Another co-production of Audionics and Fort Baxter saw the light of day this week. This time they revived CD4 of the A Profile, Volume 2 box, containing the midnight show of March 22, 1975 in Vegas. Is it worth the effort?
Design
Well, it is VERY 70s, the design of this release. All good memories of these years aside, Elvis, the Osmond Bros, Mud, Abba, school instead of work, the first girl friend and so on, but… the print style of the seventies is not exactly my thing. Unfortunately sun glasses were not included. Gladly taste differs, as we say over here.
The informative liner notes completely make up for the before mentioned minor. They sketch the time perfectly – not only Elvis and show wise, but they also give a good frame on the world at that particular moment.
Another very big pro are the pictures! No silly jumpsuits, but all show Elvis in two piece suits. Unfortunately the part with the overlap-effect is a bit “messy”.
All together it’s an informative booklet, with some great shots of our man.
Content
I have to admit it was quite a long time ago since I played the original, but that one and this re-release made it into my CD player several times the last couple of days. For those that don’t know the original I give a glance on what to expect.
Overall it is a show like an Elvis show should be: quite some songs from the recent (Today-) session (Green Green Grass of Home, It’s Midnight, Fairytale and And I Love You So), recent singles (Promised Land, My Boy), some “pop songs of the day” (the Olivia Newton-John hits) some oldies and even a real surprise (You’re the Reason I’m Livin’).
Unfortunately Elvis messes up some things a bit. Even I Got A Woman is stopped, but E continues it well like a human beat box. I’ll Remember You, although well sung, gets some fooling around too, a pity! During the (way too long) introductions Elvis imitates a stand-up comedian. Boy, am I glad he had to make his money as a singer! After this boring part there are some real gems: My Boy will always be a weak spot for me and the surprise song You’re The Reason I’m Livin’ was a sensation at the time this release came out for the first time. Even BMG copied it later on their Vegas box.
Disregarding the minors it is a pretty good show, not as good as the July tour of that same year, but in general one can say that the new songs were good, especially the ballads and the throwaway versions of the oldies couldn’t spoil the whole picture.
As I mentioned before, I compared both the original and this re-release sound wise. When you play the same track in a row you hear the difference. The new one is richer, sound a bit “fuller”… but the difference is not that big that I can tell the difference when I have to listen to it blindfolded. I’d have to wait until the bonus tracks before I know it. Where the original had “Elvis at the Piano” (TTWII 1970) this one has an “one verse” audience recording of Roses Are Red.
Conclusion
To answer the question from the first paragraph: Yes, this release is certainly worth the effort. I doubt if the sound improvement is big enough to make many people happy, but it will certainly make those happy that missed the original. It made me happy since I was pushed towards an overlooked show in my collection. Still I’m afraid it will end up for a pretty while on the shelf, next to the original. Give me the pre 1973 Elvis anytime.
Tracklisting
01. Also Sprach Zarathustra - 02. C. C. Rider - 03. I Got A Woman / Amen (medley) - 04. Love Me - 05. If You Love Me (Let Me Know) - 06. And I Love You So - 07. Big Boss Man - 08. It's Midnight - 09. Promised Land - 10. Green Green Grass Of Home - 11. Fairytale - 12. Band Introductions - 13. What'd I Say - 14. Drum Solo (by Ronnie Tutt) - 15. Bass Solo (by Duke Bardwell) - 16. Piano Solo (by Glen D. Hardin) - 17. Electric Piano Solo (by David Briggs) - 18. Orchestra Solo - 19. My Boy - 20. I'll Remember You - 21. Let Me Be There (with reprise) - 22. (Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear / Don't Be Cruel (medley) - 23. Hound Dog (with reprise) - 24. I'll Be There (excerpt) / You're The Reason I'm Living (only live version) - 25. Can't Help Falling In Love - 26. Closing Vamp. Not listed: 27 Roses Are Red
Tracks 01 - 03 recorded in Las Vegas, March 20, 1975, Dinner show. Tracks 04 - 26 recorded live in Las Vegas, March 22, 1975, Midnight show.
the one thing is a fine impromptu interpretation of You're The Reason I'm Living and other is that Elvis performed on my eleventh birthday....;-)
When I saw the promo for this I didn't know whether to be flattered or angry. I am the photographer who took the photos on the front and back cover and of course no credit is given, nor was permission asked. I am looking forward to getting a copy because obviously of having been at the show it will be a part of my memories. I am glad the review was positive and I look forward to getting my copy.
Lex if you ACTUALLY ADMIT you simply DON'T LIKE shows after 1973 then i personally feel you shouldn't have reviewed a 1975 show!- This pre-conception had clouded your review here!
This is one of my favorite shows. Elvis is in a great mood and I really like the setlist. I like the mess up during Hound Dog and how he says "Quick, get on the next song" after And I Love You So. I always hoped for a better sounding version but after reading the review, it appears we aren't getting it. Either way, I recommend this show to people that haven't heard it.
As much as I like the views Elvis News. Com gives us about these type of releases,it's very annoying when you know you can't buy them anywhere. It would help if they gave an e-mail address where to order these type of c.d.'s. How about the e-mail of whoever gave them the info. I know in these P.C. times we're suppose to call them Foreign Imports, but Let's call a spade a shovel & call them what they are,"BOOTLEGS". Not all of us can get to these Record Fairs & if you do nobody seems to have or know about them. So please Elvis News stop torturing us with this sort of info until you can provide details of where we can get these c.d.'s. Why don't you stock them in you own shop?
I would be frustrated as Burton if I did not know where to buy bootlegs. I have a larger amount of bootlegs than official BMG cd's in my collection. I don't know if you realize it Burton, but these cd's are ILLEGAL. They punish the dealers who sell these cd's by taken away the dealership of ftd's for instance. About Elvis news.com: See the guidelines number 8! I think it is not very hard to find these cd's with the internet nowadays, you can shop all around the world: try ebay and amazon.
Hi Ronaldv. Bootlegs on Amazon ??
well, burton: if you go for songs only, there is still the Elvis Live in Las Vegas 4-CD Box containing for example on CD 4:16. Green, Green Grass Of Home 17. You´re The Reason I´m Living
18. Big Boss Man 20. My Boy. Don't know if the sources are the same show, but this at least delievers you another entire 69 show. Go for this one, you'll find other gems on it which this other cd doesn't contain. so if it comes to money you are even better off...or you are a completist...then its a diff'rent song...
to photographer Sanditch: be flattered. Other photographers have been "honored" this way in the import world or more accurately, the "bootleg" world. It's a bit of a stretch to expect bootlegs to be act legit about such matters, after all, but the reality is that Fort Baxter & Audionics are labels that are a labor of love. There's no big money in such projects, especially if you factor in the time invested. It's work by fans *for* fans with no great commerical relevance. I'm sure you're going to enjoy it - I've never not enjoyed their titles! Burton: there's no great mystery as was stated: get friendly with the internet and with time doors open up to you.
As for the reviewer, Lex is at least more reserved in his approach in this review, having in the past been stung by his sometimes glib reviews. It's good to hear he has listened to this fully and even more than once. As a reviewer it's okay (and preferred) that he states his bias, which is appreciated at least. I still don't know what's so bad about post '73 Elvis. This sort of criticism is pretty meaningless: after all, I"m not big on Elvis recordings from 1978 and '79: they flat out don't exist because he' was dead. I do, however, accept what he left us in his last years. It's just a different Elvis (some different songs, set-lists and notably his voice, for better or worse) -and one of several incarnations of Elvis that existed even within each decade. Looking forward to this title!
Just got it! It's a treat, as we've come to expect automatically from Audionics, now coupled with the legendary "Fort Baxter"! Talk about a "Marvel Team-Up" - this is more proof that we are truly living in the golden age of Elvis imports. Sure, fast becoming redundant prior (now inferior) sets like "Profile" will always be legendary but we now know that there are a series of upgrade discs that are the true "go-to" discs when you want the best sound and presentation! Bravo, for fixing the tape speed and restoring various glitches and giving us a bonanza of a package! "Bang!" indeed!
