We Have Not Rehearsed Them

You’ll Never Walk Alone (Uniondale July 19, 1975 20:30)
Shake A Hand (Atlanta, GA. June 6, 1975)
Oh Happy Day (Las Vegas NV. August 14, 1970 M.S.)
It’s Crying Time (Las Vegas NV. August 12, 1973 M.S.)
Tiger Man – slow version – (Las Vegas, NV. August 11, 1973 M.S.)
When The Snow Falls On The Roses (Las Vegas, NV. August 24, 1970)
When No One Stands Alone (Montgomery, AL. February 16, 1977)
Mickey Mouse March (Las Vegas, NV. April 1, 1975 M.S.)
You Can Have Her (Los Angeles, CA. May 11, 1974. 14.30)
Sweet Inspirations (Las Vegas, NV. August 1970, M.S.)
More (Las Vegas, NV. August 20, 1970 M.S.)
I Ain’t About To Sing (Las Vegas, NV. August 12, 1971)
What Now My Love – spoken version – (Las Vegas, NV. December 4, 1976)
Loving You (Las Vegas, NV. August 1975)
Crying In The Chapel (Las Vegas, NV. August 19, 1975)
Wooden Heart (Las Vegas, NV. December 13, 1975)
Bosom Of Abraham – You’d better Run (Uniondale, NY. July 19, 1975 14.30)
Roses Are Red (Las Vegas, NV. March 22, 1975 M.S.)
I’ll be There – You’re The Reason I’m Living (Las Vegas, NV. March 22, 1975 M.S.)
Leaving It Up To You (Las Vegas, NV. Stage rehearsal February 1972)
It’s A Matter Of Time (Las Vegas, NV. August 25, 1973 D.S.)
Happy Birthday (Lake Tahoe, NV. May 9. 1976 C.S.)
Young And Beautiful (Lake Tahoe, NV. May 9 1976 C.S.)
I Need Your Lovin’ Everyday (Las Vegas, NV. August 14, 1971)
Amazing Grace (Las Vegas, NV. August 14, 1973 D.S.)
Turn Around And Look At Me (Ashville, NC. July 24, 1975)
Folsom Prison Blues – I Walk The Line (Las Vegas, NV. August 14, 1970 M.S.)
Pieces Of My Life (Ashville, NC. July 24, 1975)
What A Friend We Have In Jesus (Las Vegas. NV. August 28, 1973 M.S.)
Trouble – Raised On Rock (Las Vegas, NV. August 6, 1973 O.S.)
I John (Lake Tahoe, NV. August 1, 1971 M.S.)
Susie Q (Norfolk, VA, July 20, 1975, 14.30)
Return To Sender (Ashville, NC, July 22, 1975)
Memphis Tennessee (Ashville, NC, July 22, 1975)
Shake A Hand (Ashville, NC, July 22, 1975)
Why Me Lord (Elvis sings solo) (Ashville, NC, July 22, 1975)
Wooden Heart (Las Vegas, NV. September 3, 1971 M.S.)
His Latest Flame (Las Vegas, NV. September 3, 1971 M.S.)
Jambalaya (Jackson, MS. June 9, 1975 M.S.)
Such A Night (Atlanta, GA. December 12, 1976)
Rags To Riches (Pittsburgh, PA. December 31, 1976)

We know Elvis rehearsed a lot, many rehearsals are released, and several rank high in the fan’s favorites lists. Now a CD came out with songs Elvis and his band did not rehearse. Can it be a fan’s favorite too?

Design

The design on this release is very basic. A picture of Elvis, obviously, and a concert stub from another date. On the back 41 titles in small print and centered for easy reading … not, but a nice concert photo on the back though, would have been our pick for the front cover.

Content

The content of this CD is much better than the design. Usually you find the occasional rare live performance on a certain concert release or as additional bonus track on a CD, making you buy the release for just that song. You can now get a big chunk of live rarities with just one buy.

CD collectors can skip this release, either because they already have the songs on separate release or because they have "Live And Unleashed" which is apparently a previous title for this live rarities compilation.

The order of the tracks on these CD’s is a bit strange, the performances jump up and down the timeline between 1970 and 1977. Looking at the recording dates it appears Elvis had his moments during certain tours, especially in 1975, throwing in an unexpected song to surprise the audience, or fulfilling a special request.

Listening to this compilation is plain fun, simply because of the original titles, the fun Elvis has on the stage and the reactions from the audience. One of highlights is Elvis singing the lead on “Why Me Lord”, a shame he did not do that more often, because he can easily carry this song. We could name a few more, but just check the track listing below to see which song you’d like to hear live for a change.

A minor on this CD is that the quality of the recordings varies, but with these original selections that is not a big problem.

Conclusion

This CD is a very different kind of Elvis release, kind of like the concert that never was. Not with a collection of the best live performances ever, but a concert filled with one timers and one liners. A fun CD to play every now and then.