Writing for the king-Tracklist

I am not really too interested what they are trying to accomplish.

Why are you even an Elvis fan?

I am more focused on what I am trying to accomplish.

Oh, how heart-warming!

So sad, what Ernst and Roger must deal with in the Elvis world.

Let's face it: as great and democratic as the net is, it also means that we have empowered the instant "arm-chair pundit".

I doubt that the still-great "Elvis The Man, the Music" magazine has such random musings. There's more thought put into a real article and a real letter to the editor.

Here, it's all to easy to just type away and I'm as guilty as anyone.

So bring on the FTD!

DJC wrote: Why are you even an Elvis fan?

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This is one of the most ludicrous rhetorical questions ever presented.

I don't have to justify my opinions to anyone let alone you.

I appreciate the FTD label for what it is.

The FTD label is only a part of Elvis collecting.

Is a person not a fan, just because they don't purchase every single main label release? Or every single audience recording? Or every single book?
Or a limited edition duck?
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DJC wrote: Oh, how heart-warming!

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This coming from "mr. Sunshine himself".


Why is it that you never have the balls to criticize anything Ernst does, and yet you can criticize Elvis' work with ease?

And why is it you can't address the real issue when its brought up?

This is just another marketing strategy that I don't care for.

It's the same marketing attitude of putting a previously unknown song in acetate form on a cd of hits. ie "I'm a roustabout".

Ernst or BMG has troubles sometimes coming up with a concept and following it thru to the end in focus.

Hey Ekee, im about to criticize Ernst and FTD, u ready?? i didn't like Tucson 76, lousy show, lousy sound. Also I didn't like Takin' Tahoe. wasn't pleased with the sound quality. so there u go, happy now?

Kylan, Ok, There you go. You are making progress.
Perhaps you will inspire the fake doctor to admit to any one of the precious FTD releases he didn't like.
You didn't like it. Not everyone is going to like everything released.
I won't hold that against you. I liked both of those releases.
In fact I like about 90% of them.

I suppose you won't be buying too many more Soundboards, because if you didn't like the sound, sorry but that's what they sound like.
I will on the other hand accept the sound, if its the best that they can get from the source. The Hawaii 1961 show is my favorite concert of all time.
Check out the sound on that one!

There is a way to criticize and a way not to.

For example: Take the "A date with Elvis" album. The stereo reprocessed version.

Lets assume you are going to review it. The songs are fine, the sound is fine etc. But someone from RCA decided to mess with the sound.

I am usually against corporate decisions that are made like that.

I do realize that its a team effort and all credit or blame can't just go just to Ernst.

I didn't realise that Johnny Cymbal of 'Mr Bass Man' fame wrote Mary in the Morning. Will be good to hear his version.

I was a little surprised to find the bonus CD was live cuts - but since when did Live material from 1969/70 ever let us down????

Andrew

And why is it you can't address the real issue when its brought up?

Are you sure this isn't the real question of the year Larry??

It's a close run thing - pehaps we need a poll!!



(Oh no, not anothe f@#$&^% poll!!!!)

Well I hate to be "down" on a release before having seen or heard it ...

I hate to moan about FTD ...

And yet -- you do -- over and over again.

Never have before!! You must be confusing me with yourself, on the first point at least!!

There are few posters on FECC that are as negative about Elvis' output as you, my warped and twisted "friend". And none who are so rude and dismissive of other board members!!

At the risk of bringing this thread back on topic, allow me to say (as the first person to go on record here confessing surprise at the track listing) that I think this book is going to be great -- a treasure.

Interviews like these are highlights of the best Elvis magazines, inluding Elvis the Man and His Music. I devour them, and I think some (no, not all) of the detractors wil come to see the great value of this book if they give it a chance.

As far as the track listing is concerned, yes, I was surprised. Should I have been? Perhaps not. Bu my hope will never die that unreleased snippets remain, that scraps of tape will be unearthed.

I don't know that I ever expected a perfect one-to-one correspondence of outtake to demo because, of course, I realize that some avenues have been exhausted. Also, including new outtakes of some songs that have been recently released on "definitive" Classic Albums would have raised a whole different chorus of complaints.

The truth is, Ernst can't win on this issue. I guarantee you -- and you know it's true -- whatever he does with a project like this will be criticized.

But remember, Ernst gets to do only those FTD projects for which he can offer reasonable assurances to the execs they will not lose money. The fact that this is the fourth book/CD combo tells us that the concept is successful enough to justify another release.

This book may be the priciest yet (because it will be the largest), but FTD ain't a budget label, folks, and doing specialty projects for the fans is what it's all about.

Like it are not, there are a lot of people -- including myself -- who can't wait to get this book. And new releases of Elvis in his prime? Hey, if you've got a disc of 23 versions of Elvis warbling "I'm a Little Teacup" when he was firing on all cylinders back in 1969/70, I'll be first in line to buy it. These are going to be some ass-kicking recordings, we know, and, again, a lot of us will be glad to get 'em.

Sorry if you're not looking forward to this project, but if Ernst waited around to do a project that didn't have any detractors, there'd never be an FTD released. That's a fact.

Last edited by elvissessions on Thu Nov 09, 2006 3:47 pm, edited 1 time in total.

At the risk of bringing this thread back on topic, allow me to say (as the first person to go on record here confessing surprise at the track listing) that I think this book is going to be great -- a treasure.

Sorry if you're not looking forward to this project, but if Ernst waited around to do a project that didn't have any detractors, there'd never be an FTD released. That's a fact.

OK, we're back on "track"!!

I agree, the book will be a classic. And the Cds will be good too. No doubt. A couple of us just had a feeling that Cd 2 is out of context - no big deal, no need for anyone to go apesh#t.

Latest photo of what the cover might end up looking like
for this exciting project...

PEP

Wow, what a great cover for a great volume.

BRING IT ON!!

Yeah, super cool cover for sure! I wonder how many pictures this book will include...

Keith Richards, Jr.

I can't wait to get my hands on this "combo" and with xmas coming you can grab it without justifying the purchase to your wife
I think this book will give an essential insight into the process of making records, from the songwriters point of view. Essential because without these writers the music wouldn't have been.
As for the audio part it's like elvissessions said, Ernest will be criticized no matter what. I admit that an Elvis Vegas disc wasn't my first thought, but hey, this doesn't ruin it, on the contrary we get the Tiger Man at his best.
And the price... 400 pages inside a hard-cover and 2 CD's, I don't think this is expencive. Being this time of year, go tell your mom, wife or kid you wan't it for xmas.

Regards, Dan

Just how good will this book be?

With rare exceptions the writers were not present at the sessions. We have Leiber and Stoller accounts of sessions they attended which while interesting are hardly comprehensive.

We have had interviews witth people like Doc Pomus which also don't add a great deal as he was not present in the studio.

What can Paul McCartney say or John Fogerty that we don't already know?

I would rather just have the demos without the cost of a 400 page third party rambling book

In fact I like about 90% of them.

My, aren't you Ernst's worst nightmare as far as being "critical" ...

If you weren't so blatantly ignorant about my commentary, you'd readily know which FTD releases I have found lacking.

Just how good will this book be? ... I would rather just have the demos without the cost of a 400 page third party rambling book ...

Your cynical attitude -- condemning a book before you've read a single page or encountered a single review -- is a slap in the face to the hard work of author Ken Sharp. Do you imagine crafting a 400-page book takes a fortnight?

Do you know what primary research is? Look it up. And while you're at it, take all of five minutes to discover the on-line articles Ken's written and catch a clue along the way. It's really not that hard.

---

Boy, does this MB run the gamut, from respectful and intelligent to rude and staggeringly ignorant. It's nice to be a part of the former, but the latter does get very old.

Boy, does this MB run the gamut, from respectful and intelligent to rude and staggeringly ignorant. It's nice to be a part of the former, but the latter does get very old.

DJC you are seriously deluding yourself if you think that you are a respectful member of this board. I suspect that nobody here would attribute that virtue to you. You are without doubt the least respectful poster here on a consistent basis.

You seem to be unable to disagree respectfully with people, but rather launch into rude tirades instead.

You display the odd flash of intelligence, but this is offset by many ignorant and plain stupid remarks. For instance, your expressed desire to rid the board of those who disagree with you. Shades of facism there!!

It is a shame, because I am sure you have a positive contribution that you could make, but you just can't help yourself.

In fact I like about 90% of them.

Just how good will this book be? ... I would rather just have the demos without the cost of a 400 page third party rambling book ...

Your cynical attitude -- condemning a book before you've read a single page or encountered a single review -- is a slap in the face to the hard work of author Ken Sharp. Do you imagine crafting a 400-page book takes a fortnight?

Do you know what primary research is? Look it up. And while you're at it, take all of five minutes to discover the on-line articles Ken's written and catch a clue along the way..

Good grief! I am merely wondering just how useful this book will really be!.

The cost of 400 pages of interviews with song writers of which only a very few actually witnessed an Elvis Presley recording session suggests that very little will be learnt about a song's recording progress.

Seeing you are so clever Doc - what info will this book contain.

It's not as though we can peruse this in a bookstore and then upon it's merits decide whether or not to buy it.

We are buying a pig in a poke.

My query is quite legitimate - your reply is just sheer vindictiveness.

... your expressed desire to rid the board of those who disagree with you.

Where I have ever posted such a desire?

When you discover your comment is -- surprise! -- baseless, I expect to read your apology here, since you are the shining example of a respectful poster on this MB.

Tick tick tick ...

Sam's instant fix...
FTD Throw in a 3rd CD with Elvis' tracks of the demos. Then most will be happy.

At the price of this set it could cover that cost!!!

Quote: If you weren't so blatantly ignorant about my commentary, you'd readily know which FTD releases I have found lacking.

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Gee I must have missed those postings. Forgive me?

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Boy, does this MB run the gamut, from respectful and intelligent to rude and staggeringly ignorant.

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Well at least you are predictible.


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A 3rd cd would not help me Like someone said earlier, we all know what the masters sound like and most of the outtakes. So we could compare on our own.

My problem is that to hear the cd's we have to buy a book.

I still want to hear those cd's but I am not going to buy a book I can't afford.

A 3rd cd would not help me Like someone said earlier, we all know what the masters sound like and most of the outtakes. So we could compare on our own.

My problem is that to hear the cd's we have to buy a book.

I still want to hear those cd's but I am not going to buy a book I can't afford.

Well I said most!!!

I'm a bit in your boat...to expensive!!!!

Ernst could've well just released the most featured 1969 Vegas show, but hey, if he'd ahve individually released it, i bet people would've turned around and said 'This one sounds too much like Elvis at the International, or All shook up, or Live in Las Vegas boxset disc 1'.

I'm personally looking forward to it. With Elvis, you almost always get a different version of a song in some way, so its always worth it i think. Christmas is gonna be good

I can't wait to get my hands on this "combo" and with xmas coming you can grab it without justifying the purchase to your wife

Mr. Dan, you are now my favourite FECC poster! Your enthusiasm is truly refreshing and like I've said 13 times already in this thread I can't wait for this book either.

And the price... 400 pages inside a hard-cover and 2 CD's, I don't think this is expencive.

True. Ken Sharpe must have spent an enormous amount of time and energy on this project, and the FTD books are high-quality productions, not some cheap sh*t that falls apart after two weeks.

Keith Richards, Jr.

Yes indeed you truly can get value for money this time aroud. Christmas comes closer every night...........