That album cover is a beauty. I wonder what the cover for the box set will be like. Elvis That's The Way Deluxe box set was gorgeous as well.
I would like to see the ‘69 live box in something relatively compact and economical like the Bob Dylan 1966 live box, rather than an oversized, bloated packaging. A suspect it will be the latter.
I totally get where you are coming from and Sony Legacy would probably achieve far higher sales if they followed your advice, but I am also thinking that this is such an iconic and worthwhile release, and who knows how many more deluxe CD sets like this we are going to get in the future, so I was hoping for a pretty deluxe and gorgeous package. I am even willing to pony up some extra bucks for it, even though it will hurt me some in the wallet.
I like the Dylan 66 box style but I also like my oversized Comeback Special and TTWII boxes! I guess if the 69 box (a great idea and maybe long overdue) is the same as the other 2 Elvis boxes they can sort of be stored together. Maybe the live 69 box indicates Sony are keeping some of the greater 69/70s live Elvis stuff back from release by FTD. Re the forthcoming 75 FTD release at least I don't have either show on boot cd.
I hear you, and I suspect Sony is going to go the elaborate route so the box sits nicely alongside the Big Beat, TTWII, and Comeback boxes. Still, it is going to be a somewhat unique set with respect to content, so perhaps the label will do something different. That is probably a good thing.
I’d really have preferred if they released all the 75/6 soundboards that way - in a box with minimal packaging, similar in scope and price to the Dylan set.
The Live 69 box set should be a mainstream Sony Legacy release, much like the Elvis That's The Way It Is Deluxe box set.
Thanks for the tip. After listening to this, I still like the set list, but will probably pass based on the performance.
We are talking about hundreds of soundboards under that scenario. I consider myself a major Elvis enthusiast, but even I would have to pass on a box set consisting of so much mediocre content in one place.
Well, I should have clarified breaking the sets up in to seasons so it's palatable. And following the Dylan formula so that each is something like 35-40 discs. FTD probably won't (well, hasn't) as there isn't as much $ to be made. The retail cost of three sound boards in the current FTD model is about the same as the Dylan set.
I've been hoping for a while that FTD would introduce a new product-line for the soundboards. An econo-line around $15. Hopefully, that wouldn't be an excuse to make them all single disc. But at $30 a pop, I think a threshold might be getting reached, a quality/value ratio, that starts to work against them. The $30 deluxe line would be for the 7-inch series that includes the Classic Albums and important soundboards (with enhanced packaging as well). Then, of course, the Sessions Series.
That's why I prefer the reissue of Big Beat. It fits nicely alongside Platinum; Today, Tomorrow, and Forever; Close Up; and the silver and gold sets.
I am interested in some more 69-72 stuff, but for the most part I think my soundboards are about as far as I want to go.. Representations of each year via soundboard and the multitrack concerts pretty much covers my needs. As you say though, if there was a budget line, my arm may be twisted lol
I can appreciate one's enthusiasm for the 1975/1976 period, but I think there are way too many substandard concert performances to artistically justify any sort of expansive box set of soundboards by tour. It is enough of a chore as it is to sit through some of FTD's soundboards from the period, I cannot fathom finding any enjoyment or satisfaction listing to several 1975 or 1976 concerts one after the other. But that's me, certainly there are some fans out there that love these shows. I can't figure it out, but apparently that is the case.
Oh I don't fancy them either. But there are many who buy every single FTD release so this would at least give them a financial break, and we all could be 'done' with them from the release schedule Heck, I'd probably buy a set at that price point (as opposed to what FTD charges for them) and listen sporadically. And just because a box set is issued doesn't mean one is required as a 'chore' to sit through them all, one after the other, without listening to anything else. I don't do that with any box set I own.
I've been here 2 years less than you, and I sometimes wonder if your dislike for this period will be carved on your headstone, or maybe a plaque near your grave, so others can read it in the future. Just breaking balls.
If they released all of the Elvis soundboards from any given year (or season) in a format like Dylan's 1966 box, and at a similar price point, I'd snap it up in a second. Considering that 3-4 FTDs would get you much less content for the same price, it'd be a no-brainer for me. I certainly wouldn't listen to it all in one sitting (heck, I rarely listen to more than one FTD in its entirety at a time, unless I'm bingeing one of my absolute favourites), but it'd be great to have all of that material available for whenever I was in the mood to hear something "new," or if I wanted to engage in a How Great Thou Art marathon (it's been known to happen!), or something like that.
I think a lot of fans would. Clearly there are missing tapes that would need to be addressed, and there would also be issues of replication because FTD has issued shows from nearly all of 1974-1976 tours in its vault. Some tours/casino engagements would work better than others. For example, Elvis' March 1974 tour, which is generally respected, could be justified. IIRC, all of the soundboards from the tour exist, and it is 24 shows (one is a multitrack), so it certainly would fit the Bob Dylan Live 1966 parameters in terms of size (certainly not artistic merit). Another tour that could conceivably work is the May 30 - June 10, 1975 tour. That is one I think is grossly overrated, but I suspect Sony/FTD has most of the tapes in their archives, and a number of 70's era concert fans dig it. I think 1976 becomes much more challenging to justify.
I think it would be easier to justify selling a set of one of the 76 tours for $100 than to sell a bunch of random 76 soundboards for $30 each.
