones.... so Elvis was to me at least 95% or more right to do so as he did....

[rockinrebel]

When Elvis returned to Nashville during 1971, less inspired than he had been the previous year, the alarm bells really should have been ringing though, as any enthusiasm Elvis may have had for a folk themed album doesn't appear to have been encouraged, and the secular material on offer was uneven at best.

I don't think this is correct. When Elvis was recording in March, all he recorded was material for the folk album, but it's quite clear he had set that idea aside by the time of the May sessions where, no matter what Felton encouraged, he was going to do what he wanted or do nothing at all. What's more, it's clear that the emphasis of the sessions had been changed from outside - the Christmas album and the gospel album were now first on the agenda, and suggesting three themed albums - plus singles - come out of one session is no doubt asking too much for anyone

All of that said, Elvis was only three songs away from the folk album by the time the sessions ended - two songs if a lengthy version of Don't Think Twice was included.

Amazing Grace
The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face
I'll Take You Home Again Kathleen
Don't Think Twice
Until It's Time For You To Go
For Lovin' Me
Early Mornin' Rain

Being told to record Christmas & gospel albums certainly detailed the project, and this certainty didn't come from Felton, but what I was alluding to is that Felton didn't provide any encouragement, when Elvis had those brief flashes of inspiration which could have been resulted in something really special.

As much as I enjoy Don't Think Twice, it isn't really a master, and the first release of the performance on the Fool album was presented in a very poor edit.

Elvis ran through two lengthy jams of the song, but there was no attempt from Felton to encourage a proper arrangement or locate the correct lyrics, and cut a proper master.

Whilst I Shall Be Released and Lady Madonna were much briefer snippets, the potential for completed master recordings, particularly with the former song appears to have been lost on Felton.

I agree totally that to expect to get three themed albums from one marathon session was far too much, and this is why I said earlier that the alarm bells should have been ringing following the 1971 sessions.

No doubt, RCA and management thought they could repeat the success of the previous year's recording which resulted in three albums, but it's worth noting that the country album was never planned, and many fans would argue that the Love Letters album should never have been issued...and certainly not as a full price album.

So, we had Elvis going into the 1971 sessions with what appeared to be a clear focus, but management's poor decisions meant that he had lost any sense of direction after the short March sessions.

Your proposed track list does illustrate though, that despite all these problems, the secular 1971 recordings could and should have been compiled and released in a much more coherent fashion, but by this time nobody seemed to care about how Elvis' music was compiled and issued, and the mistakes of the Hollywood years had been quickly forgotten.

[rockinrebel]

I'm personally grateful that they had this producer rework all of these nashville recordings. Honestly its been ages since i've ever heard a real improvement in any Elvis mixes that actually made an impression upon me. With that being said, I do think sales wise it would have benefitted by being a singular cd similar to the stax release. As fan though, I'm really impressed with the work he did on the country numbers and I actually wound up liking a few of the ttwii tracks.
One thing that struck me here and on various 70s releases is how some of his best work were the result of Elvis picking something from that songbook in his brain and just jamming. It shouldn't be a surprise I guess because that type of spontaneity lead to That's all right mama. The difference being is that Philps or Moman were able to see the value in that and push for a master take, whereas felton basically just hit record and threw some sweeteners on top.

I guess we should be grateful to Felton that he did keep the tapes rolling at all times, as I agree that some of the one take jams were amongst Elvis' best later work. The new release also proves that the 'sweeteners' were not really necessary. I never really understood the love for Got My Mojo Working, particularly with the overdubs added, but the new mix on this set really brings the performance to life.

I'm going off topic a little here, but I have written in the past that when Elvis had both Dylan & The Beatles on his mind during the 1971 sessions, it's disappointing that Felton didn't encourage Elvis to get copies of the lyrics and work out proper arrangements. So, what we are left with are just unfinished glimpses of what might have been.

The one take jams are pure Elvis though, and even with Chips at the helm, whilst the likes of I'll Hold You In My Heart and Stranger In My Own Hometown were not representative of the contemporary hit material that Elvis went to American to record, they are certainly wonderful performances and session highlights.

Yes and isnt that a sad testament to his 70's catalog, when un-rehearsed jams are among his best work, so at least I thank Felton for that. One of telling things about this new set is Mojo, when at the end Elvis says we grew up on this mediocre sh*t or something like that. Sad, if he only realized the greatness of that simple stuff and that it may have been the best thing recorded that day. Lets move onto 'Life' now!

It's a bit of a paradox really. We know Elvis went for the overall feel, rather than the flawless take (although sometimes he achieved both in one take, with Reconsider Baby being a prime example). But if we look at Faded Love, whilst Elvis did try out a short country version at an earlier point in the session, I don't think what he actually produced with the studio band could have been bettered by going for multiple takes, and the same could probably be said for I Washed My Hands In Muddy Water, and even Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On.

However, his takes on Mojo or the later Don't Think Twice would certainly have benefitted from further rehearsal and acces to the lyric sheets, but sadly Felton never encouraged this.

As much as I enjoy the June 1970 recordings, I think it was fortunate that the Elvis Country album evolved due to Elvis' dissatisfaction with some of the new material on offer, as this lifted the overall standard of what was eventually recorded.

When Elvis returned to Nashville during 1971, less inspired than he had been the previous year, the alarm bells really should have been ringing though, as any enthusiasm Elvis may have had for a folk themed album doesn't appear to have been encouraged, and the secular material on offer was uneven at best.

So, Felton's approach gave us rough cut diamonds in the piano songs and the jam on Don't Think Twice, but none of these were really commercial enough to build an album around that would have been a worthy follow up to Elvis Country.

It was business as usual from that point onwards though, with the publishing companies providing the majority of the material, and Felton hoping that Elvis was either inspired enough to elevate it, or that he would dip back into that songbook of his old favourites that ultimately provided the highlights to a number of his sessions.

Seriously Felton's approach sucked. He was simply a yes man and guy in place to keep things as peaceful and upbeat as possible. Words from Lacker himself. Think about it, we actually are thanking a producer for keeping a tape machine rolling to capture studio moments, Great, but big deal. His job as producer should have been to inspire these moments into full blown masters, and as you say get lyrics sheets, encourage genre type albums after 1970 especially since Elvis Country was so well received. I think if anyone needed a good producer with a vision after 1970 it was Elvis. Felton was imply not in the class of other 70's producers, who probably would have given anything for that chance. Elvis had no vision either as recording artist, so all the blame cant go to Felton.

Excellent post. Elvis had the 'goods' but his finest work was most often produced when he had someone to guide him and he benefitted greatly from collaborative efforts. Without that collaborative effort, Elvis was limited to whatever songs were kicking around in his head which was usually gospel or country. It is a shame that he viewed Mojo as medicore....heck as the Doc pointed out even RCA was considering it as the best of the bunch and was considered for single release, despite it being just a jam session that happened to be caught on tape. That says a lot.

Whilst there were some questionable single choices from the June / September 1970 recordings, I don't think Mojo was ever considered the best of the bunch.

It was actually passed over for two albums, and only appears to have been considered for single release when RCA started compiling the session leftovers for the release of the Love Letters album in the summer of 1971.

So, it might well have been the best performance on the Love Letters album, but certainly not from the entire sessions.

I'd still be interested to know whether a mono single edit of Mojo was ever prepared too, as for me, the track as it appeared on the Love Letters album would have needed a tighter edit for any proposed single release.

Sorry, I meant 'bunch' in the broader sense that out of the slew of recordings he did, RCA was looking at it for a possible single release as opposed to so many other songs that he had cut during that session. My fault in the generalization. However, I still feel it says a lot that execs, (not Elvis who figured it was mediocre nor Felton who didn't push for a master) felt that this loose jam session would be more suitable for single release than an actual master recording.

I certainly see your point, and I think this was also discussed in the original thread when DJC shared the proposed single artwork.

My take on this is that there had been too many ballads released as singles since the success of The Wonder Of You, and by this time, with diminishing returns on these singles, and the promotion of the TTWII & Elvis Country albums effectively over, RCA were looking for an uptempo, roots based choice amongst the masters they had left.

Assuming live recordings were off the agenda, the only decent option was Mojo, but some of the single choices from this period of Elvis' career are questionable to say the least.

Elvis' 'mediocre sh*t' comments at the end of the jam may well have been tongue in cheek. We can give him the benefit of the doubt on this one, as Hands Off had also been taped during an earlier informal session, whilst Mojo was reprised during the TTWII rehearsals, so there was definitely some love for the material there.

Elvis' feelings about Life, however, are pretty clear from the session tapes, and yet this song was chosen as a single release before the release of the Love Letters album in May 1971. I can only assume that Elvis no longer chose his own single sides by this stage of his career, but if this was the case, why did it take RCA until the summer of 1971 to realise that something needed to change?

In terms of Elvis' record releases, the comeback momentum was lost very quickly due to some very poor decisions.

Well I definitely think you're onto something. Even at the 72 MSG press conference they noticed the lack of hard rocking songs and were asking why he didn't do them anymore. This would obviously be due to the perception created by the trend of his releases from 1970....Kentucky Rain, The Wonder of You, I've lost you, You don't have to say you love me, I really don't want to know, Rags to Riches, Life, I'm Leavin, It's Only Love, Until it's time for you to go and so forth with only The Wonder of You making the top ten. I can only assume that after the success of the 69 sessions, that RCA figured Elvis' knew what he was doing and gave him that 'experimental' year which proved not to be as successful and much momentum had been lost. Again, a rocker like Burning Love got him back on the charts and would prove to be his last top ten hit of his career.

I think I've Lost You was the last 1970 single with any real potential, but unfortunately, as was the case with I'm Leavin' this was not reflected in sales.

You Don't Have To Say You Love Me was a great performance, but a poor choice, as it had already been a signature hit for Dusty, so maybe Patch It Up should have been promoted as the A side? This would have at least given some variation to Elvis' 1970 output.

I Really Don't Want To Know, whilst a great performance, was a little dated for 1970, and there were certainly better choices for single sides to promote the country album, with It's Your Baby You Rock It being my choice, as it was uptempo, catchy and, most importantly a 'new' song for the general public.

After that, the creative thinking was as good as gone, and this was also reflected in the haphazard album compilations that started to appear with the release of Love Letters.

It's interesting that Elvis had to be persuaded to record Burning Love. I know he was leaning towards big ballads by this point in his career, but rehearsal tapes and impromptu studio recordings show that he still enjoying running through things like Mystery Train, That's All Right or Johnny B. Goode to get warmed up, so there was still some love for the old rock n roll there, which maybe needed more new material to really light the spark.

Burning Love should certainly have been the lead track on a new mainstream, contemporary album, but we all know what happened there.

[Rob]

Elvis had no vision either as recording artist, so all the blame cant go to Felton.

Agreed.

I know of other artists who gave everything they had in the studio and were very particular about the outcome. They would never leave it entirely up to the producer and say "I'm done here. I trust you." Conway Twitty was one of those. He was involved in every aspect of the recording process, including picking his own songs and staying until the final mix. That may be the reason he ended up with 55 number one country records.

Elvis couldn't be bothered. While I do like much of the output from the Jarvis sessions, one can only stand to listen to "That's a gas!" or "That's great, Elvis!" so many times. But I've always felt that Felton did the best he could with what he had to work with. He could have been different if he had an artist who was engaged in what he was doing. Felton knew that Elvis could be bored enough, or get pissed off about something and walk out of the sessions at any time. Instead of concentrating on what he was supposed to do, he had to be a cheerleader for Elvis to get him through the sessions, especially after June 1970.

I give Felton a lot of credit. Not necessarily as a producer, because many times he was unable to do his job. I give him credit for doing whatever he had to do to get his artist through the sessions.

Again, he did the best he could with what he had and I would not have wanted his job.

[r&b]

Elvis had no vision either as recording artist, so all the blame cant go to Felton.

Agreed.

I know of other artists who gave everything they had in the studio and were very particular about the outcome. They would never leave it entirely up to the producer and say "I'm done here. I trust you." Conway Twitty was one of those. He was involved in every aspect of the recording process, including picking his own songs and staying until the final mix. That may be the reason he ended up with 55 number one country records.

Elvis couldn't be bothered. While I do like much of the output from the Jarvis sessions, one can only stand to listen to "That's a gas!" or "That's great, Elvis!" so many times. But I've always felt that Felton did the best he could with what he had to work with. He could have been different if he had an artist who was engaged in what he was doing. Felton knew that Elvis could be bored enough, or get pissed off about something and walk out of the sessions at any time. Instead of concentrating on what he was supposed to do, he had to be a cheerleader for Elvis to get him through the sessions, especially after June 1970.

I give Felton a lot of credit. Not necessarily as a producer, because many times he was unable to do his job. I give him credit for doing whatever he had to do to get his artist through the sessions.

Again, he did the best he could with what he had and I would not have wanted his job.

Conway, Merle, Willie, Don Williams, and many other country greats all gave their all and knew what they wanted to do in the studio. Who produced Conway by the way?

[Rob]

Owen Bradley in the '70s, and Jimmy Bowen in the '80s.

I'm not sure even a great producer could have got Elvis as motivated as the great group you've listed.

[r&b]

Owen Bradley in the '70s, and Jimmy Bowen in the '80s.

I'm not sure even a great producer could have got Elvis as motivated as the great group you've listed.

Two great ones right there. Jimmy may have had more influence since he was once a performer himself in early rock and roll. I think Elvis just needed a change and a bit of a challenge. He responded well to that ala Chips Moman.

[Rob]

Yes, I was talking post 1970.

[Ryan73]

I'm personally grateful that they had this producer rework all of these nashville recordings. Honestly its been ages since i've ever heard a real improvement in any Elvis mixes that actually made an impression upon me. With that being said, I do think sales wise it would have benefitted by being a singular cd similar to the stax release. As fan though, I'm really impressed with the work he did on the country numbers and I actually wound up liking a few of the ttwii tracks.
One thing that struck me here and on various 70s releases is how some of his best work were the result of Elvis picking something from that songbook in his brain and just jamming. It shouldn't be a surprise I guess because that type of spontaneity lead to That's all right mama. The difference being is that Philps or Moman were able to see the value in that and push for a master take, whereas felton basically just hit record and threw some sweeteners on top.

I guess we should be grateful to Felton that he did keep the tapes rolling at all times, as I agree that some of the one take jams were amongst Elvis' best later work. The new release also proves that the 'sweeteners' were not really necessary. I never really understood the love for Got My Mojo Working, particularly with the overdubs added, but the new mix on this set really brings the performance to life.

I'm going off topic a little here, but I have written in the past that when Elvis had both Dylan & The Beatles on his mind during the 1971 sessions, it's disappointing that Felton didn't encourage Elvis to get copies of the lyrics and work out proper arrangements. So, what we are left with are just unfinished glimpses of what might have been.

The one take jams are pure Elvis though, and even with Chips at the helm, whilst the likes of I'll Hold You In My Heart and Stranger In My Own Hometown were not representative of the contemporary hit material that Elvis went to American to record, they are certainly wonderful performances and session highlights.

Yes and isnt that a sad testament to his 70's catalog, when un-rehearsed jams are among his best work, so at least I thank Felton for that. One of telling things about this new set is Mojo, when at the end Elvis says we grew up on this mediocre sh*t or something like that. Sad, if he only realized the greatness of that simple stuff and that it may have been the best thing recorded that day. Lets move onto 'Life' now!

It's a bit of a paradox really. We know Elvis went for the overall feel, rather than the flawless take (although sometimes he achieved both in one take, with Reconsider Baby being a prime example). But if we look at Faded Love, whilst Elvis did try out a short country version at an earlier point in the session, I don't think what he actually produced with the studio band could have been bettered by going for multiple takes, and the same could probably be said for I Washed My Hands In Muddy Water, and even Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On.

However, his takes on Mojo or the later Don't Think Twice would certainly have benefitted from further rehearsal and acces to the lyric sheets, but sadly Felton never encouraged this.

As much as I enjoy the June 1970 recordings, I think it was fortunate that the Elvis Country album evolved due to Elvis' dissatisfaction with some of the new material on offer, as this lifted the overall standard of what was eventually recorded.

When Elvis returned to Nashville during 1971, less inspired than he had been the previous year, the alarm bells really should have been ringing though, as any enthusiasm Elvis may have had for a folk themed album doesn't appear to have been encouraged, and the secular material on offer was uneven at best.

So, Felton's approach gave us rough cut diamonds in the piano songs and the jam on Don't Think Twice, but none of these were really commercial enough to build an album around that would have been a worthy follow up to Elvis Country.

It was business as usual from that point onwards though, with the publishing companies providing the majority of the material, and Felton hoping that Elvis was either inspired enough to elevate it, or that he would dip back into that songbook of his old favourites that ultimately provided the highlights to a number of his sessions.

Seriously Felton's approach sucked. He was simply a yes man and guy in place to keep things as peaceful and upbeat as possible. Words from Lacker himself. Think about it, we actually are thanking a producer for keeping a tape machine rolling to capture studio moments, Great, but big deal. His job as producer should have been to inspire these moments into full blown masters, and as you say get lyrics sheets, encourage genre type albums after 1970 especially since Elvis Country was so well received. I think if anyone needed a good producer with a vision after 1970 it was Elvis. Felton was imply not in the class of other 70's producers, who probably would have given anything for that chance. Elvis had no vision either as recording artist, so all the blame cant go to Felton.

Excellent post. Elvis had the 'goods' but his finest work was most often produced when he had someone to guide him and he benefitted greatly from collaborative efforts. Without that collaborative effort, Elvis was limited to whatever songs were kicking around in his head which was usually gospel or country. It is a shame that he viewed Mojo as medicore....heck as the Doc pointed out even RCA was considering it as the best of the bunch and was considered for single release, despite it being just a jam session that happened to be caught on tape. That says a lot.

Whilst there were some questionable single choices from the June / September 1970 recordings, I don't think Mojo was ever considered the best of the bunch.

It was actually passed over for two albums, and only appears to have been considered for single release when RCA started compiling the session leftovers for the release of the Love Letters album in the summer of 1971.

So, it might well have been the best performance on the Love Letters album, but certainly not from the entire sessions.

I'd still be interested to know whether a mono single edit of Mojo was ever prepared too, as for me, the track as it appeared on the Love Letters album would have needed a tighter edit for any proposed single release.

Sorry, I meant 'bunch' in the broader sense that out of the slew of recordings he did, RCA was looking at it for a possible single release as opposed to so many other songs that he had cut during that session. My fault in the generalization. However, I still feel it says a lot that execs, (not Elvis who figured it was mediocre nor Felton who didn't push for a master) felt that this loose jam session would be more suitable for single release than an actual master recording.

I certainly see your point, and I think this was also discussed in the original thread when DJC shared the proposed single artwork.

My take on this is that there had been too many ballads released as singles since the success of The Wonder Of You, and by this time, with diminishing returns on these singles, and the promotion of the TTWII & Elvis Country albums effectively over, RCA were looking for an uptempo, roots based choice amongst the masters they had left.

Assuming live recordings were off the agenda, the only decent option was Mojo, but some of the single choices from this period of Elvis' career are questionable to say the least.

Elvis' 'mediocre sh*t' comments at the end of the jam may well have been tongue in cheek. We can give him the benefit of the doubt on this one, as Hands Off had also been taped during an earlier informal session, whilst Mojo was reprised during the TTWII rehearsals, so there was definitely some love for the material there.

Elvis' feelings about Life, however, are pretty clear from the session tapes, and yet this song was chosen as a single release before the release of the Love Letters album in May 1971. I can only assume that Elvis no longer chose his own single sides by this stage of his career, but if this was the case, why did it take RCA until the summer of 1971 to realise that something needed to change?

In terms of Elvis' record releases, the comeback momentum was lost very quickly due to some very poor decisions.

Well I definitely think you're onto something. Even at the 72 MSG press conference they noticed the lack of hard rocking songs and were asking why he didn't do them anymore. This would obviously be due to the perception created by the trend of his releases from 1970....Kentucky Rain, The Wonder of You, I've lost you, You don't have to say you love me, I really don't want to know, Rags to Riches, Life, I'm Leavin, It's Only Love, Until it's time for you to go and so forth with only The Wonder of You making the top ten. I can only assume that after the success of the 69 sessions, that RCA figured Elvis' knew what he was doing and gave him that 'experimental' year which proved not to be as successful and much momentum had been lost. Again, a rocker like Burning Love got him back on the charts and would prove to be his last top ten hit of his career.

I think I've Lost You was the last 1970 single with any real potential, but unfortunately, as was the case with I'm Leavin' this was not reflected in sales.

You Don't Have To Say You Love Me was a great performance, but a poor choice, as it had already been a signature hit for Dusty, so maybe Patch It Up should have been promoted as the A side? This would have at least given some variation to Elvis' 1970 output.

I Really Don't Want To Know, whilst a great performance, was a little dated for 1970, and there were certainly better choices for single sides to promote the country album, with It's Your Baby You Rock It being my choice, as it was uptempo, catchy and, most importantly a 'new' song for the general public.

After that, the creative thinking was as good as gone, and this was also reflected in the haphazard album compilations that started to appear with the release of Love Letters.

It's interesting that Elvis had to be persuaded to record Burning Love. I know he was leaning towards big ballads by this point in his career, but rehearsal tapes and impromptu studio recordings show that he still enjoying running through things like Mystery Train, That's All Right or Johnny B. Goode to get warmed up, so there was still some love for the old rock n roll there, which maybe needed more new material to really light the spark.

Burning Love should certainly have been the lead track on a new mainstream, contemporary album, but we all know what happened there.

People often point to Elvis' thinking that he was above his own older material or material from that era and yet as you've pointed out whether it be on TTWII, On Tour or even between takes during sessions Elvis would indeed go back to this material. Why he didn't bring more of it to the stage and more often is something we will perhaps never know. Even his Country album was not filled with mainly 'current' material.....whole lotta shakin, little cabin on the hill, make the world go away and yet still makes for one of his finest, if not the finest studio album he made in the 70s.

[Ciscoking]

I now had a chance to listen to this set and I just can say in my bad English: Elvis Presley....THANK YOU. I am stunned !!

[rockinrebel]

People often point to Elvis' thinking that he was above his own older material or material from that era and yet as you've pointed out whether it be on TTWII, On Tour or even between takes during sessions Elvis would indeed go back to this material. Why he didn't bring more of it to the stage and more often is something we will perhaps never know. Even his Country album was not filled with mainly 'current' material.....whole lotta shakin, little cabin on the hill, make the world go away and yet still makes for one of his finest, if not the finest studio album he made in the 70s.

It's interesting that the songs Elvis appeared to enjoy revisiting were the r&b tunes that he grew up with, rather than the classic hits that made him famous.

Even as late as 1977 he would still play guitar on That's All Right (and even Reconsider Baby on one occasion). And if we look at the CBS recordings, Elvis performed a great country version of That's All Right and gave his all during Trying To Get To You, whilst the likes of Jailhouse Rock, Hound Dog etc. were given perfunctory run throughs.

Mystery Train / Tiger Man & Lawdy Miss Clawdy were also generally performed well, whilst Big Hunk is the only Elvis related hit I can think of that Elvis appeared to enjoy performing during the post comeback shows, but maybe this is because he didn't revisit it until 1972, and it was only in the set list for a couple of years.

Maybe there was a sentimental attachment to his pre-fame days as the pressure of being a superstar began to take its toll...

[Ryan73]

People often point to Elvis' thinking that he was above his own older material or material from that era and yet as you've pointed out whether it be on TTWII, On Tour or even between takes during sessions Elvis would indeed go back to this material. Why he didn't bring more of it to the stage and more often is something we will perhaps never know. Even his Country album was not filled with mainly 'current' material.....whole lotta shakin, little cabin on the hill, make the world go away and yet still makes for one of his finest, if not the finest studio album he made in the 70s.

It's interesting that the songs Elvis appeared to enjoy revisiting were the r&b tunes that he grew up with, rather than the classic hits that made him famous.

Even as late as 1977 he would still play guitar on That's All Right (and even Reconsider Baby on one occasion). And if we look at the CBS recordings, Elvis performed a great country version of That's All Right and gave his all during Trying To Get To You, whilst the likes of Jailhouse Rock, Hound Dog etc. were given perfunctory run throughs.

Mystery Train / Tiger Man & Lawdy Miss Clawdy were also generally performed well, whilst Big Hunk is the only Elvis related hit I can think of that Elvis appeared to enjoy performing during the post comeback shows, but maybe this is because he didn't revisit it until 1972, and it was only in the set list for a couple of years.

Maybe there was a sentimental attachment to his pre-fame days as the pressure of being a superstar began to take its toll...

Looking at your list, if you think about it most of the 'hits' that Elvis performed on stage from 69 to 77 were the ones he did during the 68 special. Who'd have thought in 77 he'd still be doing That's all right or Trying to get to you and I don't mean that in a bad way. Actually I thought I read somewhere years ago that Roy Orbison was inspired to do some of his Sun recordings after he saw that Elvis was still performing them. I was pouring over some of those pre nbc sessions that Elvis had and it was interesting to see he had picked other similar choices like Blue Moon of Kentucky, That's when your heartaches begin or the real stunner....when it rains it really pours.

[rockinrebel]

People often point to Elvis' thinking that he was above his own older material or material from that era and yet as you've pointed out whether it be on TTWII, On Tour or even between takes during sessions Elvis would indeed go back to this material. Why he didn't bring more of it to the stage and more often is something we will perhaps never know. Even his Country album was not filled with mainly 'current' material.....whole lotta shakin, little cabin on the hill, make the world go away and yet still makes for one of his finest, if not the finest studio album he made in the 70s.

It's interesting that the songs Elvis appeared to enjoy revisiting were the r&b tunes that he grew up with, rather than the classic hits that made him famous.

Even as late as 1977 he would still play guitar on That's All Right (and even Reconsider Baby on one occasion). And if we look at the CBS recordings, Elvis performed a great country version of That's All Right and gave his all during Trying To Get To You, whilst the likes of Jailhouse Rock, Hound Dog etc. were given perfunctory run throughs.

Mystery Train / Tiger Man & Lawdy Miss Clawdy were also generally performed well, whilst Big Hunk is the only Elvis related hit I can think of that Elvis appeared to enjoy performing during the post comeback shows, but maybe this is because he didn't revisit it until 1972, and it was only in the set list for a couple of years.

Maybe there was a sentimental attachment to his pre-fame days as the pressure of being a superstar began to take its toll...

Looking at your list, if you think about it most of the 'hits' that Elvis performed on stage from 69 to 77 were the ones he did during the 68 special. Who'd have thought in 77 he'd still be doing That's all right or Trying to get to you and I don't mean that in a bad way. Actually I thought I read somewhere years ago that Roy Orbison was inspired to do some of his Sun recordings after he saw that Elvis was still performing them. I was pouring over some of those pre nbc sessions that Elvis had and it was interesting to see he had picked other similar choices like Blue Moon of Kentucky, That's when your heartaches begin or the real stunner....when it rains it really pours.

Agreed. Just remembered My Baby Left Me was generally well performed too, and whilst it was from his breakthrough year, it's another old Arthur Crudup blues, so Elvis was definitely drawn to this sort of material.

I've always felt that Elvis would have revisited these songs had he lived long enough to appreciate the esteem the original recordings were held in, by both fans and fellow entertainers.

[Ryan73]

People often point to Elvis' thinking that he was above his own older material or material from that era and yet as you've pointed out whether it be on TTWII, On Tour or even between takes during sessions Elvis would indeed go back to this material. Why he didn't bring more of it to the stage and more often is something we will perhaps never know. Even his Country album was not filled with mainly 'current' material.....whole lotta shakin, little cabin on the hill, make the world go away and yet still makes for one of his finest, if not the finest studio album he made in the 70s.

It's interesting that the songs Elvis appeared to enjoy revisiting were the r&b tunes that he grew up with, rather than the classic hits that made him famous.

Even as late as 1977 he would still play guitar on That's All Right (and even Reconsider Baby on one occasion). And if we look at the CBS recordings, Elvis performed a great country version of That's All Right and gave his all during Trying To Get To You, whilst the likes of Jailhouse Rock, Hound Dog etc. were given perfunctory run throughs.

Mystery Train / Tiger Man & Lawdy Miss Clawdy were also generally performed well, whilst Big Hunk is the only Elvis related hit I can think of that Elvis appeared to enjoy performing during the post comeback shows, but maybe this is because he didn't revisit it until 1972, and it was only in the set list for a couple of years.

Maybe there was a sentimental attachment to his pre-fame days as the pressure of being a superstar began to take its toll...

Looking at your list, if you think about it most of the 'hits' that Elvis performed on stage from 69 to 77 were the ones he did during the 68 special. Who'd have thought in 77 he'd still be doing That's all right or Trying to get to you and I don't mean that in a bad way. Actually I thought I read somewhere years ago that Roy Orbison was inspired to do some of his Sun recordings after he saw that Elvis was still performing them. I was pouring over some of those pre nbc sessions that Elvis had and it was interesting to see he had picked other similar choices like Blue Moon of Kentucky, That's when your heartaches begin or the real stunner....when it rains it really pours.

Agreed. Just remembered My Baby Left Me was generally well performed too, and whilst it was from his breakthrough year, it's another old Arthur Crudup blues, so Elvis was definitely drawn to this sort of material.

I've always felt that Elvis would have revisited these songs had he lived long enough to appreciate the esteem the original recordings were held in, by both fans and fellow entertainers.

He was so young to go at 42 and he had such a giant catalog of not only number ones and top tens but tons of material to draw upon. It would be nice to think as he got older that he would have revisited and expanded the use of his own material. My wife was watching some show the other night....I think 'big little liars' or something like that. Nicole kidman is in it. During one part that I happened to catch, the one character was dressed up as the jumpsuit Elvis and was singing "One night'. His little daughter comes down the stairs and tells him not to do obvious Elvis songs and introduces him to Pocketful of Rainbows. Nice little moment and reminder of the great material he had.

[rockinrebel]

People often point to Elvis' thinking that he was above his own older material or material from that era and yet as you've pointed out whether it be on TTWII, On Tour or even between takes during sessions Elvis would indeed go back to this material. Why he didn't bring more of it to the stage and more often is something we will perhaps never know. Even his Country album was not filled with mainly 'current' material.....whole lotta shakin, little cabin on the hill, make the world go away and yet still makes for one of his finest, if not the finest studio album he made in the 70s.

It's interesting that the songs Elvis appeared to enjoy revisiting were the r&b tunes that he grew up with, rather than the classic hits that made him famous.

Even as late as 1977 he would still play guitar on That's All Right (and even Reconsider Baby on one occasion). And if we look at the CBS recordings, Elvis performed a great country version of That's All Right and gave his all during Trying To Get To You, whilst the likes of Jailhouse Rock, Hound Dog etc. were given perfunctory run throughs.

Mystery Train / Tiger Man & Lawdy Miss Clawdy were also generally performed well, whilst Big Hunk is the only Elvis related hit I can think of that Elvis appeared to enjoy performing during the post comeback shows, but maybe this is because he didn't revisit it until 1972, and it was only in the set list for a couple of years.

Maybe there was a sentimental attachment to his pre-fame days as the pressure of being a superstar began to take its toll...

Looking at your list, if you think about it most of the 'hits' that Elvis performed on stage from 69 to 77 were the ones he did during the 68 special. Who'd have thought in 77 he'd still be doing That's all right or Trying to get to you and I don't mean that in a bad way. Actually I thought I read somewhere years ago that Roy Orbison was inspired to do some of his Sun recordings after he saw that Elvis was still performing them. I was pouring over some of those pre nbc sessions that Elvis had and it was interesting to see he had picked other similar choices like Blue Moon of Kentucky, That's when your heartaches begin or the real stunner....when it rains it really pours.

Agreed. Just remembered My Baby Left Me was generally well performed too, and whilst it was from his breakthrough year, it's another old Arthur Crudup blues, so Elvis was definitely drawn to this sort of material.

I've always felt that Elvis would have revisited these songs had he lived long enough to appreciate the esteem the original recordings were held in, by both fans and fellow entertainers.

He was so young to go at 42 and he had such a giant catalog of not only number ones and top tens but tons of material to draw upon. It would be nice to think as he got older that he would have revisited and expanded the use of his own material. My wife was watching some show the other night....I think 'big little liars' or something like that. Nicole kidman is in it. During one part that I happened to catch, the one character was dressed up as the jumpsuit Elvis and was singing "One night'. His little daughter comes down the stairs and tells him not to do obvious Elvis songs and introduces him to Pocketful of Rainbows. Nice little moment and reminder of the great material he had.

I haven't seen that. Clearly the producers knew their Elvis. There was a rock n roll revival in the '80's, and I'm sure Elvis would have taken many of the plaudits for this, which would surely have given him a different perspective on his earlier work.

Then, I would like to think that he would have had the opportunity to work with better producers and contemporary writers, as per the Johnny Cash / Rick Rubin sessions. Maybe even an MTV unplugged session, as he is sometimes credited with influencing the concept with the small combo jams from June '68.

[Wayfarer]

Legendary disc jockey “Whispering” Bob Harris played a couple of tracks off the set on his national BBC country show. The veteran praises Elvis, the breadth of tracks cut at the sessions, superlative singing, and also Sony for their execution and reasonable price-tag.

In this broadcast from 3rd December, Harris plays Little Cabin on the Hill and This is Our Dance, with the latter snugly fitting in at Christmas time.

This may not be accessible outside the UK:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000q0xm

[Wayfarer]

Elvis had no vision either as recording artist, so all the blame cant go to Felton.

Agreed.

I know of other artists who gave everything they had in the studio and were very particular about the outcome. They would never leave it entirely up to the producer and say "I'm done here. I trust you." Conway Twitty was one of those. He was involved in every aspect of the recording process, including picking his own songs and staying until the final mix. That may be the reason he ended up with 55 number one country records.

Elvis couldn't be bothered. While I do like much of the output from the Jarvis sessions, one can only stand to listen to "That's a gas!" or "That's great, Elvis!" so many times. But I've always felt that Felton did the best he could with what he had to work with. He could have been different if he had an artist who was engaged in what he was doing. Felton knew that Elvis could be bored enough, or get pissed off about something and walk out of the sessions at any time. Instead of concentrating on what he was supposed to do, he had to be a cheerleader for Elvis to get him through the sessions, especially after June 1970.

I give Felton a lot of credit. Not necessarily as a producer, because many times he was unable to do his job. I give him credit for doing whatever he had to do to get his artist through the sessions.

Again, he did the best he could with what he had and I would not have wanted his job.

Totally agree with you.

[minkahed]

I went back to Barnes and Noble today, again, and with the 4 copies they had and sold, the guy at the front desk told me he purchased the 5th copy that was shipped to the store. Jack also explained to me that no other copies of the 4-CD box version have not come in, in the last 3 weeks.

He expressed to me how phenomenal the Nashville set is and how I was gonna love it !!! LOL

He specifically ordered the set for me and when it gets delivered to the store, he'll gimme a call. I'm grateful.

[minkahed]

Apparently not, a 5th copy was delivered to the store and the guy at the desk "Jack" bought it himself and no other sets have come in, in the last 3 weeks.

He ordered one for me to be delivered to the store on Tuesday and will give me a call.

Again, (starting to repeat myself) went back to Barnes and Noble right down the street and they had one more Nashville set come in and sold the same day. Tf ???

These sets seem to come and go quick and although I've been listening via Spotify, I would love to have a physical copy. I didn't want to order online, but it seems I no longer have a choice.

You do know that they will hold a copy for you, right?

[ForeverElvis]

I went back to Barnes and Noble today, again, and with the 4 copies they had and sold, the guy at the front desk told me he purchased the 5th copy that was shipped to the store. Jack also explained to me that no other copies of the 4-CD box version have not come in, in the last 3 weeks.

He expressed to me how phenomenal the Nashville set is and how I was gonna love it !!! LOL

He specifically ordered the set for me and when it gets delivered to the store, he'll gimme a call. I'm grateful.

May I ask why you don’t simply order it online?

[YDKM]

Agree out of sheer frustration i ordered online and got it locally within 2 days great sound and every disc sounds better than the previous to me with Disc #4 being the biggest highlight.