The penultimate tour: 35th anniversary

I think there's a review out there: "Elvis All shook up in show flop" or something like that.
I have seen the headline copy but not the content.. reading your comments it looks like it was in a Baltimore newspaper..

Anyway.. It's a notorious show but the content actually is not near as bad as you would expect.
But there must have been thousands in attendance who were also there in '71.
What a contrast..

Great work Tom.
Somehow you seem to be able to dig up pics I haven't seen before and I hope you will cover other tours as well.

A banana split on you man!

still enjoying this trip back to 1977. Honestly, he doesn't look as bad in these photos as I would expect. I don't know, maybe it's all those years watching EIC....doesn't sound bad, either. The worst thing I can say about some of these shows is that they were so short, but I don't think Elvis had it in him to be onstage singing for an hour and a half in 1977. Sure looks like he was giving it some effort, though, and the crowds sound as enthusiastic as ever.

Great to see you back on this topic Tom Here is another which I believe is from Baltimore.

Great to see you back on this topic Tom Here is another which I believe is from Baltimore.

Thanks for your comments; as you can see there are flowery things on the curtains, and as I said in the Rochester section, that makes this Rochester.

Great to see you back on this topic Tom Here is another which I believe is from Baltimore.

Thanks for your comments; as you can see there are flowery things on the curtains, and as I said in the Rochester section, that makes this Rochester.

Thanks... I'll update my 77' files!

Horrible curtains

Three more dates to go of this tour which has turned out to be not quite as bad as could have been imagined, actually. It's time for

Jacksonville May 30: Veteran's Memorial Coliseum (attendance 10300)

As mentioned, Elvis left Baltimore directly after the show and arrived in Jacksonville after midnight. But already by 4.15 AM he had made plans to go elsewhere, as Larry Geller recounts:

I got to Elvis' room and was surprised see him dressed in his black jumpsuit...he walked up to me and said "Don't tell anyone...let's take a fast flight to Memphis. We'll be back before anyone wakes up. I wanna get Ginger and bring her back on tour...we'll just bring Dick and Billy. Let's hit it." Without anyone knowing, we left the hotel and drove to where the Lisa Marie was waiting and set to go...[I said] "Man, if anyone goes into your room and finds you're not there, they'll go out of their minds!" Elvis laughed "Yeah, it'll tear their heads up", he said, grinning...We landed in Memphis...Elvis instructed the driver to go to a medical building before we went to pick up Ginger.

While waiting in the doctor's office Elvis rummaged through his desk for some pills....and after conferring with the (unnamed) doctor picked up Ginger and returned to Jacksonville...without anyone being any the wiser, apparently.

This was Elvis' fourth visit to Jacksonville and his fifth show there since 1972. All those shows took at the VMC which was demolished in 2003 and replaced with the Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena. I wasn't able to find a real good picture of the interior but hopefully the one below will do. A video of the demolition can be viewed at Youtube.

The Memphis trip safely behind him, Elvis stepped on stage for the first makeup show for those cancelled March-April shows.



At least Bob Heis, George Hill and Harold Newton were there to capture the action, and apparently also Keith Alverson was present.





This show had been around a long time on cd-r, and recently it also came out on CD under the title I Really Don't Want to Know on Memory label. My cd-r version sounds like the same source has been used, and a very good source it is, apart for the first few minutes. The sound quality is very pleasing. All in all, this was a pleasant surprise to listen to. The covers on both the CD and cd-r versions are pretty bad, and I've chosen to use a fan made cover from tcb-world for illustration here.

C.C. Rider / I Got A Woman - Amen / Love Me / Fairytale / You Gave Me A Mountain / Jailhouse Rock / It's Now Or Never / Tryin' To Get To You / Little Sister / Teddy Bear - Don't Be Cruel / And I Love You So / My Way / Introductions: Early Morning Rain - What'd I Say - Johnny B. Goode - I Really Don't Want To Know - Hail, Hail Rock'n'Roll / Hurt / Hound Dog / Can't Help Falling In Love

While Elvis does sound a bit tired, it's a pleasant show. Or maybe it's just the nice sound quality that colors my impression - but I did enjoy this show. Things of note are the first appearance of IRDWTK and slow/fast Hound Dog. The first song seems to just pop into Elvis' head as he asks whether Tony Brown knows it. Luckily the man who could not do Blueberry Hill knew this one! While Hound Dog is a bit different than usual, it really is just a weak version. "We have to go now, but if you want us back just let us know and we shall return," says Elvis at the end - sadly he never did.



The only review I've been able to track down (no film footage either) is from Florida Times-Union:

. It hardly seems possible, but it was 21 years ago that he first appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show and the network cameras cut him off at the waist. A whole generation of kids grew up believing the man had no legs.But, what he couldn't show in 1956, he can in 1977. And he did. Elvis twitched, rotated, shook, gyrated, motivated and, every now and then, he sang. Pretty well too, if you like his particular style of country-rock-whatevertheheckitis-music.

The show over, he presumably flew directly into Baton Rouge? Well, that show is up next in this silly thread, which I'm starting to regret ever starting...

It is not a silly thread, it is fascinating and a great record of the tour and much appreciated. Well done.

I appreciate it, too - especially that the 77 haters are staying away, so I can just enjoy this Elvis in all his glory.

I think it's a great thread. Keep it goin !

I think it's a great thread!

I do, too.

And now 35 years after....people around the world are still gathering to see him in concert.......when you think about it, quite amazing really (Hope I don`t spoil the thread by this, but I couldn`t help but compare then and now....it`s like....he still got it)

You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.

Silly thread? This is one of the best topics I laid my eyes upon around here!

Thank you!

I'm in with the rest of the gang..........this is the best thread I've read on FECC in AGES!

And now 35 years after....people around the world are still gathering to see him in concert.......when you think about it, quite amazing really (Hope I don`t spoil the thread by this, but I couldn`t help but compare then and now....it`s like....he still got it)

i can see myself in this pic!!!!

well...it is now that Scatt has come along......how are you going mate?

Carolyn!! My Aussie connection!!!

And now 35 years after....people around the world are still gathering to see him in concert.......when you think about it, quite amazing really (Hope I don`t spoil the thread by this, but I couldn`t help but compare then and now....it`s like....he still got it)

i can see myself in this pic!!!!

Me too!! I love Photoshop!

Tom Wilson: I just checked and I don't think the source that Memory used for their CD is the same as the old CD-R (titled simply "Live In Jacksonville"). There's quite a difference between them. Plus I heard at least one "dropout" in sound during See See Rider which wasn't in the old CD-R. Not a technical mistake but rather one of the person who recorded it.

I hope that my opinion is useful!
PS.: The first live version of "I Really Don't Want To Know" is really nice and very close to the studio version, actually, in terms of tempo and phrasing. Elvis even starts it in its original key but changes his mind later.

And now 35 years after....people around the world are still gathering to see him in concert.......when you think about it, quite amazing really (Hope I don`t spoil the thread by this, but I couldn`t help but compare then and now....it`s like....he still got it)

i can see myself in this pic!!!!

Cool, which one is you? If you`d like to have the picture in full size I`d be happy to email it to you.

Thanks all for your nice comments - I just feel this is a sloppily made thread with limited info. This is not the best I could do, but hopefully it's adequate - there is so much lacking here that I would like yet to see, regarding this or any other tour.

About the Memory source for Jacksonville: I don't have that release, but the recording I have (can't even remember where I got it) resembles closely the samples from the Memory release I've heard online...

OK, there are two more dates to cover, starting with

Baton Rouge May 31: LSU Assembly Center (attendance 12000)

Presumably Elvis had flown into Baton Rouge right after his show in Jacksonville; in any case, he stayed at the local Hilton. The show took place at Louisiana State University's Assembly Center, today known as Pete Maravich Assembly center. This was a third visit to Baton Rouge and the fourth show in 3 years in the Louisiana capital.



Exactly two months earlier, the Baton Rouge audience was already seated in the Center, when the announcement of the cancellation came. This brought "howls" of protest from the crowd - and apparently the cancellation hit back in May, as there were up to 3000 empty seats. From an earlier post on this forum:

The concert he gave on May 31, 1977 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana was not sold out, by a long shot. They had hung dark curtains up so that the unused seats would not be seen. This concert was a make-up show from the March show when he decided to fly back to Memphis after everyone was already seated and waiting for him to come on stage. The audience was told to use their ticket stub for the first show and present it when they rescheduled the cancelled show. The make-up concert was held during the week rather than on a weekend. I do not know if this would explain why not as many people showed up or if they just didn't go because they were angry for the first cancellation.

But now Elvis was here, to "redeem" himself, as he told the crowd. But all evidence I've seen seems to suggest that this show was on the level of the Philadelphia show 3 days earlier - a very low key affair.



This is one of those shows from which there is a distinct lack of photos in circulation. As far as I know, none of the "big boy" Elvis photographers attended. The best photos from this show are taken by a Brenda Davidson, and some of those were published in Betty Page's book in the late 70s. Most of the photos in this post are consequently taken by her.

The show has only been released on cd-r under the title "It's Good to be the King"; the Mel Brooks title is perhaps the best thing about this release. I haven't heard this one, so I can't make any comments about the sound quality, but on many sites it has been rated as "below average".

C.C. Rider / I Got A Woman-Amen / Love Me / If You Love Me / You Gave Me A Mountain / Jailhouse Rock / O Sole Mio - It's Now Or Never / Little Sister / Teddy Bear-Don't Be Cruel / Help Me / Polk Salad Annie / Introductions: Early Morning Rain - What'd I Say - Johnny B.Goode - I Really Don't Want To Know - School Days / Hound Dog / Can't Help Falling In Love

There really is nothing of note here - if the tape is not cut, Hurt is missing and based on this listing the whole show seems to have been a perfunctory affair.



The local review in the Morning Advocate the next day considered the whole thing a rather sad affair:

As mentioned last year when Elvis was here, his concert is not a musical event. The fans, predominantly female, were there not to hear but to see – to see their idol in the flesh. An Elvis concert is a rite of spring, a pagan worship ceremony, a ritual for those bent on recapturing lost youth. And the concert has the same unvarying quality of a religious ceremony, where tradition forbids any tampering with the ritual...it reminds us that Elvis, like us, ain’t as young as he used to be. He’s had a hell of an impact on our music, and he still could be an important performer. But watching him in that white suit, trying to do a split, is a sad experience, very much like watching Johnny Unitas during his last heart-breaking year with the San Diego Chargers or Willie Mays with the Mets. And the feeling you get is the same - damn it, you were the best, don’t cheapen our memories…

Longtime fan Sandy Pichon attended this show; the previous time she'd seen Elvis had been in Orlando where she had seen an "very energetic Elvis in great voice." This time it was different:

I sat in the first row of the side section, way back from the stage. As the world's preeminent entertainer strutted onstage, my eyes filled with tears and I wept openly...tears of sorrow and frustration. I couldn't believe that it was him. I didn't even taken one picture; I couldn't lift my arms to photograph him in this condition. It wasn't just that he looked out of shape; he looked unhealthy. He didn't seem tired; he seemed out if it. He didn't have command of the stage and was incomprehensible when speaking. He forgot the words to songs then cut them short. He did not drop down in a graceful karate stance and contort his body to greet and kiss the fans. It was a visible effort for him to get on a knee and lean over. To me it seemed that band was tense. I could tell that they were worried about Elvis.

So after two decent shows (Baltimore was that musically), the health issues were back and not even Ginger's presence helped this time. There were two more dates to make up from April and Elvis headed to Macon right after this show. Luckily there is only that show to report on in this thread...

This concert was a make-up show from the March show when he decided to fly back to Memphis after everyone was already seated and waiting for him to come on stage.

And people still go nuts when one considers that Sinatra was doing better by his 79th anniversary!

I better get this thread finished now - or I might never do it. It is time to look at Elvis' fifth appearance in

Macon June 1: Coliseum (attendance 10242)

Elvis left for Macon directly from Baton Rouge and arrived after midnight. This time there were people documenting the arrival (or at least I've been able to find such photos). Here's Elvis arriving at Macon airport and later on entering his hotel with Ginger...and an apple.



The show took place at the local coliseum which is still standing and in active use



There is picture series showing Elvis leaving for the show via a "scenic route" which is so well known that I thought I'd spare you from that. Having successfully navigated his way through garbage cans and such, he seems happy enough to be sitting in his limo with a glass of water in hand and Ginger by his side.



Elvis stepped on stage at the coliseum to the relief of fans who'd been waiting for this moment for two months ever since the April cancellation. (not in the coliseum, though - OK that was a bad attempt at a joke)



At least 3 of the familiar Elvis photographers were present this evening, namely Bob Heis, Keith Alverson and Harold Newton:





Also this show has only been out on a below average quality cd-r under several titles one of which is Macon '77. Again, I have not heard it so that below average rating has to be taken on faith. I guess it's not too far from the truth.

C.C. Rider / I Got A Woman -Amen / Love Me / Fairytale / You Gave Me A Mountain / Jailhouse Rock / O Sole Mio -It's Now Or Never / My Way / Little Sister / Teddy Bear - Don't Be Cruel / And I Love You So / Danny Boy (S.Nielsen) / Walk With Me (S.Nielsen) / Introductions - Early Morning Rain - What'd I Say - Johnny B.Goode - School Days / My Heavenly Father (K. Westmoreland) / Hound Dog / Big Boss Man / Can't Help Falling In Love

The song listing seems promising enough to begin with, but during And I Love You So a "frog" develops in Elvis' throat, which hampers him until the end of the show. Thus the audience gets to enjoy two Nielsen numbers and Kathy also gets her spot in the limelight, while Elvis apparently attempts to remove the frog in the background. Of note is also that there is no Hurt on this evening, and the good people of Macon are not treated to I Really Don't Want to Know, either. They do get to hear Big Boss Man, though, which is singled out as "the best of the evening."



Portions of this show can be found at Youtube from the TFC set - at the end there's a clip of Elvis returning to his hotel:

There's another clip to be found at Youtube credited to Macon, too. I'm not 100 % certain that it is - but it could be.

Reviews dutifully appeared in the local papers the next day. The Macon News presented a pro/con- type of writing by two different writers. Which one is closer to the truth? Well, let's just say the combination of both probably offers the most truthful picture of the evening.

[CON]Elvis Presley is 42, fat and losing his voice. His once famous bone-grinding wiggle, once banned from television, has now shifted to an occasional twitch that leaves the so-called "king of rock" breathless. He depends on his reputation and backup musicians to get him through concerts. And his seemingly constant gulps from the 30 paper cups on stage also helps. [PRO] Now, he's more like a ritualized stripteaser twirling her tassels. A flick of the knee, a stomp of the foot, gets the message across. He seems tired.Yet, the power's still there. When Elvis hollers out, See See Rider and jerks that right leg, you do see. Right off, he plays off to barrel-voiced J. D. Sumner of the Stamps Quartet. Sumner rolls the basses like an old mill wheel, a complement to Presley when the notes get too low. Presley struts up front where a pair of hands reaches for a scarf, and gets it. "We gone try to make you happy," he drawls.

The Macon Telegraph took a somewhat more distant and wondering view (using the same but this time non-reversed picture)

But it was the King and the voice was there, belting out ballads and foot-stompers like the reed of a man did a decade ago. Women still gush and one housewife shrieked, “Watch him move his leg, watch him move his leg!” In ritual fashion, that Old Hound Dog teased the women with scarves after mopping his brow, finally tossing them into many grasping hands. Pausing, rather, stopping a tune because of a “frog in his throat,” the showman drank a sip of water as screams of delight pealed out in the dark auditorium, blue and purplish lights casting an eerie glow his face. His rendition of C.C. Rider didn’t compare to the days when he didn’t move his legs as if they were spastic. His movements used to be oiled poetry, now the only oil that stood out was on his hair.

I guess this one could be called another disappointing show, in that the backup singers have to carry the show after the "frog" incident. At least Big Boss Man was performed for the only time on this tour. Well, the final show in Mobile would be somewhat better - and then this tour of ups and downs would be over. Not the worst tour, all things considered, but still far from what just a 42 year old superstar should be able to offer. I choose not to dwell on the negatives, and have found some very pleasant moments listening to the recordings from this tour. The trick is not to dwell on a show like Philadelphia for too long... Funny how Elvis was considered old at 42 in 1977 - today at that age he would almost a "spring chicken".

It's off to Mobile for the final show - but I've already done that! So that's this thread finished (phew!) and I'm hopefully outta here! Thanks for your attention - and sorry for this mess of a thread.

That outfit of Kathy's is a bit revealing - didn't know she ever wore anything like that..and while singing a gospel song! But hey, she's just showing what God gave her

Really nice job. Appreciate all of the work. I attended all of the Philly shows of the 70's. The May 28, 1977, was dramatically different than the others. The "feel" was different that night. I "enjoyed" the show obviosuly getting caught up in the moment, but I left a bit bewildered. Elvis' comments before CHFIL about, "Be careful what you read and what you hear. I'm in good health..." while cheered by all, left me a bit puzzeled at the time. And seeing him that way, made the statement even more perplexing for me.
Thanks again.

rlj