I always thought the back cover looked like it was taken from a children's coloring book. Why they didn't choose songs from Paradise, Hawaiian Style and Blue Hawaii for side two is beyond me. Perhaps a licensing issue? As it stands, it's one of the more bizarre track line-ups for an LP called Mahalo from Elvis.
The 1972 Vegas master of The Impossible Dream is MUCH better than the MSG version, imo. Elvis' vocal is more convincing on the Vegas version, not to mention that he fluffs the last note at MSG. Does anyone know which mix was used on He Walks Beside Me? The mix on the 70s box is different from the one on the Viva Las Vegas comp.
Thanks for the corrections guys. Sorry for posting so much... I forgot that I had originally intended to do He walks beside me. I will try and keep my bumbling to a minimum.
Quick correction: the version on the 70s box is a rehearsal. Also, there are multiple live recordings of the song, albeit no multitracks that I know of (I have at least four from FTD...and my live FTD collection is very incomplete). The overdubs on the single version of Unchained Melody are shockingly sloppy, but I find them oddly endearing for some reason. It just occurred to me now that it's possible that RCA left Unchained Melody off of the Elvis In Concert album because they were planning to eventually release it as a single. Maybe? I really don't like the story that Elvis tells before Softly As I Leave You, but the actual performance is actually quite effective. Elvis may have had a penchant for cheesy melodrama, but he was good at it. Overall, I really love this single.
Until this thread, I don't think I realized just how much unique material was released in the immediate aftermath of Elvis' death. If you put it all together, you get a solid, very enjoyable posthumous tribute album. It's not terribly coherent, but hey...if it WERE coherent, then it wouldn't be an Elvis comp! Blue Hawaii Ku-U-I-Po No More Hawaiian Wedding Song Early Morning Rain Unchained Melody (single version) Softly As I Leave You The Impossible Dream (1972 Vegas master) America The Beautiful If I Can Dream (take 4) (I took the liberty of resequencing the post-Aloha show recordings so that they appear in the order in which they were recorded; I think they work better that way.)
According to a memo from Joan Deary to George Parkhill dated 9/25/1973, Deary chose songs from deleted soundtrack albums (It Happened At The World's Fair, Double Trouble, and Harum Scarum). Her two alternate selections were "Beach Shack" from Spinout, and "The Girl I Never Loved" from Clambake. The memo can be viewed on Keith Flynn's site: http://keithflynn.com/recording-sessions/discography_1970.html
I didn’t purchase any of the 1978 or 1979 releases, so I’ll just lurk until we get to 1980. I’m looking forward to the discussions about these first few releases.
Well as much as I like the sheer nakedness of the undubbed version of Unchained Melody with Elvis at the piano, I too was somehow enamored with the drama of the drum and horn additions on the single version. It's hard for me to explain my attraction to the single version, but I did run out and by the double sided single. I liked the picture sleeve as well. Yeah, Elvis just could not resist telling that highly unlikely story before the song, but I really liked Elvis's vocal harmony at the very end with Sherrill Nielson. Softly As I Leave You was actually nominated for a Grammy for best Country Male Performance, and I always thought the other side should have been the one nominated. My FM station put Unchained Melody in heavy rotation on their playlist, but on their weekday top ten request countdown, it was Softly As I Leave You at number one or number two most of the time, yet they never played Softly any other time as I guess it did not fit their country-pop format for the rest of the day.
It's Impossible Written By : Mitch Leigh & Joe Darion Recorded : Live Recording, Hilton Hotel, Las Vegas, February 14-17, 1972 : February 16, 1972 Midnight Show From He Walks Beside Me. This is quite beautiful, but as with the other version we have covered, not particularly a favourite song. There a certain personable feel about this. It is relaxed, and smooth, and very good.
If I Can Dream Written By : W. Earl Brown Recorded : Western Recorders, Hollywood, June 20-23, 1968 : June 23, 1968 This is also from He Walks Beside Me. The regular version we know is take 5. Here they chose to release take 4. I haven't done a back to back, or side to side comparison, but this vocal seems a little more edgy .... I really like it. That little edge in the vocal really works for me.
Unchained Melody Written By : Alex North & Hy Zaret Recorded : Live Recording, Crisler Arena, Ann Arbor, Michigan, April 24, 1977 : April 24, 1977 This is the correct version from the single I believe. I really like this. I can only assume that they left it off EIC to release as a single, but this was 1977 and that seems somewhat silly really. I find the vocal to be passionate and moving.
Ok. We should be back on track now. I'll play it by ear, and perhaps not post tomorrow, so we can all get back on track. Again my apologies for this mornings mess ups. Cheers Mark
No worries from us here - honestly not sure how you've been able to do all this and keep track like you have been! Things would be in far worse order if I attempted it.
'Mahalo From Elvis" was something! It released previously unreleased material without any hype or notes. I put off as a collector buying this for years cause I thought the songs were reissues from the "Blue Hawaii" album!
The overdubs are not particularly well done, but necessary because the undubbed performance is raw and ragged and never would have worked as a commercial single release.
Yeah, I don't think I ever heard take 4 until today. Maybe it's just the novelty of it, but I think I might actually prefer it to the other versions that I've heard.
Ditto. Great performance, but shamelessly hamfisted overdubs are embarrassingly flatulent, especially when contrasted with the spareness and intimacy of the original recording. They should have just released it as it was--I doubt anyone in their right mind would have complained.
Felton Jarvis would have. At this point, he was likely trying to justify his continued presence in the Elvis world, despite no longer being needed. In these first few posthumous years he seems to be staking a claim to the Norman Petty or Alan Douglas role as overdubber of finished tracks that need no overdubbing.
Yes indeed Dirk, you have posted the correct single version. That baby is hard to find. The drums at the 1:45 mark is the easiest way to distinguish the single version from the one on Moody Blue as you so well point out, along with the additional horns on the overdubbing of the single.
The focus of this thread is US posthumous releases, but it's worth noting that once again, RCA UK had their act together much more than their US counterparts. This had been the case since 1956, when they compiled a debut album for Elvis (Rock n Roll) that had a far superior tracklist to the self-titled US debut. And of course they were the ones responsible for coming up with the idea of the Sun Sessions album, which they released a full year before RCA US. Things didn't change after Elvis died. In 1978, while US RCA was releasing bizarre compilations like Sings for Children and A Canadian Tribute, RCA UK compiled their sequels to The Sun Session: The 56 Sessions Volumes 1 and 2. These albums compiled everything Elvis recorded in 1956, in chronological order and with great sound. And in 1980, they came up with the concept of Elvis Sings Leiber and Stoller, a compilation of the best tracks written by (arguably) Elvis' best songwriters. Besides being a great concept, it marked the LP debut of Fools Fall in Love. RCA US didn't get around to releasing this one until a decade later.
I think the only way to get Take 4 of If I Can Dream other than FTD is the 50th anniversary box set of the 68 Special. I like take 4 as well. The two they tagged on the end of the two standup shows are just Elvis lip syncing to a recorded track and they have LOADS of reverb. The one used on disc 2 of Memories is ruined by added digital reverb that is mostly evident when Elvis sings loudly. Ferrante LOVED his digital reverb didn't he? This take 4 YouTube sounds very clean. I like it.
