Elvis Presley - The Albums and Singles Thread pt3 The Seventies

How can it possibly be seen as an exaggeration, he was dead very shortly after?

 

I'm not saying it's his finest hour, but it's not as bad as you make out.
Yes he is struggling with his illness, but he'd be struggling with his
illness if the camera was turned on or not. He had that ethic of going
to work whether he was sick or healthy. I see his professionalism and
dedication in Elvis In Concert, and his enormous talent. He's going
to give the audience what they paid to see. The audience is thrilled to
see him.

He was very much alive when he gave the concert.

If you're seeing him dead in the concert or saying that he might as well
be, maybe you should be watching something else.

 

Even if a fan wanted it released for no other reason than because he wants a nice blu-ray of it in his collection, so he can watch it like he does TTWII or Aloha, that would be perfectly fine. You're making it about sentiment and morality, like it's wrong to watch or enjoy this show. I don't go that route. For instance, Michael Jackson's This Is It movie features scenes that were shot something like 24 hours because he died -- and he died BECAUSE of those shows he was doing. So is it wrong to watch it? Should all of that footage be forever hidden, or only shown as bad quality YT clips when it exists in HD? It's the same with EIC. Sentiment doesn't enter into it for me: it's part of the canon, so it should be out in the best quality, as an artefact.

 

If Lisa Marie announced one day she’d taken the master video tapes out to the woods, build a fire and burned them as an effigy of all that went wrong with her father’s life, I’d utter a mere “fair enough” and go about my day. It wouldn’t bother me one single bit.

It’s an awful show, and doesn’t add to the legacy one iota. Elvis himself was pretty appalled with the result from Omaha, and let’s be honest, Rapid City wasn’t significantly better.

 

I can only assume you are living in a fantasy world or rationalisation.

You said "There is more virtue in Elvis In Concert than critics are willing to admit.
His acute musicality, fine voice, inner decency and sincerity, his giving of
himself, and his rapport with the audience are fully in evidence. Yes he is
ailing but his ailing is NOT THE ONLY THING in front of you. Try to see
the rest of it.

Some of you exaggerate and overstate the problems."

As some form of rebuttal to people saying that the video doesn't really have anything to offer to Elvis' legacy, and there isn't really any logical reason for it to be redone in 4k and released as a hi def home video.
I have no problem with most of Elvis vocals on this concert, but he certainly isn't in fine voice for most of it.
There are plenty of other videos that show his "inner decency and sincerity, his giving of
himself, and his rapport with the audience"
You state that he is ailing, but that isn't all one sees in the video ..... and followed it up with everyone is just exaggerating ....

I rebutted that statement by saying that "How can it possibly be seen as an exaggeration, he was dead very shortly after?"

You come back with this nonsense "If you're seeing him dead in the concert or saying that he might as well
be, maybe you should be watching something else."

Now I have no idea how you come to this nonsense.... I never said he was dead.
In this concert Presley is off his bean, he is puffed up with serious opiate side effects, he is on his last legs ... there is no doubt about this, there is no argument against this. If you feel that this is a good representation of what Elvis Presley's legacy is, and demand that the estate release a hi def video of it to further the man's legacy, I would have to categorise you alongside Parker ........

Thank you for your opinion, I think we're done with this nonsense.

 

How Great Thou Art
It seemed like no matter what Elvis' state, he could always do a pretty dedicated version of this track. This song often shows some of his most defining characteristics. During the slow section Elvis really manages to knock this track out of the park, almost in spite of himself. Once the beat kicks in, you hear that health factor come in, as he starts sounding out of breath and struggling somewhat. Then when we get to the big finish, he manages to get enough of himself together to take the song home.
A great testament to the mans faith, and yet still a sad reflection of his poor health at this point in time.

 

Fan Comments IV
Some more disjointing pointless comments

 

I Really Don't Want To Know
This is a short and nice version that keeps the show in a good place.

 

Elvis Introduces His Father

 

Hurt
It is really nice to hear Elvis doing a newer album track, rather than a cover of someone else's song.
He does a pretty good job of this.

 

I'm done with your nonsense. That massive misinterpretation and sledgehammer
hit isn't worth the dignity of a rebuttal.

I always see the positive side when it comes to Elvis Presley. Even in the worst films,
the worst soundtracks, and in all the downsides of his career, to me the cup is always
at the very least half-full, not half-empty.

You are dismissed, mark winstanley.

 

Hound Dog
This song should have been dropped from the set after, probably 1970.
I see no redeeming feature of this version.

 

No you are dismissed, it's my thread.

 

Elvis In Concert was the first Elvis LP I owned, a birthday gift from my fiance.
It was a strange album compared to the singer-songwriter stuff I was used to,
but I liked it. The album didn't give a hint at the time how ailing Elvis was, but
with hindsight one hears it differently now. I still like the album, however, and
not just the TV special tracks but the other tracks as well. I didn't see the special
until later on home video.


(scan from discogs)

 

I think the album is pretty reasonable, except for those fan interludes that spoil the flow, and I can certainly understand many having an attachment to it.

 

Fan interludes were an unnecessary interruption. Fan interludes really spoiled
the concert film That's The Way It Is; I was glad when that film was restored to
it's original cut, fan interludes were trimmed and confined, and we could finally
see the excellent film Denis Sanders made.

 

Agreed

 

There's not much I can say about HGTA that hasn't been said. Like @Dave112, this is my favourite version of the song, in part due to the almost-shouted "Oh my God" transition (I know some fans hate it...I love it). And like Mark said, it's true that Elvis struggles through parts of the song (especially right after the change-up), but his delivery during the opening half, and towards the end, is nothing short of stunning (emotionally, that is, if not technically).

I Really Don't Want To Know and Hurt are just sort of there for me. They're not horrible, but I tend to skip them or tune them out.

Hound Dog is terrible.

 

Such an awful show that parts of it are included in a compilation called Elvis - The Great Performances...

 

Like it or not, the 1977 shows happened. They’re part of the story of a major American icon. Lisa Marie could burn the master tapes, but the footage has been bootlegged and digitized and streamed online to the point that it can’t be deleted or airbrushed out of history.

 

Exactly, so those who really want to absorb the video material have access to it. No need for it to be remastered into an official release, inviting the ridicule that would come along with it.

 

As I recall, the only Elvis In Concert performance that made it into The Great Performances was an outtake; Unchained Melody, and it ain’t exactly easy watching.

 

I'm a bit on the fence re the TV Special being released. I will say that at the time of its broadcast it really helped a lot of us understand why he died - I don't think the vast majority of us knew how bad he was (including those at 1976-1977 concerts unless they were int he first 10 rows) and the Special made it clear. As such, I view it as part of his history, almost a final chapter. And I also don't view it as some sort of 'hidden camera' stuff where Elvis wasn't aware he was beind - obvioulsy he was, and it was a public performance too. But I do respect if Lisa Marie finds it too painful to release. Now whether some fan on the Internet gets their panties in a bunch over the prospect of it getting released officially I don't care, but for his daughter I do.

The full, uncut cut concerts that make up the Special are out there too and IMO make for a far more interesting viewing experience.

 

I think EIC 1977 edit is not that bad in the sense that one reading here without seeing the special, might think (after watching), it is a great exaggeration of how Elvis looked and performed. I can only state this by my experience in the 80's when I first saw the special. I was expecting a monstrosity. It wasn't. He entertained the audience and I am sure (going by the applause), many did not feel short-changed. I attended the Feb 12, 1977 show ... and going by the close-up photos, it was worse. But I had a blast.

 

I would hardly describe Elvis’ work from EIC as professional or an example of work ethic. This isn’t a guy with a bad back finding a way to show up for job on a factory line. He was earning roughly $100,000 per concert to show up for an hour after flying in on a private jet, where he could mail it in with a stale and tired setlist consisting of uncommitted vocals and other histrionics, as well as killing 15-20 minutes with dive-bombs and band intros. The deterioration of not only his craft, but his stage show was alarming. Many fans were still entertained, but what Elvis delivered throughout most of 1976 and 1977 was not inspired musically or professionally.