Hillcrest Blues

01. Burning Love - take 1 (incomplete) / Here We Go Again (one liner) 3:10
02. Burning Love - take 2 3:25
03. Burning Love - take 3 / The Lord's Prayer (one liner) 3:19
04. Sweet Sweet Spirit (one liner) 0:19
05. For The Good Times (rehearsal) 2:52
06. For The Good Times - take 1 (incomplete) 3:35
07. For The Good Times (more rehearsal) 2:18
08. For The Good Times - take 2 3:44
09. For The Good Times - take 3 (false start) 0:19
10. For The Good Times - take 4 6:22
11. Anytime (one line) / dialogue 1:47
12. For The Good Times take 5 3:31
13. For The Good Times - take 6 (incomplete) 3:01
14. For The Good Times - take 7 4:10
15. Dialogue / El Paso (one liner) 1:13
16. Johnny B. Goode - take 1 (false start) 1:02
17. Johnny B. Goode - take 2 (false start) 0:46
18. Oh, How I Love Jesus (one liner) 0:56
19. Johnny B. Goode - take 3 / dialogue 3:42
20. A Big Hunk O' Love (incomplete) / dialogue 4:39
21. Always On My Mind (rehearsal) 3:02
22. Always On My Mind - take 1 (incomplete) 2:34
23. Always On My Mind - take 2 5:09
24. Separate Ways - take 1 4:09
25. Separate Ways - take 2 3:40

Madison just released the third volume in their Standing Room Only Tapes-series. Hillcrest Blues brings us the mock session in RCA’s studio C in Hollywood for the filming of Elvis On Tour.

Design
As known by now Madison is in a league of their own regarding design. Again they delivered a top product with nice liner notes decorated in a way only Madison’s designer seems to be able to. A couple of live shots, many photos from the session and the poster for Elvis On Tour are used in this booklet.

Content
If you don’t like For The Good Times, this is not your CD, since the gloomy Kris Kristofferson penned country song forms the main part of the session. The CD starts with a few takes of Burning Love (where your heart pounds over when the sound is corrected). It is amazing to hear how Elvis attacks the song, especially since he disliked recording it so much only two days earlier, according to the stories.

After a couple of one liners the For The Good Times sequence starts. Not less than 7 takes, most of them lasting more than 3 minutes, are done. Somehow Elvis managed to get a different sound (or feel) in many of them. Of course there are the usual jokes and adlibs (Don’t look so bad, sad… put on some make-up). I have to admit that I was in doubt beforehand... afraid it would get boring. Somehow it doesn't...

One of the highlights on the CD to me is the Johnny B. Goode recording, a song I always love when done seriously. James Burton is outstanding once again.

The CD ends with the two key songs from the movie: Always On My Mind and Separate Ways. Many seem to like these versions better than the official recordings from the days before. I guess it’s the honesty and vulnerability Elvis managed to put down on tape that March 30, 1972.

Conclusion
Except the first run of Burning Love the sound is outstanding. All that’s left to wish after this superb release, is a DVD version with the complete session, oh and please... let Madison do the design of it.

Rehearsal

Content

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