Elvis Back In Nashville (4 cd Box Set)

[Gamma Master]

i think what we are all saying is that an artist of Elvis' calibre deserves much better for these kind of mainstream releases

This is bang on

[Greg1995]

The backing singers should not have been removed regardless whether they were live in the sessions or added after the fact !

Some would argue the Felton Jarvis overdubs on the masters should be eliminated and that's a fair call although I don't support it, for reasons i mention before.
But seeing that the box has just as many alternate takes as there are masters, whoever was in charge of the mix's could have played around with those rather than the masters.

For what it's worth, these are my personal thoughts. If the idea was to present the recordings as done in the studio, (minus later overdubs), and whether that be Elvis singing by himself, with the band or with backup singers and the band, then that's what we should have got. It has generally been felt that it is the Felton Jarvis post work that has affected the overall sound of many Elvis recordings, so in that respect, and for me, removing that post work is accepatble to create undubbed recordings and you still have the overdubbed masters elsewhere on other releases. But with this release there should have been no tampering with what got recorded in the studio pre the overdubs. As an aside though, there are occasions when Jarvis' post work on a variety of sessions has benefitted some recordings where Elvis' voice has not been top notch in places or the song sounds empty in places. And this was a golden opportunity to offer decent remixes of the originals, although I accept that remixes and the inclusion of the original masters are subjective and it would add one or two extra CDs to the set pushing the price up, but at least we would then have what could be regarded as the ultimate deluxe set.

But there are other things regarding this release and outside of the music that I have found frustrating. One is the errors in the book that should have been corrected via proof reading and then there is the packaging and how the discs are inserted, although not exclusive to this release- why they could not follow the style used by Apple (see photo below) where the CDs are placed in a proper sleeve and then inserted into something that is easy to get at without the risk of tearing the card is mystifying. The 28 page booklet is not exactly mind blowing as the two individual essays by Jorgensen and David Cantwell are almost similar. For a 28 page booklet, too much space is wasted on virtually telling the same thing and on informing the reader where the tracks have previously been released and the achievements gained on the various recordings. We are told that the three orginal albums that made up these recordings were not that well received, yet at first glance, a casual reader or nn fan may be confused in thinking that every song got an RIAA certification when the record was released rather than the actual album it came from and of course we know that some certifiactions took many years to reach those RIAA accolades.

Finally, i feel that the info regarding the project itself and what they wanted to do, the decisions taken and how they did it is a little too scant. Once again, compare it to the book that came with the recent Let It Be set, four times as many pages and where every song is discussed in some way and you can buld up a decent idea of the sessions. That said, maybe Sony have to take the slimmed down approach due to costs versus sales.

Bottom line and putting the frustrations aside...I am pleased to hear these recordings in their remixed and in most parts undubbed variants, especially as they come from three albums I rarely play, but for marking purposes on the set, i would have to annotate a message to Sony "could have done better".

At first, I was also comparing Elvis' main label deluxe releases to the one of The Beatles (deluxe package, hardcover thick books etc like the recent Anniversary releases of their albums) but I've found this comparison wrong. At first the Beatles are much more higly-regarded as music artists than Elvis is (its a fact), they wrote their own songs (its not easy even if you are that talented as Fab Four and wrote so many classics),arrangements and made LP releases an art starting from cover design, artwork - there was a deeper message to it than just recording songs and covers they liked like Elvis did, they brought a different game to releasing records like other bands of the British Invasion or any other bands from the 60s. And practically each and every Beatles album is a stone-cold classic (also a fact), Elvis only had a few which probably most of them are regarded of that in hardcore fan base rather than by Joe Public ("Elvis is Back" is regarded as his best album or one of the very best, outside of the fanbase not so much because no one know about it probably, at least in my environment). Don't expect the Elvis main label releases made of the same caliber (I love Elvis as an artist and for me he is, but in a different league than The Beatles - I don't have a problem with Elvis not writing any proper song in his lifetime, he was the best singer, doesnt have to go alone with songwriting skills, but I sure want that he made different artistic choices and directions) .The proof-reading and quality Issues are different thing. And I honestly think Sony Legacy has done a marvellous job in the last 10 years finally trying to present Elvis as an artist with different deluxe boxsets of concerts, recording sessionsetc rather than another "Greatest Hits" compilation artist. FTD is still the main direction for a deep fan but this a COLLECTOR'S label, it won't sell outside of the fan base.

[norrie]

Just started reading the booklet. The very first page of text refers three times to the Holiday Inn-Rivermount as the venue for the Jaycees' daytime events on 16 January 1971. The venue was actually the Holiday Inn-Rivermont. A small detail, but one that would have been picked up by any fact-checking proofreader worth their salt.

I confess I didn't notice that as I don't know my Rivermonts from my Rivermounts, but it's yet more examples of how slapdash this set is once you look beyond the pleasant packaging.

On page 23 Producers Note it also reads ".....it's predecessor, From Elvis In Nashville (Sony / Legacy 2021)" No biggie of course but still come on....

[frus75]

The backing singers should not have been removed regardless whether they were live in the sessions or added after the fact !

Some would argue the Felton Jarvis overdubs on the masters should be eliminated and that's a fair call although I don't support it, for reasons i mention before.
But seeing that the box has just as many alternate takes as there are masters, whoever was in charge of the mix's could have played around with those rather than the masters.

For what it's worth, these are my personal thoughts. If the idea was to present the recordings as done in the studio, (minus later overdubs), and whether that be Elvis singing by himself, with the band or with backup singers and the band, then that's what we should have got. It has generally been felt that it is the Felton Jarvis post work that has affected the overall sound of many Elvis recordings, so in that respect, and for me, removing that post work is accepatble to create undubbed recordings and you still have the overdubbed masters elsewhere on other releases. But with this release there should have been no tampering with what got recorded in the studio pre the overdubs. As an aside though, there are occasions when Jarvis' post work on a variety of sessions has benefitted some recordings where Elvis' voice has not been top notch in places or the song sounds empty in places. And this was a golden opportunity to offer decent remixes of the originals, although I accept that remixes and the inclusion of the original masters are subjective and it would add one or two extra CDs to the set pushing the price up, but at least we would then have what could be regarded as the ultimate deluxe set.

But there are other things regarding this release and outside of the music that I have found frustrating. One is the errors in the book that should have been corrected via proof reading and then there is the packaging and how the discs are inserted, although not exclusive to this release- why they could not follow the style used by Apple (see photo below) where the CDs are placed in a proper sleeve and then inserted into something that is easy to get at without the risk of tearing the card is mystifying. The 28 page booklet is not exactly mind blowing as the two individual essays by Jorgensen and David Cantwell are almost similar. For a 28 page booklet, too much space is wasted on virtually telling the same thing and on informing the reader where the tracks have previously been released and the achievements gained on the various recordings. We are told that the three orginal albums that made up these recordings were not that well received, yet at first glance, a casual reader or nn fan may be confused in thinking that every song got an RIAA certification when the record was released rather than the actual album it came from and of course we know that some certifiactions took many years to reach those RIAA accolades.

Finally, i feel that the info regarding the project itself and what they wanted to do, the decisions taken and how they did it is a little too scant. Once again, compare it to the book that came with the recent Let It Be set, four times as many pages and where every song is discussed in some way and you can buld up a decent idea of the sessions. That said, maybe Sony have to take the slimmed down approach due to costs versus sales.

Bottom line and putting the frustrations aside...I am pleased to hear these recordings in their remixed and in most parts undubbed variants, especially as they come from three albums I rarely play, but for marking purposes on the set, i would have to annotate a message to Sony "could have done better".

At first, I was also comparing Elvis' main label deluxe releases to the one of The Beatles (deluxe package, hardcover thick books etc like the recent Anniversary releases of their albums) but I've found this comparison wrong. At first the Beatles are much more higly-regarded as music artists than Elvis is (its a fact), they wrote their own songs (its not easy even if you are that talented as Fab Four and wrote so many classics),arrangements and made LP releases an art starting from cover design, artwork - there was a deeper message to it than just recording songs and covers they liked like Elvis did, they brought a different game to releasing records like other bands of the British Invasion or any other bands from the 60s. And practically each and every Beatles album is a stone-cold classic (also a fact), Elvis only had a few which probably most of them are regarded of that in hardcore fan base rather than by Joe Public ("Elvis is Back" is regarded as his best album or one of the very best, outside of the fanbase not so much because no one know about it probably, at least in my environment). Don't expect the Elvis main label releases made of the same caliber (I love Elvis as an artist and for me he is, but in a different league than The Beatles - I don't have a problem with Elvis not writing any proper song in his lifetime, he was the best singer, doesnt have to go alone with songwriting skills, but I sure want that he made different artistic choices and directions) .The proof-reading and quality Issues are different thing. And I honestly think Sony Legacy has done a marvellous job in the last 10 years finally trying to present Elvis as an artist with different deluxe boxsets of concerts, recording sessionsetc rather than another "Greatest Hits" compilation artist. FTD is still the main direction for a deep fan but this a COLLECTOR'S label, it won't sell outside of the fan base.

In a way you’re right. But let’s imagine something ok? Let’s pretend the Beatles are less regarded for having good voices but not as good as Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald or yes, Elvis. Imagine that they were criticized for not being able to make a country or a gospel album. Wouldn’t you agree that it would be nonsense? The problem is that 2 artistic geniuses, Elvis and the Beatles, shared that one followed the other, that they were followed by millions of fans, that they sold more records than anyone, that they topped the charts more than any other artist. This facts force a never ending comparison. But that’s it’s not fair. And I have to say that it is specially unfair to Elvis.

Comparing the Beatles and Elvis is like comparing Billie Holiday to Beethoven. Elvis and the Beatles do share some musical traces, but mostly they’re VERY different . The Beatles should be compared with the stones, The Beach Boys or even the eagles.

There is NEVER comparison between Sinatra and the Beatles (even if BOTH excelled at concept albums). Or the stones and Elvis. Or Tom Jones and the Eagles. Or the Blackwood brothers and the Kingston trio. Why? Because it’s like comparing books with video games. But here comes the Beatles and Elvis and the measures of their successes made them a never ending Elvis vs the Beatles useless thread.

That said, NOTHING. And I mean NOTHING, prevents Sony from celebrating such milestones as From Elvis in Memphis, Elvis is back, etc like the Beatles do. Like nothing prevents UMG from celebrating Sinatra Jobim, nice and easy or only the lonely.

[pmp]

The backing singers should not have been removed regardless whether they were live in the sessions or added after the fact !

Some would argue the Felton Jarvis overdubs on the masters should be eliminated and that's a fair call although I don't support it, for reasons i mention before.
But seeing that the box has just as many alternate takes as there are masters, whoever was in charge of the mix's could have played around with those rather than the masters.

For what it's worth, these are my personal thoughts. If the idea was to present the recordings as done in the studio, (minus later overdubs), and whether that be Elvis singing by himself, with the band or with backup singers and the band, then that's what we should have got. It has generally been felt that it is the Felton Jarvis post work that has affected the overall sound of many Elvis recordings, so in that respect, and for me, removing that post work is accepatble to create undubbed recordings and you still have the overdubbed masters elsewhere on other releases. But with this release there should have been no tampering with what got recorded in the studio pre the overdubs. As an aside though, there are occasions when Jarvis' post work on a variety of sessions has benefitted some recordings where Elvis' voice has not been top notch in places or the song sounds empty in places. And this was a golden opportunity to offer decent remixes of the originals, although I accept that remixes and the inclusion of the original masters are subjective and it would add one or two extra CDs to the set pushing the price up, but at least we would then have what could be regarded as the ultimate deluxe set.

But there are other things regarding this release and outside of the music that I have found frustrating. One is the errors in the book that should have been corrected via proof reading and then there is the packaging and how the discs are inserted, although not exclusive to this release- why they could not follow the style used by Apple (see photo below) where the CDs are placed in a proper sleeve and then inserted into something that is easy to get at without the risk of tearing the card is mystifying. The 28 page booklet is not exactly mind blowing as the two individual essays by Jorgensen and David Cantwell are almost similar. For a 28 page booklet, too much space is wasted on virtually telling the same thing and on informing the reader where the tracks have previously been released and the achievements gained on the various recordings. We are told that the three orginal albums that made up these recordings were not that well received, yet at first glance, a casual reader or nn fan may be confused in thinking that every song got an RIAA certification when the record was released rather than the actual album it came from and of course we know that some certifiactions took many years to reach those RIAA accolades.

Finally, i feel that the info regarding the project itself and what they wanted to do, the decisions taken and how they did it is a little too scant. Once again, compare it to the book that came with the recent Let It Be set, four times as many pages and where every song is discussed in some way and you can buld up a decent idea of the sessions. That said, maybe Sony have to take the slimmed down approach due to costs versus sales.

Bottom line and putting the frustrations aside...I am pleased to hear these recordings in their remixed and in most parts undubbed variants, especially as they come from three albums I rarely play, but for marking purposes on the set, i would have to annotate a message to Sony "could have done better".

At first, I was also comparing Elvis' main label deluxe releases to the one of The Beatles (deluxe package, hardcover thick books etc like the recent Anniversary releases of their albums) but I've found this comparison wrong. At first the Beatles are much more higly-regarded as music artists than Elvis is (its a fact), they wrote their own songs (its not easy even if you are that talented as Fab Four and wrote so many classics),arrangements and made LP releases an art starting from cover design, artwork - there was a deeper message to it than just recording songs and covers they liked like Elvis did, they brought a different game to releasing records like other bands of the British Invasion or any other bands from the 60s. And practically each and every Beatles album is a stone-cold classic (also a fact), Elvis only had a few which probably most of them are regarded of that in hardcore fan base rather than by Joe Public ("Elvis is Back" is regarded as his best album or one of the very best, outside of the fanbase not so much because no one know about it probably, at least in my environment). Don't expect the Elvis main label releases made of the same caliber (I love Elvis as an artist and for me he is, but in a different league than The Beatles - I don't have a problem with Elvis not writing any proper song in his lifetime, he was the best singer, doesnt have to go alone with songwriting skills, but I sure want that he made different artistic choices and directions) .The proof-reading and quality Issues are different thing. And I honestly think Sony Legacy has done a marvellous job in the last 10 years finally trying to present Elvis as an artist with different deluxe boxsets of concerts, recording sessionsetc rather than another "Greatest Hits" compilation artist. FTD is still the main direction for a deep fan but this a COLLECTOR'S label, it won't sell outside of the fan base.

Sony Legacy wouldn't have done half of what it has over the last ten years if it wasn't forced to do so by much of the unreleased material going out of copyright in the UK and Europe. The following is no coincidence:

2018: Comeback special box because unreleased material would have gone out of copyright in Europe on 1/1/2019
2019: Las Vegas box, because unreleased material would have gone out of copyright in Europe on 1/1/2020
2019: Memphis Sessions releases because unreleased material would have gone out of copyright in Europe on 1/1/2020
2020: TTWII concert set because unreleased material would have gone out of copyright in Europe on 1/1/2021
2020: Rehearsals set because unreleased material would have gone out of copyright in Europe on 1/1/2021
2020: Nashville set because unreleased material and undubbed masters would have gone out of copyright in Europe on 1/1/2021
2021: Second Nashville set because unreleased material and undubbed masters would have gone out of copyright in Europe on 1/1/2022
2022: EOT set because the unreleased material goes out of copyright in Europe on 1/1/2023

Those releases mean that Sony now retain the copyright for the newly-released material for another seventy years in Europe. This series of boxes have nothing to do with a desire to highlight these various sessions and live shows, they are there in order for the retention of copyright to take place. If some of these sets are of high quality, then that's almost a happy bonus for Sony.

As for your comments about not expecting the same quality of releases for Elvis as for the Beatles. I think you have missed a key point: it would have cost no more time, effort, or money to make this 4CD set as good as last year's 4CD set. The strange singer-less mixes, the dull liner notes, the typos, the lack of willingness to be consistent throughout the set - none of this has anything to do with time or money or who is better-regarded. I have boxed sets of people far less-regarded than Elvis, and none of these issues occur there. It's simply a botched (not to mention downright idiotic) decision at the producer level when it comes to the mixes, and sheer bloody laziness when it comes to the booklet.

[norrie]

Slightly disappointed with disc 1 for the same reasons as previous posters ,ie the removal of backing vocals.At least they don't sound as dry as the Our Memories Of Elvis releases but to hear Elvis harmonising with missing background singers doesn't do it for me.
On the other hand listening right now to disc 2 Gospel songs and WOW they sound absolutely fantastic.

norrie

[Walter Hale 4]

Actually this one sounds a lot sharper than i remember it, a song i never cared for before. What do you folks reckon about this one ?

[luckyjackson1]

I agree. If 2 things can be said about Matt they are that: 1st, he adores echo, as was too evidently displayed on way down and at stax, but more reined in on subsequent releases and the second is that he loves to showcase everything that was recorded. It’s FTD which did the vocal accompaniment erasing on “its midnight” outtakes, while on at stax they were there. But also lots of instruments obscured on FTD classic albums were brought up on way down and at stax. So I firmly believe he was instructed to do that amateurish thing with backing vocalists.

Be ready for the 2023 viva Las Vegas mainstream release, as it will feature the duets of you’re the boss, today tomorrow and forever and the lady loves me without the obtrusive Ann Marget

And added echo on "Night Life"

Anyway, don't forget the Live '69 set... I still didn't return to it after I shelved it two years ago. The echo on "Are You Lonesome Tonight" makes me dizzy. Thanks, back to topic.

[luckyjackson1]

Just listening to the He Touched Me tracks (in the same order as the original album). My god, these really kick ass to me! I always felt the original vintage mixes were really 'over produced' but the new mixes are really intimate and warm. I will say the same for the Christmas tracks to a lesser extent, but they are still more enjoyable than the vintage mixes.

I loathe the new mix on "I, John". No power at all anymore, at least to these old whistling and ringing ears.

[Jaime1234]

Amazon

#63 in All CDs & Vinyl

#15 in Country (CDs & Vinyl) https://www.amazon.com/gp/bestsellers/music/16/ref=pd_zg_hrsr_music

[pmp]

One thing that I'm not sure has been mentioned yet is that on the outtakes discs, the dialogue, practicing and fooling around prior to each full take seems much longer on this set than on previous ones. Half a minute of studio chatter isn't so bad, on some tracks this runs (or feels like it runs) to a couple of minutes. Again, this isn't an FTD release, where people on FECC might want to hear all of this kind of thing. Something of this nature at retail level is aimed at listening pleasure, not indulging fans in this kind of thing. It might be fun to hear, but on repeated listens this is going to be tedious as hell. Yes, there was some of this on the Stax, Jungle Room and Nashville 70 sets, but not to this degree. It's another sign, I think, that the people behind the set have taken their eye off the ball. While there is a quote about not pleasing all of the people all of the time, this set manages to please most people none of the time!

[pmp]

Amazon

#63 in All CDs & Vinyl

#15 in Country (CDs & Vinyl) https://www.amazon.com/gp/bestsellers/music/16/ref=pd_zg_hrsr_music

Amazon charts fluctuate by the hour. They are meaningless for the most part. I've had a book climb 15,000 places by selling one copy.

[Walter Hale 4]

One thing that I'm not sure has been mentioned yet is that on the outtakes discs, the dialogue, practicing and fooling around prior to each full take seems much longer on this set than on previous ones. Half a minute of studio chatter isn't so bad, on some tracks this runs (or feels like it runs) to a couple of minutes. Again, this isn't an FTD release, where people on FECC might want to hear all of this kind of thing. Something of this nature at retail level is aimed at listening pleasure, not indulging fans in this kind of thing. It might be fun to hear, but on repeated listens this is going to be tedious as hell. Yes, there was some of this on the Stax, Jungle Room and Nashville 70 sets, but not to this degree. It's another sign, I think, that the people behind the set have taken their eye off the ball. While there is a quote about not pleasing all of the people all of the time, this set manages to please most people none of the time!

Good point ! Either old age has got the worst of Ernst or he was not feeling well when compiling this escape...err release including writing his summary.

[pmp]

One thing that I'm not sure has been mentioned yet is that on the outtakes discs, the dialogue, practicing and fooling around prior to each full take seems much longer on this set than on previous ones. Half a minute of studio chatter isn't so bad, on some tracks this runs (or feels like it runs) to a couple of minutes. Again, this isn't an FTD release, where people on FECC might want to hear all of this kind of thing. Something of this nature at retail level is aimed at listening pleasure, not indulging fans in this kind of thing. It might be fun to hear, but on repeated listens this is going to be tedious as hell. Yes, there was some of this on the Stax, Jungle Room and Nashville 70 sets, but not to this degree. It's another sign, I think, that the people behind the set have taken their eye off the ball. While there is a quote about not pleasing all of the people all of the time, this set manages to please most people none of the time!

Good point ! Either old age has got the worst of Ernst or he was not feeling well when compiling this esacpe...err release and writing his summary.

You have to wonder if it fell apart in production or whether it was also a mess in planning! It's a shame, though, as I was rather looking forward to this one.

[Walter Hale 4]

pmp's hit the nail on the head, although if you ask me, there shouldn't be any studio chatter at all given this was meant to be a mainstream product. This chatter length would be more appropriate on a FTD product.

[srovenstine]

I think Disk 1 runs too slow?

[pmp]

pmp's hit the nail on the head, although if you ask me, there shouldn't be any studio chatter at all given this was meant to be a mainstream product. This chatter length would be more appropriate on a FTD product.

This is the first track on disc 3, and I assumed the chatter etc was simply a kind of prelude to the main event, and then the rest of the disc would flow. It didn't work out like that. I don't mind a little bit now and then, and I realise in some instances what they were trying to get at - such as showing Elvis's mischief as he keeps singing the opening of Oh Happy Day in order to irritate everyone else. And I don't mind the odd false start or two when there's a point - such as Elvis getting a dose of the sillies on the infamous Datin sequence on the silver box. But not just for the hell of it.

[pmp]

I think Disk 1 runs too slow?

Each track would have been mastered separately, so that seems very unlikely. It's just boring!

[elvisalisellers]

Whilst working on a few recons, I've noticed that a number of tracks are running up to 0.5% slower compared to the vintage mixes.

In my view, it's within tolerance [unlike many soundboard releases], and may simply be down to how the playback machines [both old and new] were originally calibrated.

[Walter Hale 4]

Whilst working on a few recons, I've noticed that a number of tracks are running up to 0.5% slower compared to the vintage mixes.

In my view, it's within tolerance [unlike many soundboard releases], and may simply be down to how the playback machines [both old and new] were originally calibrated.

which tracks are they, mate?

[Walter Hale 4]

I guess 50 percent of somethin' is better than 100 percent of NOTHING, So i will be looking at purchase a copy at JB Hi-Fi of either Back in Nashville or The Beatles Get Back Deluxe Edition, whichever set is available on thursday 18 november, my Birthday, hehe.

[elvisalisellers]

Whilst working on a few recons, I've noticed that a number of tracks are running up to 0.5% slower compared to the vintage mixes.

In my view, it's within tolerance [unlike many soundboard releases], and may simply be down to how the playback machines [both old and new] were originally calibrated.

which tracks are they, mate?

He Touched Me album tracks.

[pmp]

Whilst working on a few recons, I've noticed that a number of tracks are running up to 0.5% slower compared to the vintage mixes.

In my view, it's within tolerance [unlike many soundboard releases], and may simply be down to how the playback machines [both old and new] were originally calibrated.

I don't think anyone is likely to notice this just by listening - unless they had perfect pitch, but even then that would be pushing it. It's the equivalent of a record playing at about 33.13 rpm instead of 33.3.

[eric c]

i'm on disc4 now.
should be watchin' some college football...
"but i just can't get enough".

[Mike C]

Anyone noticed some new information yet regarding the 'He Is My Everything' recording session on the pictured tape box/tape legend to be found on the fold out that holds the cd's?

Yes, it seems like the cut a backing track and then Elvis joined in. Perhaps, he was late arriving that night?