Elvis Presley "Close Up" box

As a long time Elvis fan, I would recommend, if you can get it, "Elvis 24 Karat Hits". This is the way God intended Elvis to sound. It covers 1956 through 1969 (no fat Elvis here).

Another choice that is readily available is "Elvis 30 #1 Hits". The songs have been re-mixed, but sound great (IMHO). This covers 1956 through 1977. These are starters only. Of course the DCC version of "Elvis is Back" is magnificent, also.

 

Isn't that "24 Karat Hits" one the DCC that goes for insane prices on Ebay and such? Also, about the "30 #1 Hits" disc -- you mean the last one they put out?

I thought it'd gotten quite a bad rap in here, too much noise reduction or something IIRC.

Thanks for the advice, cheers

Damián

 

Yes to both. I started buying Elvis CDs in the late 80's. They sounded really crappy. Since that time, quite a few have been remastered (by BMG/RCA); these are better. "Elvis 30 #1 Hits" re-mixed the songs in that Elvis' voice was brought out front more. After listening to the crummy CDs that I owned, this sounded great to me. Some people don't like this. If the DCC titles aren't an option and I had to choose between the remastered RCA CDs or "Elvis 30 #1 Hits", I would pick "Elvis 30 #1 Hits" in a heartbeat. Of course, that is just my opinion. You have many options with Elvis as there are a lot compilations available. Two terrific sounding ones are "Today, Tomorrow and Forever" and "Elvis Close Up".

 

Well, limited to one disc I'd prefer ELVIS 56 to ELVIS, as it's far more consistent, and gets you the music that broke rock and roll into the mainstream, but currently, only ELV1S gives you the summary overview you asked for (assuming Steve's discs are out of your price range for an introduction).

If you like the music enough to keep exploring, I've cut-and-pasted this from a previous request:

The following discs cover most of the basics, but include enough of the other great stuff (while avoiding the dross) to help you understand why Elvis inspires such devotion among fans and critics.

Compiled after the big three "decade" boxes that seemed to put the house in order, the remastering on all these sets is solid, though not at the level of the two DCC gold discs. Keep in mind that some of the extras on the SUNRISE set will sound quite rough. Also, some sixties material features mixes that sound odd to contemporary ears -- vocals hard left, band right, background singers in the middle, that sort of thing. None of these albums were issued in their current form during Elvis's life:

SUNRISE - a two-CD set of the Sun recordings, including live recordings oft-issued elsewhere. Had Elvis died in a car wreck having recorded only these sessions, his reputation would still be as large as Robert Johnson's.

ELVIS 56 - A nice single CD of the breakout year.

TOMORROW IS A LONG TIME - Excellent recordings from a neglected phase of Elvis's career, after the movies and before the '68 comeback. The haunting title track is Bob Dylan's favorite cover of one of his songs.

TIGER MAN - The amazing unplugged segment of the NBC comeback special that hearkened back to the Sun years. One of the great moments in rock history.

SUSPICIOUS MINDS - A very good two-CD anthology of primo late-sixties Elvis, sort of a Deluxe Edition of ELVIS IN MEMPHIS.

BURNING LOVE and MOODY BLUE - Single discs of the cream of the seventies.

I also strongly recommend the following ESSENTIAL ELVIS volumes. Don't discount them as "just" alternate takes. Elvis refused to overdub vocals on to prerecorded tracks, and insisted on singing with a live band. Therefore he'd record material live in the studio, and his producers could add or extract what they thought was necessary later. Featuring pared-down arrangements and a winning, spontaneous charm, these ESSENTIAL discs are often preferable to the official releases drawn from their respective sessions. They're out-of-print, so get them while you can off half.com or eBay.

RHYTHM & COUNTRY

A HUNDRED YEARS FROM NOW

SUCH A NIGHT

If this music ends up fascinating you as it did me, I would also recommend Peter Guralnick's two-volume biography, and Greil Marcus's MYSTERY TRAIN.

 

Thanks a lot Ron, mrstats

I'll keep an eye open for the titles.

 

Although I am very pleased with the sound quality of the box it cannot be compared to Steve's 24k.
The presence of Elvis voice and the dynamics of the instruments on 24k are still not matched by BMG. Nice job but a long way to go.....