Elvis Presley FTD CD reissues (part 6)

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by hodgo, Feb 15, 2015.

  1. AGimS

    AGimS Forum Resident

    Location:
    Oslo, Norway
    Thanks, ordered!
     
  2. Pants Party

    Pants Party MOSTLY PEACEFUL

    Location:
    Washington, DC
    Of all the live shows to sell!!

    I decided one evening while playing Hot August Night that this, this has to be the greatest Elvis concert. Whether it is or not, who can say. But man, oh man... Elvis was cookin'!
     
    pobbard likes this.
  3. Daniel Plainview

    Daniel Plainview God's Lonely Man

    Where?!!?
     
  4. Matthew

    Matthew Senior Member

    I think he was out to impress at this show, with Tom Jones in the audience. The atmosphere, his voice, the band, everything gels at this show. Little wonder it was mined so much for Elvis In Person.
     
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  5. Matthew

    Matthew Senior Member

    You're probably going to need to look to a European dealer to find it, until the US suppliers get their act together (assuming you're in the US of course).

    Elvis Shop London has it, for example.
     
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  6. I've been wanting complete sessions since FTD began so I'm certainly supportive of this idea, even though it will mean double-dipping. But I totally get others not being thrilled with having to re-purchase material yet again. A few options I see:
    • Release the complete sessions, but re-mastered - where needed - to 'fix' the overly-compressed masterings on some of the earlier FTD titles
    • Release them at a reduced cost, relative to other FTD titles (perhaps as multi-disc sets with little artwork/packaging)
    • Release the 'new' material in separate format, in addition to complete sessions, so that those who only want the new material can obtain what they want
     
  7. Matthew

    Matthew Senior Member

    I can't see any complete-sessions releases coming out at budget-price, with the remixing and remastering costs involved.

    Certainly I would expect a consistent sound, with consistent balance in the mixes etc. The "cheap" way would be FTD just assembling sessions from the myriad of previously issued mixes, and only remixing unreleased content. But then, you're going to get a real hodgepodge in sound presentation, particularly with stuff from the 70s.
     
  8. Daniel Plainview

    Daniel Plainview God's Lonely Man

    They should follow Neil Young and have a streaming service where you can cue up any session reel you want.
     
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  9. BeatleJWOL

    BeatleJWOL Senior Member

    So should the Beatles while we're at it. And multitracks too. I want it all.
     
  10. AGimS

    AGimS Forum Resident

    Location:
    Oslo, Norway
    Bear Family
     
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  11. Daniel Plainview

    Daniel Plainview God's Lonely Man

    Well that was easy! Thanks!
     
    AGimS likes this.
  12. I wonder if they've already digitized the entire Elvis studio collection. If so, it would be fairly easy to get it out. I'd even take it unmastered/transferred flat if it kept costs down.
     
  13. Matthew

    Matthew Senior Member

    The reels may be digitized as unmixed stems, but I doubt they have mix downs of all the content ready to go.
     
  14. MaestroDavros

    MaestroDavros Forum Resident

    Location:
    D.C. Metro Area
    This 2011 quote from Roger Semon and Ernst on FECC regarding why the G.I. Blues FTD's were taking so long probably explains the situation best (only including parts 3 and 4, as they are the most relevant):

    "Hi All,
    Just a few pieces of information from FTD:

    3) As some people know. FTD has been working on our G.I. BLUES project for a while. The
    reason it takes a lot of time to complete, is that to achieve the optimum sound you have to go
    back to the original 3-track tapes, and re-mix all the material -expensive and time consuming
    (something only SONY/FTD will be able to do, since nobody else has the tapes).

    4) And off course the FTD release will include everything.
    Roger and Ernst"

    So it would seem that they have it all transferred, but they need someone to sort (mix/master) it before release. I will note that having the multi's already transferred would not appear to be a luxury every artist has (like at UMG/Capitol Records for instance, based on a 2016 article: Master Recordings — From Abbey Road to Born to Run — Could Be Lost Forever, Without Archivists' Help where it's a case-by-case basis). Of course, it's always possible they might feel the need to re-transfer them again for some reason, especially if they only were transferring what they needed for instance.
     
  15. Flaming Torch

    Flaming Torch Forum Resident

    The only way I can afford the high resolution stuff (which is nearly always good and not just Elvis) is to share the cost with a friend. Shame because it is a great model and I too do not need packaging - house is full of product- downloads are great and take up no room.
     
  16. Flaming Torch

    Flaming Torch Forum Resident

    I have all my FTD 7 inch format stuff in a nice bookcase I inherited from my parents. The albums and outtakes and live discs are in order of original recording/release. A separate block has all the movie soundtrack FTD 7 inch albums in order of original release. Nuts I know but it makes sense to me.
    I have a question for the folk here regarding the movie soundtracks. Are we getting Roustabout and Kissin' Cousins now because FTD have located the tapes? I have the FTD Roustabout which in my opinion is a fine release (ignore some of the dreadful songs). I have also kept the Sony movie soundtracks box which again I believe does a pretty good job.
    Someone up thread mentioned Harum Scarum as being in need of improvement sound wise- is that also a question of getting good tapes?
     
  17. Flaming Torch

    Flaming Torch Forum Resident

    Hot August Night is in stock at the Elvis London shop. The Elvis Shop London Home :: FTD - CD's / Books / Vinyl :: FTD CD's
     
  18. hodgo

    hodgo Tea Making Gort (Yorkshire Branch) Staff Thread Starter

    Location:
    East Yorkshire
    As long as they don't price it through the roof, I would definitely go for a 3 CD release of "Viva Las Vegas" but that is it. "Viva Las Vegas" is one "Classic Album" FTD I never bought, not because I don't like that music but because of the appalling mastering that ruined it, so if the 3 disc version is nicely mastered by either Jeansson or Anesini I'll grab it.

    Regarding everything else, I'm more than happy with the two CD configurations of the "Classic" albums that we have already so I won't be re purchasing those. The only exception would be for something where they uncovered previously unknown sessions such as "King Creole", for everything else I'm more than happy with what I have and the £1200 it has cost me.
     
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  19. ClausH

    ClausH Senior Member

    Location:
    Denmark
    The title track is brickwalled but the rest of the disc sounds better even though overall it's mastered a couple of db too hot and Santa Lucia sounds like noise reduction was applied to it.
     
  20. hodgo

    hodgo Tea Making Gort (Yorkshire Branch) Staff Thread Starter

    Location:
    East Yorkshire
    Claus, I was able to compare the standard Anesini mastering with the FTD that a friend has. Whilst the Anesini was a lovely warm listening experience, the FTD just grated on the ears, in fact I had to switch it off. However an expanded FTD that sounds as good as or better than the Anesini would be a must buy for me.
     
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  21. PacificOceanBlue

    PacificOceanBlue Senior Member

    Location:
    The Southwest
    Another thing to consider regarding the proposed 3CD sets is that it is just a proposition. Ernst has proposed a number of ideas for FTD over the years that have never come to fruition. For example, over ten years ago, Ernst said FTD was thinking of releasing some box sets. It never happened. I have not read the interview in question, but my understanding is that the 3 CD/"complete session" format is not confirmed, so people should not assume it is actually happening. FTD has a lot of logistical, financial, and even equitable considerations to assess with regard to this idea. It certainly seems like a legitimate possibility that it could happen, but those who are super enthusiastic about the news should calm down a bit because it may not come to fruition, or at the very least, the concept may only be adopted for a select few sessions/albums.
     
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  22. PacificOceanBlue

    PacificOceanBlue Senior Member

    Location:
    The Southwest
    With regard to Harum Scarum, it is unclear if FTD discovered better tape sources (like it did with Girl Happy). In terms of the soundtrack needing an improvement in sound, it could be some people feel that way simply because when the initial batches of soundtracks were reissued via FTD, FTD was not yet focused on premium sound, and some of the releases from the early 2000's were arguably not well engineered.

    With regard to Roustabout and Kissin' Cousins, my guess is the delayed releases were due to FTD hoping to find more tapes, but finally releasing what they had. This also happened with King Creole and Elvis' Christmas Album.
     
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  23. Pants Party

    Pants Party MOSTLY PEACEFUL

    Location:
    Washington, DC
    This is what I suspect as well. That the 3CD sets (or "complete sessions," etc) is merely an idea being bounced around. If they do decide to do it, it would likely be select sessions. I don't think it would mirror (or replace) the Classic Albums necessarily. It would be session-based, obviously, not album-based. Sometimes there's a discernible difference there, as albums can often be a combination of different sessions.

    Whatever the article says, it's still a worthwhile conversation to have among FTD fans. There could be some interest in it -- if the right material is selected and it is treated properly.
     
    Shawn likes this.
  24. Pants Party

    Pants Party MOSTLY PEACEFUL

    Location:
    Washington, DC
    "The Zodiac" has long been a proponent of a remix. Harum Scarum, and frankly most of the mid-60s soundtracks, suffer immensely from ridiculous original mixes.

    There are stories of The Colonel (I presume??) demanding Elvis' voice be super-forward in the mix and Elvis hating it. Either way, once you hear these albums properly remixed (as on the Double Feature releases) you'll have a hard time stomaching the original mixes. The Zodiac turned me on to the Double Features a few years back and now the original mixes are largely unbearable to me.

    I might go so far as to proclaim, in several instances, that some of the mid-60s soundtracks seem so ridiculous BECAUSE of the bad mixes. It certainly doesn't help, that's for sure. While many of the songs will always be slight -- the bad mixes put the focus on all the wrong aspects.
     
  25. Fleet Fox

    Fleet Fox Forum Resident

    Location:
    Waterford, Ireland
    Hot August Night re-issued in Vinyl? gives me hope that some of the other early FTDs will be repressed.

    Hot August Night though, is not only Elvis best live album, but the best live album of anyone ever period!
     
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