Elvis 30 #1 Hits "remaster info"

Anyone know where there is a good sounding release of the song "Viva Las Vegas"?

Luke, FWIW Suspicious Minds is one of my least liked Elvis hits. It's nice that different people have different tastes.

 

Hasn't every Elvis re-master said "from the original masters" Now we
get to hear the original flaking masters for the first time. Any new
stereo found? Didn't Elvis start stereo immediately after un-listing
from the Army?


Stereo rules, but maybe not this time==Chuckles

 

That's OK, Luke. Five years ago I didn't give a rat's ass about anything Elvis. Then I bought a couple of old RCA CDs of his big hits from the late 60s and 70s. I realized that I. in fact, did like some of his music. Then I worked backward, as I do, to the classic stuff. Then I bought Steve Hoffman's 24 Karat Hits! CD after reading a magazine review.

I am now a fan but I still don't have a lot of interest in much more than his hits. In fact, I think some things he did in the 60s were horrible, like "Viva Las Vegas".

In 1969, when we were eight years old, my best friend literally kept a 45 of "Don't Cry Daddy" on his record player because he loved that song so much. I listened to it once and was very indifferent to it. I cared more about the current pop/soul music at the time. I clearly was not there in the 50s, and my family didn't do Elvis.

We are all like that when it comes to some artists. Some artists just don't yank our chains. And, we already did a thread on artists we don't like.

 

Luke,

You should try the Sun material. There definitely is a lot of muck to sift through in the 60's and 70's (more so in the mid-60's and post-Memphis album, I believe), but the Sun material, to me, has a rawness and youthful vitality the other stuff doesn't have. No big studio gloss or polish, just the Sun sound. Some of the quiet, slow stuff, like "Harbor Lights", may take some time to warm up to, but "Good Rockin' Tonight," "Trying To Get To You," "That's All Right," "Mystery Train," etc. are all amazing.

 

I'll take a look, but I think for me it comes down to "the singer not the song". Elvis just had that style of vocalizing that was, well - ELVIS. I'm not sure how to put it in words, but you know what I mean. And I guess that's just always gotten in the way for me.

I'll have to check out those Sun tracks...

 

The Sun tracks are excellent, but it would be nice if BMG would give us a nicely mastered reissue of their old Sun Sessions LP for we casual folks who don't really need two discs of outtakes and tune ups.

 

Luke,

Your reaction to Elvis is pretty much what I was talking about...and wasn't meant to be insulting in any way. I think Elvis is NOT too much of an issue to MOST people...sorry to all the "rabid" Elvis fans. Some of his stuff is "schlocky".

Dennis Drake did an Elvis SUN-era set (2 CDs), I believe, and that would be interesting to hear! All the other "Drake" mastered Elvis stuff is sonically NICE!

Also, for the bemoaners of "Original Mix" Elvis songs, you are forgetting about the past! Need I remind everyone about the awful reprocessed stereo lps we had to suffer with in years past?!

Do not buy the (OOP) Complete SUN sessions CD from the 80s to get THE BEST idea of the Sam Phillips era. This ain't it! Sorry Bradley. Rick Rowe and Gregg Geller didn't help this CD.

In addition to SUN tracks, Luke, I'd recommend a listen to songs like Little Sister and Marie's The Name (His Latest Flame). Wonderful sound.

 

Somebody recently told me that there was a bootleg with the Sun sessions in twin-track stereo form. Anyone know anything about this?

Yeah, I've had Little Sister played for me from the 24 kt Hits CD. Great sound, but I don't like the song at all!

 

I never really listened to Elvis or the recordings before I bought DCC's 24kt Hits and listened to it on a good system at home and realized that he the vocals and the guitar usually aren't stepping all over each other and competing for the same space, unlike most contemporary music.

But then again, its the same thing I like about a song like The Doors L.A. Woman, which is a totally different flavor of Rock & Roll.

 

That's OK if you don't like the mastering of the 80s Sun Sessions disc, Pat, which is what I'm sticking with until I get a better sounding comp as I know how hard to come by the Sun 45s are. The Sunrise comp I couldn't tell much of an improvement, mainly louder but the Hayride recordings have the surface noise heard very dominantly.

 

Bradley,

I'll try to email a longer response, but briefly, the problem with the 80s Rowe/Geller CD is that it is very "muddy" (lifeless). If you have nothing to compare it to...of course, you'd never think the stuff could sound very good.

 

Although this thread has drifted a bit, maybe this would be a good time to ask a couple of questions I've been dying to ask the Elvis soundaholics regarding the sound of a couple of Elvis releases:

My interest in Elvis's post Army stuff is covered by the 1988 2-cd "50 Worldwide Gold Hits" (1st Issue on GOLD cd!) with the exception of "Burning Love" (not on this set).

IMHO, "Burning Love" kicks booty as good as anything pre-army, no apologies! I have a fairly high-end TT, (VPI/SME/Grado Sonata), and therefore won't mind being pointed to a vinyl release, if it sounds best. This song just seems to appear on about twenty different releases, and I just don't know where to start. Original mix preferred, that's how I heard it on the radio back in the seventies.


And, next on the wish list:

Where can I find the Drake / Sun stuff that Forum Detective Pat (of FIVE-O) spoke of?


I currently have:

1987 "The Sun Sessions CD"- (I remember this as being overly no-noised)

1988 "50 Worldwide Gold Hits"

1990 "The Million Dollar Quartet"

Steve's "24 Karat Hits!" (cd) Sure wish DCC would have stuck "Burning Love" on there!!

1992 "The Complete 50's Masters" box. (I'd be interested in comments on the mastering of this set; informally I thought it sounded pretty good).

I also have a boot(? - got it in a cd-r trade) called "Best of Binaural 1957." Doesn't seem that exciting to me; I can't figure out what the hell I'm supposed to hear with this thing! Sorry for my ignorance on this one!)

Thanks in advance!

Michael Nelson

 

That's too bad, because I think the track smokes! It's my second favorite right after "Suspicious Minds".

 

Another one of my top 10 Elvis...

 

The songs he recorded at the time Burning Love came out are all compiled on the RCA compilation CD Burning Love from a couple of years ago and on the 70s boxed set

 

>>There is more "air" (clarity) in the Dennis Drake CDs than most everything else I've heard!

Once again, Steve's CDs are, of course, "keepers"! I'm just giving other choices for those that have limited funds or can't find Steve's CDs.

 

And some Sun stuff, too...

 

Someone who isn't even familiar with the music should not remix it. I heard a remaster of Elvis' Gold Records 5 a few years ago and it was remixed beyond recognition.

I doubt the Sun sessions were recorded in stereo. I'd like to hear it though. Which is the best Sun cd?

 

Re: Re: Elvis 30 #1 Hits "remaster info"

Unfortunately, there really isn't a very good presentation of Elvis' Sun recordings - I haven't heard any cd's that nail that throbby, slapback happy sound from 706 Union. Anybody have the Bear Sun chronological singles sets - is Elvis' stuff part of that? I'd venture a guess that if Bear has done any Elvis/Sun stuff it would be the best sounding stuff out there...

 

I no longer have the Sun Sessions CD, but if memory serves, some poor sources were used in addition to poor mastering. Listen to "Good Rockin' Tonight" on the box and the Sun Sessions CD. I remember the Sun Sessions CD having much more reverb than what was used on the box set.

Anyway, the box set in general was better than any Elvis CD I had at the time, but in retrospect, it just shows how bad those earlier CD's were. Steve's Elvis CD's KILL the RCA discs. But, unfortunately, they cover a small section of his catalog, albeit a great section, so if you want much more Elvis on CD, the box set is probably the way to go.

 

All of the Sun tracks on RCA(up until the box set and Sunrise)were remixed by RCA in the 50's, and have been(IMO)tampered with. Only the boxed set will give you unaltered Elvis Sun cuts(and Sunrise, I suppose, although I have not heard this set). Having said this, my favorite Elvis Sun set is the vinyl "Sun Sessions" from 1976. I guess this is because it was one of my first records purchases(and first Elvis LP), and I guess I have a sentimental attachment to it. Plus, to me, it sounds great! I'm a little nervous about this new set because I'm sure the stereo mixes are going to be altered, i.e drums in the middle, etc. But I'll probably end up getting it anyway. I think the main introduction to the King in the future will end up being "Lilo & Stitch" anyway, or at least, the soundtrack.