A Fine Package

Unlike Elvis' 1950s output, which could all be fit neatly into the KING OF ROCK & ROLL box set, his seventies catalogue is vast and, admittedly, not always spectacular. WALK A MILE IN MY SHOES is therefore a selective and subjective look at the King's last seven years; and while no such compilation can ever be perfect in the eyes of anyone but those lucky enough to have been assigned the task of assembling it, this is a wonderfully packaged and remastered body of (mostly) wonderful work.

Elvis' downward spiral - physical and artistic - over the course of his final years has been overplayed to such an extent that many people, unfamiliar with the King's latterday output, assume that little if any of it could be worthwhile. This is a huge mistake, as WALK A MILE IN MY SHOES admirably proves. To be sure, the early seventies represented a far higher peak for Elvis in all respects than the mid-seventies (or, for that matter, most of the sixties); so it's no surprise that 1970 is the most referenced year in this box set - both on the discs themselves and in the photos adorning the excellent accompanying book. Nevertheless, Elvis continued to make good music right up until the end, and the producers of this collection have made sure to remind us of that by their choice and assemblage of material.

Discs one and two contain all of Elvis' 1970s singles (A and B sides), with the inexplicable and rather outrageous exceptions of two "gospel" numbers which, we are happily informed, can be found on another compilation. But why leave them off, if completeness is the point here? In any case, classics such as "Burnin' Love" and "Always on My Mind" sound greater than ever alongside equally fine but less celebrated performances such as "I'm Leavin'," "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" and "Fool," and the good stuff just keeps on coming. For some reason, a few of the songs aren't presented in strict release order, which is something of a mystery as they don't follow a chronological order either; but in any case, these are two truly excellent CDs, top to bottom and end to end.

Discs three and four contain non-single studio recordings from 1970-71 and 1971-76, respectively, and while a few of the selections may be argued over there's no denying that most of these are indeed essential Elvis tracks. The 1970 Nashville sessions which yielded most of THAT'S THE WAY IT IS and ELVIS COUNTRY, as well as the LOVE LETTERS FROM ELVIS album and several singles, are offered in their entirety save for a half-dozen or so songs, which depending on your perspective might qualify as over- or under-representation; and there are some rehearsal tracks of debatable quality. Nevertheless, oddities like the original studio version of "My Way" and unedited versions of some of the Nashville songs are treats indeed.

Disc five is a compilation of live material recorded between 1970 and 1977, which is an appropriate way to cap off this box since the King's concerts were probably the most crucial component of his work in the seventies. The outstanding ON STAGE album is tapped for no fewer than six tracks, including "Walk a Mile in My Shoes" itself, easily one of Elvis' greatest performances and here nicely prefaced with the King reciting a bit of the poem "Men with Broken Hearts." Songs from the 1972 Madison Square Garden concerts and 1973's "Aloha from Hawaii" are also included, of course, as well as top-notch versions of "Never Been to Spain," "You Gave Me a Mountain" and "Unchained Melody." Things bog down a bit in the middle of the disc, with a couple of the half-baked, half-length versions of his fifties hits which the King offered as a nostalgic wink to his greying audience making things more than a bit silly; but that, too, was part of the experience, and so it's probably rightly included here.

A truly definitive collection of Elvis' seventies material is clearly an impossibility. Everyone has his favorites, and the King's musical palette was far too broad in his last years to allow even a set this big to be completely comprehensive. WALK A MILE IN MY SHOES is as good an attempt to pare things down to six hours as we're ever likely to hear, though, and that's more than enough to make it a must. Long live the King!

ELVIS PRESLY THE ALL TIME BEST

I GREW UP ON ELVIS PRESLY SONG AND I THINK HE IS SO TERRIFFIC HE IS A GREAT SINGER AND WAS A GREAT FATHER .HIS MOVIES WAS WONDERFUL WHO EVER DONT KNOW ABOUT HIM SHOULD REALYGET TO KNOW HIM .HE IS THE ALL TIME BEST .I WOULD RECAMEND ANY OF HIS SONGS OR MOVIES TO ANYONE .

This the 4th and last item of Elvis RCA-Box Set

This the 4th and last item of Elvis RCA-Box Set: The Essential 70's Master. It has 5 CDs in a box set (120 tracks) and covers the 70's studio and concert recordings. Includes unreleased records, 94-page full-color booklet and stamps depicting Elvis' 70's record covers. CD1 and CD2 consists of The Singles; CD3 Studio Highlights 1970-71; CD4 Studio Highlights 1971-76; CD5 The Elvis Presley Show (in which you can find unreleased recordings, formal and informal rehearsal recordings of some songs and a short poem). Generally RCA's Elvis Box Set is a MUST BUY set for all Elvis fans and for who wants an Elvis collection. To see the other items in RCA-Box Set of Elvis, you can click to 'see all my reviews' and reach there to other items.