Rediscover Elvis Presley's first album with a new stereo mix! The influence and impact of this album released in 1956 was considerable. This CD edition opens with all twelve tracks from the original US album, as heard around the world on its first release plus the additional five tracks from the UK version as Bonus Material’ along with two further recordings from Elvis’ first RCA single.
The stereo mixes newly created for this CD allow you to find the naturalness of the original recordings and give the impression of being in the heart of the studio with Elvis and his musicians.
With Mono II Stereo fans can embrace a new way of listening to old albums, rediscovering 'The Young Man with the Big Beat' all over again.
EIN's in-depth review by Piers Beagley can "DES" software create something worthy from these old mono classics. |
 |
I do have a serious fascination with how ground-breaking recordings were created. Why do the classic rock’n’roll singles sound so good, especially given the low quality recording equipment of the time? And how were they laid down in the studio?
One way to discover the wonders of 50’s rock’n’roll inventiveness is to examine stereo versions of the old mono recordings and it is only since the creation of the cutting-edge audio process DES (Digitally Extracted Stereo) that we can do this.
Over the past six years ERIC records have been the real pioneers in this field. My favourite example is their stereo version of Bill Haley’s ‘Rock Around The Clock’ where one can now hear exactly what the bass, drums, cymbals, guitar and saxophone were individually playing that, when mixed together, created one of the classic life-changing MONO recordings of all time.
As noted in my previous review... Elvis and the Blue Moon Boys were never playing in "mono" nor were they recorded via one microphone. It was Sam Phillips or RCA's engineers who took the multiple microphone feeds and mixed them down to MONO. The mono sound was created by the control room, the genuine sound of rock'n'roll being played in the studio was stereo..
|
In the last month I have received three new Elvis releases, MRS Closing Night 1972, RDM ‘Elvis Presley Rock ’n’ Roll No.1’ and FTD ‘The How Great Thou Art Sessions’, all containing Elvis material that I have bought multiple times before and all purchased one more time because they promised better audio quality. Hopefully these 2023 versions will be the last time I will ever need to buy them.
Now let’s look at RDM 'Elvis Presley Rock ’n’ Roll No.1’.
Back in May this year I reviewed the Memphis Mansion label ‘From Elvis at Sun’ “Mono II Stereo” compilation and at the time was hoping for more of the same.
Luckily for inquisitive Elvis collectors, producer Anthony Stuchbury is back with his take on Elvis’ first album ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll No.1’ - this time on the French RDM label.
Elvis’ very first LP had two key variations, the well-known classic RCA album and also the UK HMV version called ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll’. This compilation starts with the 12 tracks from the RCA album then the extra five cuts from the HMV version plus the life-changing ‘Heartbreak Hotel’ single. It’s a stunning selection of nineteen brilliant Elvis recordings.
“Mono II Stereo” remixing needs a producer who understands what Elvis’ sessions were all about and producer Anthony Stuchbury is not only a super-collector of original vinyl but also a man who really knows his Elvis recordings. His work here is truly impressive.
(Please see EIN’s interview with Anthony Stuchbury about “Mono II Stereo”)
The Packaging
The front cover is a delightful homage to Elvis’ classic first album cover and there are multiple stylish touches.
The four black and white photos on the reverse neatly match the similar look of the UK’s HMV ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll No.2’ album back cover while the cd back’s track-listing is stylised similar to those unique early French vinyl releases.
Even the CD itself is manufactured in the cool look of 50's black-vinyl.
The booklet includes a interesting essay by David Parker which nicely points out that while both Bob Dylan’s and John Lennon’s lives were changed by hearing Elvis’ first album they were in fact listening to different compilations!
He also rightly notes.. |
 |
... RCA's original mono mixes of these tracks were clearly geared towards AM radio airplay and were therefore, heavily compressed. This gave the impression that the recordings had a much harder sound than the music that Elvis, with Scotty Moore on lead guitar and Bill Black on bass, created at Sun Studios in Memphis. ... In fact, RCA executives in New York were not entirely satisfied with the results of the first Nashville session, with the perceived wisdom being that they had failed to replicate the unique rockabilly sound Sam Phillips had perfected at Sun.
However, despite those early reservations, all the elements that made Elvis' Sun recordings unique were indeed captured on the RCA tapes, and these newly created stereo mixes clearly highlight this fact.”
And this is the key to loving this “Stereo” album. While these versions will never replace Elvis’ crucial original MONO recordings they do enable you to really explore what Elvis and The Blue Moon Boys did in the studio to create ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll’ history. And they sound crystal clear with a lovely clean top-end.
The Music
The CD of course kicks off with ‘Blue Suede Shoes’ and it is a stunner. Scotty Moore's guitar on the left channel, DJ Fontana’s drums on the right, Bill Black's bass right and Elvis' vocal clear centre. With this nice stereo spread you can really focus on the dynamic of Bill Black's double-bass plucking - he really did add percussion of his own - and the real simple but tight drumming of DJ Fontana driving the song along.
What is impressive here is that if you play this "stereo" version through loud speakers turned up (and don't stand between the speakers) the sound and reverberations in the room are identical to the classic mono version. And this is the key to what the producer wants - he wants his stereo version to sound just like the original mono release. Flicking between this stereo version and the FTD ‘Classic Album’ version it sounds as if you're pushing a mono/ stereo button on your amplifier. So while they both have the same essential sound you can now investigate further and examine how Scotty Moore’s guitar and the musician’s arrangements created rock'n'roll magic in RCA's New York studio back in January 1956.
‘I'm Counting On You’ the second track was such a change of pace for Elvis’ first LP and now sounds even more distinct. Bill Black's double-bass is on the left channel, Scotty’s guitar is on the right, along with the Floyd Cramer's piano. And this adds more significance as in “stereo” it has a different ambience which would be correct since it was actually recorded in a different studio down in Nashville. What I found fascinating is how clear and defined Bill Black's double-bass is on this ballad which in the old mono was rather buried in the overall mix. Separating vocals is one of the more difficult things to do with ‘DES’ but here The Jordanaires are behind Elvis’ vocal in the centre and so the this version sounds very real since there is no "floating movement" of the musicians or vocals that you can often hear on lesser engineered DES. It's a very fine version.
The clarity of 'I Got Woman' (Elvis' first RCA recording) is very impressive in stereo. When the band stops @ 01:20 leaving Elvis singing alone to DJ Fontana's snare "She's there to love me, both day and night.. " you can hear the anticipation, the studio ambience, of the other musicians waiting to burst back into the song. It is truly a neat trick to be able to listen so closely with a new clarity to a session from over 65 years ago.
There are of course a lot of other treats along the way.
'Money Honey' with the beautiful stereo start of Scotty Moore left and tinkling Floyd Cramer piano right channel before Elvis bursts in "You know the landlord ring my front door bell.." Bill Black's bass truly reverberates and it's so nice to hear Elvis' acoustic guitar strumming in the right channel. This was always a stunning mono recording but now there's so much more to explore.
'Shake, Rattle And Roll' in stereo also has an amazing energy with cracking guitar from Scotty Moore and it’s fascinating to now clearly hear the Vocal Overdub the band had to do on the chorus. This was because RCA hadn't booked any backing vocalists and so now you can even hear Elvis' backing-vocal behind his own lead vocal whereas before they had the same energy but were buried in the overall mono mix.
The SUN recordings here that were included on Elvis’ first RCA album are the same "Stereo" remixes used in Stuchbury’s 'From Elvis At Sun' which I examined and reviewed back in May. If you don't own that CD then tracks like ‘Mystery Train’ and ‘Trying To Get To You’ will really thrill you. (see review here)
Elvis' trip to super-stardom started with ‘That’s All Right’ and it is so fortuitous that it is included on this CD since it was a track on the UK album. As noted in my previous review..
..‘That’s All Right’ cranked up sounds like Elvis’ RCA single but even more impressively in stereo sounding as it would have done for Sam Phillips when he walked into the studio that special day. Bill Black’s plucking also adds an additional staccato drum sound to the overall mix which helps drive the song more into Rock’n’Roll territory.
The mid-song break of Scotty Moore’s solo and Bill Black’s bass @01.05 now has a real studio ambience that you miss on the mono version.
Elvis’ acoustic guitar is far more distinctive in this “stereo” version and his vocal lovely and clear. The final play-off “all right now Mama, any way you doo-hoo” also brings up Elvis’ slight vibrato more than I’ve noticed before. Even the final strum of the chords has you holding on hoping they won’t mess up, knowing what magic they were about to get on tape.
Maybe I seem overexcited by this.. but being able to look even deeper into this all-important recording is surely what any Elvis aficionado would want..
and that is what I feel about this fabulous ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll No.1’ compilation. Surely anyone who wants to delve deeper into why Elvis' first recordings were so important and so creative will be fascinated by being able to examine these key sessions in even greater “stereo” detail. With two ears and not one!
The CD ends with Elvis' first No.1 single ‘Heartbreak Hotel’ / ‘I Was The One’.
Back in 1956 no one had ever heard such a weird, moody, suicidal song such as 'Heartbreak Hotel’ before and yet it was Rock ‘n’ Roll star Elvis Presley's first RCA single, and a song that would change pop music forever.
It was described as "ghostly, ethereal, sounding like no other song had ever sounded before. Heartbreak Hotel was certainly the first thing most people had ever heard from Elvis, and it was like something from another planet"!
But here in “stereo” fans can now discover how that ethereal sound was created. From the slow walking double-bass of Bill Black, combined with Floyd Cramer’s tinkling piano plus staccato cutting guitar from Scotty Moore, Elvis' echoey vocal takes listeners on a scary journey. This version sounds as if you're standing in the middle of the RCA studio watching magic happen. With the musicians separated you can now also hear the tightness of the band as well as Elvis' emphasis on the words, "You'll be so lonely babe-a-beh". It is amazing listening.
The perfect Elvis photo for under the CD holder.
Note 1: As previously stated I like to hear a similar musician placement on recordings (i.e. on Elvis’ TCB concerts James Burton should be to Elvis’ right) so on various here tracks I noticed the jump when the musician's placement changed. Having said that, this time this selection was compiled by RCA from songs recorded at various different studios so the “stereo” ambience would genuinely change. This is of course more noticeable on headphones.
Note 2: I have played this CD on LOUD SPEAKERS (sorry neighbours) and quality headphones as well as blasting it on the car stereo. It sounds fabulous on all systems and again I picked up different minor observations listening via each experience.
Note 3: The Beatles ‘Red’ and ‘Blue’ best-of compilation recent re-releases have used DES to remaster their early mono recordings to high-quality Stereo mixes. This again proves that ‘DES’ is here to stay. I only hope that RCA / SONY are considering the same for future Elvis Best-Of compilations. I can see no reason why RCA shouldn’t use the talented team of Anthony Stuchbury plus remaster extraordinaire Vic Anesini and officially release some worldwide stereo fifties ELVIS magic! (see more discussion on Vic Anesini's great work here)
Overall Verdict: For any fan interested in how Rock ‘n’ Roll musical history was created this is an essential compilation. Nineteen key tracks from Elvis’ early recordings – songs that changed the pop music world – all presented in cleverly reconstructed “Stereo”. In the past some earlier mono>stereo releases left much to be desired but on this compilation there is no “stereo” track that frustrates me because it sounds a little fake. If “stereo” tapes were discovered tomorrow (remember Elvis’ Love Me Tender stereo tapes being found?) – they would no doubt sound very similar. Top marks to producer Anthony Stuchbury for the time and patience in creating such beautiful re-masters.
'Info and ORDER here at RDM' - and check out the great 'Sound Samples'.
Review by Piers Beagley.
-Copyright EIN November 2023 -
EIN Website content © Copyright the Elvis Information Network.
Click here to comment on this review
Anthony Stuchbury 'From Elvis At Sun' Interview: There are two new 'Mono II Stereo' releases about to come out from the Memphis Mansion label.
'From Elvis At Sun' features all of Elvis' SUN masters in new stereo versions while the 10" vinyl 'Best Of Elvis' is a neat stereo upgrade of the original HMV october 1957 UK album.
The question of whether Elvis' mono fifties classic recordings should be re-released in "new stereo" is hotly debated among hard-core collectors and so EIN wanted to ask Memphis Mansion's producer / audio engineer Anthony Stuchbury some key questions.
Questions including...
- Do we really need stereo versions of these mono classics?
- Since EMI are releasing The Beatles in "new stereo" perhaps it is time for RCA to do the same for Elvis..
EIN's Piers Beagley asked the questions..
(Interviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)
|
 |
'From Elvis at Sun' Stereo CD Review: A new ‘From Elvis at Sun’ “Mono II Stereo” release from the Danish Memphis Mansion label.
The compilation includes the five classic SUN SINGLES plus the other nine alternate cuts that RCA would purchase from Sam Phillips.
Keen Elvis fans must surely have a serious fascination about how Elvis' early ground-breaking recordings were created.
Why do Elvis' classic rock’n’roll singles sound so good, especially given the low quality recording equipment of the time? And how were they laid down in the studio?
One way to discover the wonders of 50’s rock’n’roll inventiveness is to examine "stereo" versions of the old mono recordings and it is only since the creation of the cutting-edge audio process DES (Digitally Extracted Stereo) that we can do this.
Previous Mono <> Stereo versions have not quite made their mark. So is it possible that this new 2023 set can help fans appreciate the real magic and brilliance of Elvis at SUN?
EIN's 2,600 word review by Piers Beagley looks in-depth at whether new upgrades in "DES" software can help create something special from these old SUN classics...
(CD Reviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork) |
 |
‘Elvis Reborn: New Mono to Stereo’ CD In-Depth Review: The publicity notes, "Hear 30 classic Elvis songs like you've never heard them before... in STEREO! These are NOT "overdubs". All of the sounds you hear are the original musicians backing Elvis, but with a clarity that exposes for the first time sounds you never heard before!"
The MONO vs STEREO debate is a fascinating discussion, so we need to get some facts straight before we investigated the possibilities of this new Elvis "Stereo" release.
The earliest recordings of the sound era were recorded in MONO with the singer and orchestra carefully positioned around one microphone. But even in Sun Studios it was actually Sam Phillips who created Elvis' classic mono recordings.
Elvis and the Blue Moon Boys were not playing "mono" - nor were they recorded via one microphone. So listening in "Fake Stereo" can fans really learn anything new about how some of these life-changing songs that Elvis recorded in the studio were created?
Is it truly possible that these "DES Stereo" versions actually sound better than their original classic mono vinyl releases?
|
 |
'ELVIS: Closing Night 1972' MRS CD Review: This MRS 2CD set features a live performance recorded on 4 September 1972,during the last night of Elvis’ seventh engagement in Las Vegas at the Hilton Hotel.
The show is presented in stereo. A bonus CD of remastered rehearsal tracks, recorded days before the engagement began, is also included.
While Elvis is perhaps not as full-blast as on the 'Opening Night' here MRS's 'Studio D' engineer has done some brilliant audio remastering, removing the bad cassette-tape-hiss of all previous releases. Emphasising the instrumentation with this "Stereo remaster" not only elevates Elvis and the musicians' performance but also places the listener right into the audience.
This night Elvis rocked into 'Johnny B. Goode' and even performed the golden-oldies with some real respect.
It's a great show.
Go here as EIN's Piers Beagley discovers something new in this re-release - the near perfect bookend to MRS' examination of Elvis’ 1972 Summer Festival.
(CD Reviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork) |
 |
MRS 'Elvis: Mono To Stereo 1956' CD Review: At the end of last year the UK based MRS label released their Double CD/ Book 'Elvis: Mono To Stereo - The Complete RCA Studio Masters 1956'.
The set contains the complete 1956 RCA studio master recordings in mono and (DES extracted) stereo versions. These were thirty classic RCA recordings that would help change the future of popular music.
The accompanying 20-page booklet includes photographs and memorabilia plus introductory notes.
While 'DES Stereo' remastering can sometimes reveal new details about classic MONO studio recordings, trying to create believable stereo from echoey mono masters is not that easy, even when using "highly advanced sound processing techniques".
EIN's Piers Beagley put on some quality headphones to provide an in-depth review of this recent MRS release.
(CD Reviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)
|
 |
See EIN review of 'Young Man With The Big Beat'.
See EIN review of 'Elvis Is Back!' Legacy Edition review:
See EIN review of 'The Complete Elvis Presley Masters' in-depth Review
See EIN review of 'On Stage' 40th Anniversary LEGACY in-depth review:
See EIN review of From Elvis In Memphis (40th Anniversary Legacy Edition)
EIN Website content © Copyright the Elvis Information Network.
Elvis Presley, Elvis and Graceland are trademarks of Elvis Presley Enterprises.
The Elvis Information Network has been running since 1986 and is an EPE officially recognised Elvis fan club.
