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The fascination fans have with Elvis’ final year is quite bizarre. By 1977 Elvis was running on low, his set-list had become stagnant and his shows were often perfunctory at best. Elvis’ concerts were low-energy and fans were lucky to hear Elvis perform any rare song in his predictable set-list. This 4CD set features seven Elvis February 1977 performances but regrettably only two songs are unique ‘Moody Blue’ and ‘Where No One Stands Alone’. While we do get to hear some 1977 rarities such as ‘Release Me’, ‘Trying To Get To You’, ‘Reconsider Baby’ and a throw-away ‘Blueberry Hill’ to be honest they had all been performed better in the past. So there is no doubt that fans have to approach this set not expecting the excitement or power of Elvis performances from previous years. Elvis was not in good health and had only six months to live. The excitement of having new girlfriend Ginger Alden in his life seemed to have worn off and this tour was nothing like the energy and focus he managed in his final December tour of 1976. The format of most of these February concerts would be that after the 15 minute “Band Introductions” break Elvis would perform ‘Hurt’ then one more song inevitably ‘Hound Dog’ before wrapping up with CHFIL. It showed that Elvis was tired. However if Elvis did perform some extra songs it was a good night. Fans in Montgomery on Feb 16 were lucky enough to get both Where No One Stands Alone and Unchained Melody . Elvis did not look healthy at the start of this tour but his weight and voice definitely improved as the tour progressed. On the first two dates Elvis’ voice sounds weak and his wavering vibrato is noticeable. Elvis’ first tour of 1977 was 10 dates starting in Hollywood, Florida on February 12 and ending in Charlotte, N.C on February 21, seven of those concerts are featured here. FTD has previously released the Charlotte, Feb 20 1977 concert plus a good selection of 8 Bonus tracks on their 2007 release 'Unchained Melody'. All the highlights mentioned above were on this previous compilation.
The following concerts are featured in this Last Tours release Elvis’ soundboards from Feb 18 Columbia, and Feb 19 Johnson City are the only previously unreleased performances in this packed set. These bootlegs have previously featured the soundboards from 'The Final Curtain' box-set also released Elvis' Feb 15 Orlando concert which included a rare 'Big Boss Man and 'Help Me'. Unfortunately on this FTD there is no representation from Elvis' three shows on 12, 15 & 17 February which is a shame since the 15th & 17th concerts were good performances. Audio Quality: Luckily for us the quality of the soundboards are all very good, the mix of instruments, backing-vocals and orchestra is fine, as is the clarity. Sadly, of course, the quality of the soundboards improved over the years while Elvis’ performances got worse! While FTD already released the Charlotte Feb 20 show the audio is improved here with a cleaner high-end and emphasised bass. ‘Unchained Melody’ was engineered by Lene Reidel back in 2007, ‘Last Tours’ is mastered by Jan Eliasson. The audio is similarly improved compared to previous bootleg releases. The sound is good mono and the cover features a blue sticker warning about audio imperfections. This is notable on Elvis’ Feb 16 recording which is a pity (‘Where No One Stands Alone’) but it does not ruin the listening experience.
Small images show Elvis at West Palm Beach Feb 13 Rainfall suit, and playing piano on Feb 16 in Montgomery, Alabama. The back cover lists the seven incomplete shows with at least the first 3 tracks not recorded. The only ‘Band Introductions’ included are Blueberry Hill, Love Letters and School Days from St Petersburg Feb 14, this is identical to the previous “Cajun Tornado” bootleg so one can presume that the soundboard was actually stopped during Elvis’ usual drawn-out rambles. It appears that any solo spots i.e. Sherrill Nielsen (Danny Boy/Walk with Me) and Terry Alden ‘Magic World’ on piano were also not recorded. (Sherrill Nielsen is misspelt on the CD cover!)- Some Elvis dialogue has been also been edited out but with plenty of spare time on each disc one wonders why. Most CDs feature two shows and run for about 67 minutes which is short and Disc 4 only runs for 42 minutes. Generally speaking Elvis’ shows improved as the tour went on except for the lesser last concert. Is this a good tour? Well it’s a couple of notches down from Elvis’ previous December 1976 tour but for fans who were in attendance it would have still been worth-seeing and did include some rare highlights. Whether fans will discover anything more than what was revealed on FTD’s previous ‘Unchained Melody’ compilation I am not so sure. Mini Verdict: How much do you enjoy Elvis’ performances in 1977? There certainly are a few highlights but overall most of these concerts sound all too similar. FTD obviously compiled the highlights of all these shows on their 'Unchained Melody’ release.
... Continue reading below for our very detailed look at all seven performances... Disc 1: Feb 13 West Palm Beach & Feb 14 St. Petersburg - R/T 67 minutes West Palm Beach, Florida Feb 13, 1977
Elvis then announces that he doesn’t know the words to the next song (My Way) and has to read it. A song that he performed regularly in 1976 this is a rather sad indictment of Elvis in 1977. ‘My Way’ is however sincere and Elvis clearly puts effort into singing it – you can hear his vibrato wavering on “And now the end is near” but this actually adds poignancy to a rather fine (77) version. The 50s ‘All Shook Up’ / ‘Teddy Bear / Don’t Be Cruel’ are the usual throwaway crowd-pleasers but you can really hear the enthusiasm of the fans screaming for their scarves. ‘And I Love You So’ cools things down and again it’s a sincere version even if Elvis’ wavering vibrato illustrates his tiredness. ‘Polk Salad’ is rejected for ‘Fever’ which is ok, driven by a lovely enthusiastic crowd and their approving finger-snaps. By 1977 the ‘Band Introductions’ gave Elvis a chance to recuperate and featured the usual guitar / bass / drums / piano solos with snatches of Early Morning Rain, What’d I Say / Johnny B Goode, Love Letters and School Day thrown in. They ran for 15 minutes and hardly ever varied. Here ‘Blueberry Hill’ is the only song included and clearly piano player Tony Brown doesn’t know it. Although very brief it’s a surprise highlight, basically because there was little else exciting in this show. Post intros, ‘Hurt’ starts strongly – clearly a chance for Elvis to prove himself - and is quite decent. “Whoo, fantastic” Elvis notes. ‘Hound Dog’ has a poor false start before quickly degenerating to a lacklustre ending. (At this point Elvis had Sherrill Nielsen sing 'Danny Boy' and 'Walk With Me' which are not included) A final treat of ‘Jailhouse Rock’ starts well but ends up all too rushed. Elvis then says that everyone has been a fantastic audience and “we hope we’ve done something that you like” and then closes with the “wise men know when it’s time to go” ‘Can’t Help Falling in Love’ including the Peter Sellers ‘some things you know’ line. As noted this concert was included in the bootleg ‘Coming On Strong’ but Elvis’ weak voice truly contradicted that description. St. Petersburg, Florida Feb 14 1977 Elvis even comments that they will do the best show they can since “a couple of us have been hoarse because of the weather” and that he had “icicles in his throat”.
David Briggs then performs ‘Love Letters’ which seems too slow but is a sincere performance. As always ‘School Day’ ends the intros. Elvis then introduces “One of our latest records is called Hurt” it’s a routine version and you can tell Elvis’ voice is getting worse again. A spoken first start to ‘Hound Dog’ deteriorates to a ‘throwaway’ version, for the concert's ‘final treat’ it should have been better. Elvis then notes, “We have a good time up here and I think we have the finest singers and musicians in the world up here” to good applause. Then “until we meet again” and ‘Can’t Help Falling in Love’ which confirms Elvis’ tiredness and weakening voice, before the Closing Vamp. Although there was nothing of particular note on this Valentine’s Day, this was definitely a better show than the previous night and luckily it would get even better.
Disc 2: Feb 16 Montgomery & Feb 18 Columbia, - R/T 67 minutes Montgomery, Alabama Feb 16
Elvis is obviously feeling much better tonight as he then goes straight into a very sincere ‘My Way’ with his voice rich and full and adds a lovely strong ending. A great version for ‘77. A longer than usual ‘Polk Salad Annie’ again shows Elvis was feeling better. He only sang this rocker 4 times during this February tour and FTD never added any version as a bonus song to their ‘Unchained Melody’ compilation. The audio mix is very good, lovely James Burton guitar and while not packed-with-power as in the past, this is a pretty good version. Elvis does a low leg squat near the end – if you were in the crowd this night you’d have been very happy. Again 14 minutes of band introductions are missed out which really helps keep the pace going. ‘Hurt’ is strongly sung while the throw-away ‘Hound Dog follows.
However ‘Where No One Stands Alone’ is a MAGIC moment, two minutes of Gospel beauty and even without a rehearsal Elvis and The Stamps pull off a sensational version. It does unfortunately suffer from bursts of sound static at points which could have been easily fixed up. A lost opportunity. Still sitting at the piano Elvis then notes, “While I’m back here I’d like to do a favourite of mine, ‘Unchained Melody’”. While not his best version – only his second attempt since December 1976 - it’s an ‘ok’ version. Afterwards this challenge Elvis then rejects Charlie Hodge’s suggestion of ‘Jailhouse Rock’ saying “No way. Take it out.” ‘Can’t Help Falling In Love’ is another good (77) version with Elvis adding a real power-ending, and then the Closing Vamp Easily THE best show from this tour and a good reason to own this set. I guess that FTD only chose the Charlotte Feb 20 performance for their ‘Unchained Melody’ compilation as the soundboard was more complete.
Columbia, South Carolina Feb 18 1977 ‘You Gave Me A Mountain’ is slightly faster paced with Elvis adding a spoken word “So tired, tired of the grief and the strife” it’s a decent (77) version. Elvis announces the ok crowd-pleaser ‘Jailhouse Rock’ before the regular “smart Alec” ‘O Sole Mio / It’s Now or Never’ version. Elvis notes that a fan told him he was in Columbia around twenty years ago “About the same time we did a song called ‘Trying to Get to You’”. This was a set-list rarity in 1977 – even though it is featured in the CBS TV special - and it is surprisingly good. (it was included in the FTD ‘Unchained Melody’ compilation). An ‘ok’ ‘Little Sister’ starts the fifties medley before a throwaway completely distracted ‘Teddy Bear / Don’t Be Cruel’. Elvis then states that “I’d like to play the guitar and do some songs like, ‘Are You Lonesome Tonight’ and ‘God save the Queen’!” ‘Are You Lonesome Tonight’ is the routine laughter-filled ‘77 jokey “do you gaze at your bald head and wish you had hair” version. Luckily Elvis remembers most of the words to the soliloquy section. It was no doubt great fun if you were there, but doesn’t work as a soundboard especially if you have bad memories of the CBS TV special.Elvis then luckily saves the day singing, “My first record had just a guitar and bass” with a pretty ok ‘That’s All Right’ putting in some good energy as he plays his acoustic. Elvis comments, “It’s been a long time”. This was indeed the first time he had performed it this tour although of course he did the same routine with Charlie Hodge during his December 76 shows. Elvis follows with “A song I’m sure you’ve all heard” ‘My Way’ which is sung ok until halfway through when he fluffs the lyrics, laughs and ask the band to “go back again.” Sadly, yes we have all heard this song before but then Elvis fluffs it! He recovers by the end – and the crowd gives it an ovation - but as a soundboard recording it has to disappoint. Up next and purely because Ginger Alden is in the audience (Elvis dedicates it to "chicken neck"!) ‘Release Me’ is a real rarity that Elvis surprises the band with. Elvis never sang this song at all in 1976 and had only performed it a handful of times since 1973 when he dropped it from his set-list. Obviously new for the recent band members Elvis even sings the intro for pianist Tony Brown to play (which he doesn’t!). This of course has nothing like the power of Elvis’ earlier versions but performed with a slower "country" feel it is still good to hear especially as Elvis obviously really enjoys singing it and gives it an extended ending. (included on FTD 'Unchained Melody’) (At this point all the Band Introductions are missed along with ‘Hurt’.) After an edit Elvis then thanks the audience and says “My cousin Billy and his wife Jo are here tonight, so I’d like to dedicate this show to them”. Then notes “You have been a fantastic audience and it’s truly been very gratifying for us, so anytime you want us back just let us know and we’ll come back” Elvis would sadly never get the chance to return. ‘Can’t Help Falling In Love’ is a routine kiss-the-girls version but with a strong ending. Then the Closing Vamp.
Johnson City, Tennessee, Feb 19 1977 ‘You Gave Me A Mountain’ is well-sung by Elvis even though he tends to over-power the choruses.
“I’d like to do a song that Frank Sinatra did, My Way, but I don’t know the words to it so I have to read it.” For a song that he has performed the previous seven nights it has to be a little disappointing. Fortunately - with a spoken “to think, I did all that” - it is one of Elvis’ better ‘77 versions with a strong ending. The usual Band Introductions – 16 minutes this night – are thankfully missing ‘Hurt’ (fades in late) is another decent version and tonight, unlike most nights this tour, includes a reprise with an added power-ending! Elvis laughs, “I’ll tell you what, my eyes crossed!”. Feeling in a good mood Elvis then tells the crowd, “Let’s do something drastic like Polk Salad Annie”. This sounds very fine and the band is playing well, feeding off Elvis’ energy. A video of this shows Elvis doing a jump and a kick at the end. Great sound, nicely emphasising James Burton’s guitar and Jerry Scheff bass. Sounding exhausted Elvis then says they are a fantastic audience and notes “The reigning Miss Tennessee is here in the audience tonight and I’d like to dedicate the show to her, Terry Alden”. Presumably having Ginger Alden’s sister in the audience meant that Elvis tried to put on a better show. ‘Can’t Help Falling in Love’ is another “Wise men know when it’s time to go” version with Elvis sounding breathless. Followed by the Closing Vamp.
Charlotte, North Carolina Feb 20 1977. By ‘You Gave Me A Mountain’ Elvis sounds more engaged and manages to ignore the microphone feedback that would often upset him. Elvis takes trouble over his phrasing and when he sings "just tired, tired of being my wife" @ 01.40 it has particular resonance. The crowd is very appreciative too. Next is the routine ‘Jailhouse Rock’ followed by the routine “smart alec” ‘‘O Sole Mio / It’s Now or Never’ Before Elvis sings a fine ‘Little Sister’ there is some fun crowd interaction, with Elvis obviously in good spirits, "When they told me this was Elvis territory they weren’t kidding" and jokingly boxing to the crowd, "She just rung my bell! And what round is it?” A weak ‘Teddy Bear / Don’t Be Cruel’ follows. As the ‘My Way’ intro starts again we get the often repeated,“Very difficult to sing with ice in throat”. Getting the concert back on track Elvis performs a rather gentle and excellent version of ‘My Way.’ Listening to Elvis singing @ 02.15 how "I faced it all and I stood tall" breaks your heart knowing what would happen six months later. Elvis sings it beautifully putting his soul into every word. After this concert highlight Elvis then blows it all by trying his first live attempt at his new single ‘Moody Blue’! Elvis talks with the band while James Burton plays the melody “If we make a mistake please excuse us because we have never done it until tonight.” - but in the end he gives up in frustration, "To hell with Moody Blue!" (The following night Elvis would manage the only complete live version) Although in a spot of trouble Elvis then manages to redeem himself by continuing with another highlight of a powerful ‘How Great Thou Art’ – the only time Elvis would perform it this tour - which gets a big response from the crowd. (16 minutes of Band Introductions are missed) ‘Hurt’ is sung well tonight with Elvis adding a different ending to the song sliding down the scale and back up again. A great version that also gets a powerful reprise. ‘Hound Dog’ is a totally thrown-away crowd-pleaser. Then there’s some more interaction with the crowd when someone in the crowd shows a photo of him aged two with his mother and father. It’s a cute moment with Elvis laughing and mentioning that, "I was a mere child and had visions of singing in a Gospel Quartet." In a lovely offbeat moment Elvis then sings the start of his 1957 recording ‘My Wish Came True’ . What a shame that Glen D Hardin wasn’t present that night as he could well have started playing the melody and got a little more out of Elvis.
There are some delightful photos of this great interaction published in other releases and so FTD really should have included one picture of this emotional moment. Elvis then announces that, "I’d to sit at the piano because we are recording this live" – an odd statement as RCA were not recording officially - before performing his fourth live 1977 version of ‘Unchained Melody’ . After a false start Elvis comments, "Hey. It sounds awfully dry fellows. Is it me? Or it’s like I’ve got nineteen frogs in my throat!" But it’s a fine and passionate version and obviously an audience highlight, even if Elvis doesn’t quite get it right at the end. Interestingly Elvis would next sing this song at Ann Arbor in April which would become the officially released LP version, albeit with overdubs. A quick ‘Can't Help Falling In Love’ including a Peter Sellers "somethings you know” and Elvis is heading on home. As noted, this rather enjoyable concert was released in 2007 by FTD and it was very welcome at the time since it included excellent bonus tracks from Feb 14 and 18. See full review here 'Unchained Melody’.
DISC 4: Charlotte, North Carolina, Feb 21 1977 - R/T 42 minutes. Tonight Elvis decided to sing ‘Are You Lonesome Tonight’ as his third song (after ‘I Got A Woman / Amen’) which becomes desperately worrying as Elvis gets the words mixed up, then starts the song again where embarrassingly he has the lines fed to him by Sweet Inspiration Estelle Brown. There is a joke where Elvis quips back to her after “does your memory stray?” - “does yours?” to which Estelle rightly replies, “No, but yours did!” It is truly a sad reflection of where Elvis’ health was heading in his final year.
The routine crowd-pleasers ‘Little Sister’, ‘Teddy Bear / Don’t Be Cruel’ follow. ‘My Way’ is a passable ’77 version, performed sincerely. The next Closing Night treat is a gentle ‘Release Me’ with Elvis obviously enjoying the groove. The next time Elvis would perform the song would be his very last concert on June 26. The Band Introductions are thankfully missing. ‘Hurt’ is routine but a real crowd pleaser. As another Closing Night treat Elvis decided to add ‘Why Me Lord’ but it ends up being a rather strange version since it starts in a higher key than it normally would. Sung only a handful of times since Elvis dropped it from his set-list in 1975, this would be Elvis’ first performance in 1977. It is an interesting addition because you can imagine Elvis scratching his head and wondering why it doesn't sound right. You can hear Elvis start singing but then he stops the song half-way through saying to Ronnie Tutt, "It’s the wrong key fellows. Ronnie?" Elvis is obviously happy when they re-start in the right key as he then joins in to perform a very sweet, if short, version.The show then ends with Elvis saying, "Anytime you want us back up here just let us know and we’ll come back." Sadly he never would. ‘Can’t Help Falling in Love’ is a throwaway “Wise men know when its time, time to go” version and with the Closing Vamp a rather mediocre Closing Night is over. The bootleg ‘Moody Blue & Other Great Performances’ released by Fort Baxter (1995) included this show along with other highlights from Montgomery on 16 Feb. It was a rather good compilation.
Extra Comments: It’s worth noting that at this point in his life Elvis could not be bothered with any pre-tour rehearsals. But with Elvis expecting to include his latest single ‘Moody Blue’ surely a rehearsal could have helped make this a fine tour, instead of a passable tour with just a few rare highlights. ‘Are You Lonesome Tonight’ is such a complete mess and as each tour went on the performance of this song would get even worse. Thankfully after starting the tour, with Elvis looking bloated and unwell, he lost weight and looked and sounded better as the tour went on, and actually looked fine on 20th February. Sadly, he never looked as good again and gained extra weight for the rest of the next 1977 four remaining tours. It is also notable that for his next tour Elvis would drop two ‘big’ songs ‘Polk Salad Annie’ and ‘Unchained Melody’ with the only real treat being the occasional ‘How Great Thou Art’. This would mean a dispirited March tour with a big drop in quality of repertoire and four cancelled shows. It is probably Elvis’ worst overall 1977 tour. FTD has already released all the highlights of this second tour on their March 24 ‘Amarillo 77’ compilation.
Another great George Hill photo of Elvis in Charlotte Feb 20 - sadly not included in this FTD.
Overall Verdict: How much do you enjoy Elvis’ performances in 1977? There certainly are a few highlights but overall most of these concerts sound all too similar. FTD obviously compiled the highlights of all these shows on their 'Unchained Melody’ release. It is Elvis’ Montgomery, Alabama Feb 16 concert that is the real highlight so it is nice to hear it in context and another benefit is that all the shows here do have improved audio quality over previous releases. Perhaps hearing Elvis in 1977 saddens you, in which case this set is not for you. But if you are a collector who appreciates Elvis in 1977, and you want to hear how his health and happiness changed at each performance, then this set is certainly well-worth buying.
Review by Geoffrey McDonnell / Piers Beagley. Click here to comment on this article
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