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Tilly
post May 5 2008, 10:16 PM
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Elvis recorded so many great albums in his career and I know we all have our own personal favourites so thought I'd start a thread posting reviews of some of them cool.gif

I'll start with the fantastic Jungle Room Sessions thumbup.gif



One of my fave Elvis albums has to be the wonderful Jungle Room Sessions released on the FTD label. It was recorded in the den at Graceland, a place where Elvis felt relaxed. It took place in 1976 and here is a review on the Elvis Australia website.

http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/reviews/re...msessions.shtml
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Tilly
post May 5 2008, 10:17 PM
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Suspicious Minds – The Memphis ’69 Anthology



Another Elvis CD that gets played a lot in my home is the fantastic Suspicious Minds – The Memphis ’69 Anthology which was recorded at the American Sound Studios in Memphis. I have to confess that the music recorded there is probably my favourite era of Elvis music and is often said to be the most critically acclaimed sessions of Elvis’ career. The album has my fave version ever of Suspicious Minds on Disc 2 wub.gif Another review from Elvis Australia

http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/reviews/re...iousminds.shtml
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Tilly
post May 6 2008, 10:22 PM
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Nashville Marathon



Another one of my very fave releases on the FTD label dance.gif Elvis was back in Nashville in 1970 and the Nashville Marathon consists of the outtakes recorded at the session. As the reviewer states, ‘this makes perfect late night listening.’ wub.gif

http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/reviews/re...emarathon.shtml
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Tilly
post May 22 2008, 11:01 PM
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That's The Way It Is FTD CD



According to Elvis Australia :

QUOTE
Though That's The Way It Is eventually became my favorite album, it had to grow on me over the years. Though often overlooked, That's The Way It Is contains some of the best songs and performances of his entire career ... this 2008 re-issue turns out to be a must-have for serious fans ... This is the definitive look at the That's The Way It Is portions of the June 1970 Nashville sessions.


I have the 3 CD issue and love it, but I definitely will be getting this new FTD release. I love everything about TTWII, both CDs and DVD thumbup.gif

http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/reviews/re...is_ftd_cd.shtml
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Tilly
post Jun 1 2008, 10:37 PM
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Review - Elvis A Generous Heart DVD

For all his accomplishments, perhaps Elvis Presley's greatest, and unknown legacy was his enormous generosity, unknown until now. With the use of new interviews, on-location filming, classic footage and photos, Elvis A Generous Heart takes you through the history of a shy, humble country boy always ready to share his love, and treasures, with friends, family and even complete strangers. For the hardcore Elvis fan there is perhaps too much same old. But the new material and unseen footage on offer go a long way, offering a new insight and appreciation of the world's greatest entertainer.

Elvis Reviews, Elvis DVD Reviews

http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/reviews/re...ous_heart.shtml

Elvis was always an incredibly generous guy and that's one of the many reasons we love him wub.gif
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Tilly
post Jun 28 2008, 10:37 PM
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Review: Elvis CD

Elvis Presley released his second long playing album, Elvis, on October 9, 1956. Elvis was then a star. His first album, Elvis Presley, and the single Heartbreak Hotel had sold millions of copies. Elvis has a good feel to it and shows some musical movement and an increasing maturity. This second excellent album by Presley is another critical stop in his musical journey and a fine example of '50's rock 'n' roll. dance.gif

http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/reviews/re..._elvis_cd.shtml
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Tilly
post Jun 30 2008, 10:59 PM
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Review: Elvis Presley (LPM-1254), Elvis & Loving You CDs

Many people believe that the rock 'n' roll era began May 5, 1956 when the album, Elvis Presley, reached Number One on the National charts for the first of ten weeks. It was a far different sound than the other best selling albums of the day which included Belafonte by Harry Belafonte, The Man With The Golden Arm soundtrack, and Songs For Swingin' Lovers by Frank Sinatra.

http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/reviews/re..._elvis_cd.shtml

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Tilly
post Jul 3 2008, 10:33 PM
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Elvis Presley was discharged from the army on March 5, 1960 - His first album Elvis Is Back may have been the most important album of his career. There had been several releases while he was in the service, but he had been out of the public eye. His young fans were now a couple of years older. Things change quickly within the music world and fame can be fleeting. Did Elvis still have it? The answer was a resounding yes.

http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/reviews/re...s_back_cd.shtml

Absolutely love this album yahoo.gif
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Tilly
post Jul 5 2008, 10:42 PM
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Review - His Hand In Mine CD

Elvis Presley released his first full gospel album on November 10, 1960. He had previously released the four song EP, Peace In The Valley, whose tracks also appeared on the Elvis Christmas Album. His Hand In Mine, however, was a full studio effort featuring classic gospel and spiritual songs of the day.

http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/reviews/re...n_mine_cd.shtml

Have to be honest, before I got into Elvis, I rarely listened to gospel music but Elvis changed all that! I love his gospel albums and of course, it was for his gospel albums that he won three Grammys wub.gif
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Tilly
post Jul 6 2008, 12:39 PM
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Review - That's The Way It Is FTD CD

Though That's The Way It Is eventually became my favorite album, it had to grow on me over the years. Though often overlooked, That's The Way It Is contains some of the best songs and performances of his entire career ... this 2008 re-issue turns out to be a must-have for serious fans ... This is the definitive look at the That's The Way It Is portions of the June 1970 Nashville sessions.

http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/reviews/re...is_ftd_cd.shtml

I can never get enough of TTWII wub.gif

Review - Something For Everybody CD

Something For Everybody is one of those Elvis Presley albums that just glides under the radar. Yet playing it almost forty years later is a pleasurable listening experience that just slides by the senses.

http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/reviews/re...rybody_cd.shtml
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Tilly
post Jul 17 2008, 02:48 PM
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Review - From Elvis In Memphis CD

The album, From Elvis In Memphis,was a mix of country, rhythm & blues and rock 'n' roll songs. The album, released June 17, 1969, would be a huge pop hit and also reach number 2 on the national country charts.

http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/reviews/re...emphis_cd.shtml

Love this album wub.gif
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Tilly
post Aug 3 2008, 07:47 PM
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Review - Aloha From Hawaii CD cheer.gif

Elvis Presley performed before a worldwide television audience of over one billion people on January 14, 1973. Elvis looked good, performed, well and sang superbly. Aloha From Hawaii remains one of the essential releases by Elvis Presley and no serious music collection should be without a copy.

http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/reviews/re...hawaii_cd.shtml

I would add that the DVD of Aloha is definitely a must for all fans. The satellite show was a first for any performer and Elvis showed the world how to do it yahoo.gif
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Tilly
post Sep 16 2008, 10:57 PM
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DVD Review - "Elvis: Return To Tupelo":

Is this new documentary release the best Elvis DVD of 2008 or a poor relation to the excellent Elvis '56? The answer is a resounding YES for Elvis: Return To Tupelo as the best Elvis DVD release of 2008.
Read EIN's detailed review of what is a stunning release!! With its fascinating blend of interviews and archival material Elvis: Return To Tupelo is one DVD you should not miss.

http://www.elvisinfonet.com/dvdreview_returntotupelo.html

(DVD Reviews, Source: EIN)

Haven't got this yet, but will definately be getting it looking at this review thumbup.gif
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Tilly
post Sep 27 2008, 11:13 AM
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'The Complete '68 Comeback Special' CD Review:

For the 40th Anniversary BMG/SONY release a 4CD "Complete '68 Comeback Special" to the general public. Hard-core Elvis fans have been overly dismissive, pointing out that we have all bought the same product previously. But is this true? Here we not only get the ORIGINAL Album version (The 'Memories' set was a very different compilation) but also something refreshing about the way this new set has been compiled. The second CD itself cleverly leads us from Elvis jamming with the boys on his very first release 'That's All Right' through a fabulous revitalisation of his classic songs all the way to the stunning 'If I Can Dream' which would be his newest single. It is still a fascinating musical journey. So is this a new chance for us to be revitalised by Elvis' fresh and exciting rock'n'roll renaissance, or just a marketing rip-off? EIN's Piers Beagley spends a while with Elvis in his gorgeous leather suit.

In-depth review.

http://www.elvisinfonet.com/cdreview_compl...ackspecial.html

(News, Source;EIN)
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Tilly
post Oct 11 2008, 10:32 PM
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Elvis' Influence as an Albums Artist:

Throughout his career Elvis was considered to be a Singles artist rather than an Albums artist. This view was consistent with Singles being the dominant recorded music format during his first period of chart dominance. Singles dominated sales until 1968 when Albums outsold Singles for the first time.
Despite Elvis' as a Singles artist, a number of his albums have become iconic, due to either their recordings (eg. From Elvis In Memphis) or a combination of music and cover artwork (Elvis Presley; Elvis: '68 Comeback Special).
In this "pictorial" Spotlight, it is the latter element we focus on as we present a cross-section of album covers which have copied Elvis' iconic record from 1958.......50,000,000 Elvis Fans Can't Be Wrong
http://www.elvisinfonet.com/spotlight_iconic_album.html

(Spotlight, Source: EIN)

Great to see how much Elvis influenced the artists who followed him thumbup.gif
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Tilly
post Oct 22 2008, 10:34 PM
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Elvis: Educator Or Entertainer?

With Elvis Presley's seventy-fourth birthday just around the corner on the eighth of January, it would seem there would be little new to learn about him, but it turns out there is. Although he may not have realized it, Elvis Presley's sexy moves actually modeled the ideal physical techniques for supporting a rich, warm singing voice – techniques still studied today by some of the recording industry's biggest stars.


'Elvis was the perfect singing machine', says celebrity voice coach Renee Grant-Williams. 'He had all the right moves'. 'I constantly reference Elvis in my teaching', claims Grant-Williams. 'He had very strong legs, which he used as the basis for his support. He literally pushed into the floor using that karate-type crouch. He kept his entire upper body very loose so that it could resonate. And the way he cocked his head over the microphone really allowed the sound to vibrate freely'.
'Did he know what he was doing?' Grant-Williams asks. 'Probably not, but he had extraordinary instincts and in his own way, I think he truly studied singing. He used to sit out on the back porch for hours on late summer nights with the guitar his mother gave him, trying to imitate the singers he heard at gospel churches and nightclubs'. Grant-Williams has taught the wisdom of using Elvis' techniques to stars such as Hannah Montana, Faith Hill, The Dixie Chicks, Tim McGraw, Larry Gatlin, Bo Bice, and Huey Lewis.
'My students are surprised and grateful to have someone familiar they can relate to', Grant-Williams says. 'In fact, the first time I worked with Tim McGraw on using his body to support his voice, he looked up with mischief in his eyes and mumbled in true Elvis-style, 'Thank you. Thankyouverymuch'.
Grant-Williams feels that even Elvis' famous lip curl gave his voice an edge. 'As sound leaves the body it needs to resonate against something specific', she says. 'There are options – you can direct that flow of sound to the nose, the throat, the jaw or to the sinus cavities in the face. But, I think what Elvis did – as evidenced by his lip curl – was to aim the vibration stream right at his teeth'.
'This was ingenious', Grant-Williams says. 'There's a kind of sweet spot at the front of the teeth where vibrations can focus and still pick up resonance from all the other areas'.
'Because his moves and techniques live on, Elvis will never completely leave the building', adds Grant-Williams.
Grant-Williams offers more advice in her book, 'Voice Power: Using Your Voice to Captivate, Persuade, and Command Attention' published by AMACOM Books, New York. This book is endorsed by Paul Harvey and was selected by 'Soundview Executive Book Summaries'.

Source : Elvis Australia

Sure I read this before last year but I sure agree that Elvis will never completely leave the building dance.gif Not whilst we're about, that's for sure thumbup.gif
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Tilly
post Nov 28 2008, 11:43 PM
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Review : Elvis Country FTD Special Edition 2 CD Set

How do you follow up an album like From Elvis In Memphis and the singles and follow up album that flowed from the 1969 recording sessions at Chip's Moman's Memphis American Sound Studio's? In February 1970 RCA recorded Elvis live in Las Vegas and released the classic live album, On Stage, but it was not until June of that year that Elvis re-entered a studio to cut an album proper. Elvis Country was the result, released in January 1971, it was Elvis' only real concept album and in my opinion does rate as Elvis best album.

http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/reviews/re...dition_cd.shtml

Elvis Reviews, Elvis CD Reviews, FTD, By David Troedson November 27, 2008
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Tilly
post Dec 14 2008, 12:14 AM
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If I Can Dream by Paul Simpson heart.gif

Some Elvis songs are still so fresh, so moving, they can be hard to listen to. And for me, the one song that still gives me goosebumps because of the power of the performance and the song's personal relevance to the King is If I Can Dream. It's widely known that the song almost never happened. Steve Binder, producer of the 1968 NBC TV Special that resurrected Elvis' career, was so desperate to avoid ending the show with a Christmas song - that he told Earl Brown, 'Write me the greatest song you ever wrote'.

http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/if_i_can_d...l_simpson.shtml

Elvis Articles, By Paul Simpson December 13, 2008

And here it is wub.gif



Lookin' For 'Trouble' In Vegas

I can't remember how many times I listened to On Stage before I noticed something unusual between two of the songs. The first time I caught it, I lifted the needle up and playing the segment again to make sure I wasn't crazy. 'You're just really knocking yourself out to make everybody happy!' a woman in the audience says, between 'Polk Salad Annie' and 'Yesterday'. How had I missed hearing that all the previous times I played the record? For whatever reason, hearing stray comments of audience members during live concerts took on a fascination for me after this. Perhaps it was because it made the concerts seem more real.

http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/Lookin_For..._In_Vegas.shtml

Elvis Articles, By Tygrrius December 13, 2008
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Tilly
post Dec 18 2008, 11:58 PM
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EIN reviews of the FTD releases cool.gif

http://www.elvisinfonet.com/ftdreviews.html
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Tilly
post Jan 3 2009, 05:50 PM
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Dust Off Those Grooves (Back In Memphis) - review by Jeremy Richey:



It seems like every great artist has at least one album in their catalogue that is universally ignored due to the greatness of the album that proceeded it. How often is The Stones’ "Goat Heads Soup" mentioned in the shadow of "Exile On Main St." or how about the third Oasis platter "Be Here Now" after:"What’s The Story Morning Glory?" All the great ones from The Beatles and The Beach Boys up to The White Stripes and Radiohead have made great works that have suffered simply due to comparison.

January and February of 1969 is a month that occupies a special place in rock history, specifically 6 days in January and 5 days in February. These 11 days would mark the legendary Elvis Presley American Studio sessions in Memphis, Tennessee. Much has been written about these sessions, Elvis Costello would label the performances supernatural and I’m not sure a better word could have been chosen to describe them.
The American sessions are the sound of an artist at not only his absolute peak but reaching past it. Elvis in that studio is Picasso in his Blue Period and Hemingway writing Old Man And The Sea. This is the sound of a man coming out of a self imposed shell and re-discovering magic, a man getting his soul back against all obstacles.

There has never been a voice as pure as Elvis’ during these sessions. Rumor has it that he had a cold early on when in one night he layed down "Long Black Limousine", "This is The Story" and "Wearin That Loved On Look". Listening to these songs you can hear the sound of a man shaking off the shackles of a long imprisonment, the voice that Dylan said would break you out of your own prison. No-one has ever been as good as Elvis in these hours of recording.

To many rock and music historians the only album that came out of these sessions was "From Elvis in Memphis". It’s the album that typically pops up on the great all time albums lists and it is the lp that is remembered. It is often overlooked that there was a second album, a work that has long since almost vanished into obscurity even though it features some of the greatest performances of Elvis Presley’s career.

"Back In Memphis", with it’s dark live photo of Elvis looking like a ghost coming back for war, was originally issued as part of a set called "From Vegas To Memphis". One record recorded live in Vegas while the studio sessions lay nearly hidden in the back sleeve. History has placed these ten tracks as near outtakes to the great "From Elvis In Memphis" sides but a closer inspection not only reveals ten great tracks but one of the most cohesive records Elvis ever delivered.

The opening, Eddie Rabbit penned, track "Inherit The Wind" sets the tone. Like other albums I have focused on in this series, from "Watertown" to "Houston", we are dealing with a man in isolation. Backed by the incredible American studio house band, including the great Reggie Young on guitar, Elvis is in top from here. The backing female vocals give the song a strange feel that is complimented by the string section that producer Chips Moman would add on later. The song’s odd time signatures coupled with Moman’s production gives the song a perfect swaying feel that is punctuated by Elvis’ reminder of what it’s like to indeed Inherit the Wind.

"This is The Story" follows, and this as mentioned dates from that first historic night Elvis stepped into American studios. The tragic tone is set here for the album, and when Elvis sings ‘but the words that I’m reading could apply to myself’ we realise why he didn’t have to be a songwriter, once he sang a song it was his, they were his autobiography.

Percy Mayfield’s startling "Stranger In My Own Hometown" follows. This is the most rocking track on the album and the most haunting. This is the sound of a man confronting a city that had witnessed the assignation of Martin Luther King less than a year earlier. Elvis’ sorrow at this event has been recounted by both Celeste Yarnall and Jerry Schilling, perhaps more than "If I Can Dream" this is his reaction to it. It’s an explosive, surging performance that stands with his greatest work. The song’s ferocious climax features one of the strangest horn arrangements ever put on vinyl and Elvis screaming off mike ‘Blow your brains out.’ He would revisit this song later in his career and re-invent the idea of a blues man in a frightening laid back chronicle of alienation and despair. Anyone who doesn’t understand the genius of Elvis Presley should listen to this song.

"Just a Little Bit Of Green" and Elvis’ lovely reading of Neil Diamond’s great "And The Grass Won’t Pay No Mind" are sublime examples of sixties pop at his best. More importantly the album never loses it’s chronicling of a man who has denied love. Every track leads up to the album’s final upcoming declaration making this, even more than I’m 10,000 Years Old, the great Elvis concept album.

Bobby Russell’s dark and brooding Do You Know I Am with it’s near whispered vocal and far-away tambourine is the calm at the center of the storm. The regret and longing are starting to kick in and it’s the perfect opener for a side that’s yearning for forgiveness.

Ned Miller’s "From A Jack To A King" was one of Elvis’ fathers Vernons favorites. The most playful and country sounding song on the album still fits in perfectly with the idea of lost love and Elvis delivers a slyly comical rendition that provide a brief respite from the darkness that would follow.

"The Fair’s Moving On" would provide the album with some of it’s most haunting imagery, with it’s portraits of a packing and vanishing carnival and love affair. Bobby Wood’s piano playing is particularly impressive as is Moman’s kaleidoscope production that surrounds Presley’s soulful vocal.

"Back in Memphis" concludes with two of Elvis’ most impressive and greatest performances. Mort Shuman’s "You’ll Think Of Me" opens with Reggie Young on Sitar instead of guitar and it’s that instrument that takes the lead throughout the song, providing an exotic counterpoint to the perhaps the most soulful vocal performance Elvis ever gave. The song was used as the b-side to the legendary "Suspicious Minds" and had remained all but hidden in the years since it’s release. It is perhaps the great lost jewel in Elvis’ crown, listening to it now it’s hard to imagine a singer more in tune with all that a song can symbolically give. No-one, not even Sinatra at his most impassioned, has melded together with a song like this one. This song is Elvis Presley.

The album closes with Danny Small’s "Without Love", and we find our narrator (and I would say Elvis himself) realizing that ‘without love, I am nothing at all’. With Bobby Wood again on piano, we find Elvis at his rawest. Paul Westerberg would later write, ‘Remember me, I used to wear my heart on my sleeve’, and he could have easily been describing Elvis singing this song. Recorded on the final night of the January sessions, and shortly before "Suspicious Minds", it gives the album an uncommonly powerful conclusion. We are still with the same person from "Inherit The Wind" but we have witnessed him changing and ultimately growing. Of all of the concept albums that have gained fame, perhaps only The Pretty Things "S.F. Sorrow" came to such a resonate and deceptively simple conclusion.

CD Review, Source: By Amber Smith/Jeremy Richey)

I love this album dance.gif
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