The April 1972 tour vs the June tour...ie. MSG shows----

I think this is a good time to compare these tours.

For years I have heard how great Elvis was in "ON TOUR".

I have always held the opinion that Elvis was better in the previous tour, Nov. 1971, and
his June 1972 tour.

I just think he really went that extra mile during these tours, especially his Madison Square Garden shows,
than he did in April.

We have a lot of footage from april, and now that we have some really great sound footage from
June 10th, we can compare a little easier.

After viewing this footage I am un-changed in my original opinion.

There was something missing in those April shows.

Perhaps he was still depressed from the bombshell in Feb. when Priscilla left him, but
he just didn't seem to have the magic like he did before or during these NY shows.

When Elvis was hot, he comes thru very clearly even in grainy super 8 footage.

Oh how I wish that these shows were pro-filmed.

Does the sound footage really make you appreciate the garden shows more than ever?

Do you also believe that the garden shows beat out any of the pro-recorded april shows?

I haven't heard anything from the November 1971 tour.

My favorite concert to listen to regularly is Hampton Roads, mostly for the set list and a very committed Elvis performance, which comes from the April tour. I am the biggest fan of Elvis on Tour. I consider it a deeper, more substantial and revealing effort than That's the Way It Is. With that said, I can't help but concede there's a lot of less than stellar aspects: Elvis is tired, pale and puffy. While the performances are strong and I really do believe he enjoyed being out there, you can sense a certain darkness.

The MSG shows are, in many ways, the best he was ever at post-1970. His voice is perfect, even retaining a bit of the growl he had in 1970 which he somehow lost in 1970-71. He looked better than he had since probably early Fall 1970, too. He isn't rake thin, mind you, but probably right at where he should be for a man his height and age. He's certainly not fat and was actually probably healthier than he was even around the time of Aloha from Hawaii. He had a new challenge on his hands, a new audience to prove himself to, and he more than nailed the opportunity.

Last edited by U.S. Male1990 on Sun Nov 25, 2012 3:01 am, edited 1 time in total.

I would pick the June 1972 tour. He looked much better (the hawaii vacation did wonders. and the setlists were better for the most part.

I was just listening to the Matinee show in Chicago. Great show and killer setlist and he looked great in that paisley top. And he does a better karate workout than the one at MSG.

The april shows were still good. But he looks tired and He did not have a tan and at times he looks depressed.

I had the good fortune to see him in Phil in71 and 7 months later at MSG plus the footage from April. Given that the first time i saw Elvis in person has to color my recollections, there is simply no comparing 71 to anything that came later. 71 was like an uncaged tiger attacking for 50 minutes non stop. By MSG he was far more controlled and disciplined. If you've ever seen the 71 Roddy footage, you will know i mean. While 72 was far better than what was to come, and MSG was good vocally, the cat like attack was replaced with an artist that had complete control of the audience and knew it implicitly. In retrospect i think 71 was an amphetamine and perhaps cocaine fueled jaunt-he was totally amped up and over the top. By 72 i suspect the drug cocktail had changed with more downers in the mix. To be clear, i had never before or since seen anything like his Spectrum71 appearance. It was take no prisoners, no b/s, get out of my way or get steamrolled. By 72, it was workman-like; nothing left to prove- all he need to do was show up, after all he was the king of rock and roll. Vegas ruined the man- total boredom had set in by april 72.

I haven't heard anything from the November 1971 tour.

Get this officially-released CD! Now!!

101100_Boston Garden 71 FTD.JPG

Elvis As Recorded At Boston Garden 71 (FTD, November 2010)
http://home.online.no/~ov-egela/bostongarden71.html

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

I had the good fortune to see him in Phil in71 and 7 months later at MSG plus the footage from April. Given that the first time i saw Elvis in person has to color my recollections, there is simply no comparing 71 to anything that came later. 71 was like an uncaged tiger attacking for 50 minutes non stop. By MSG he was far more controlled and disciplined. If you've ever seen the 71 Roddy footage, you will know i mean. While 72 was far better than what was to come, and MSG was good vocally, the cat like attack was replaced with an artist that had complete control of the audience and knew it implicitly. In retrospect i think 71 was an amphetamine and perhaps cocaine fueled jaunt-he was totally amped up and over the top. By 72 i suspect the drug cocktail had changed with more downers in the mix. To be clear, i had never before or since seen anything like his Spectrum71 appearance. It was take no prisoners, no b/s, get out of my way or get steamrolled. By 72, it was workman-like; nothing left to prove- all he need to do was show up, after all he was the king of rock and roll. Vegas ruined the man- total boredom had set in by april 72.

Wonderful, first-hand observations, and a healthy dose of hindsight to boot. Thank you.

I had the good fortune to see him in Phil in71 and 7 months later at MSG plus the footage from April. Given that the first time i saw Elvis in person has to color my recollections, there is simply no comparing 71 to anything that came later. 71 was like an uncaged tiger attacking for 50 minutes non stop. By MSG he was far more controlled and disciplined. If you've ever seen the 71 Roddy footage, you will know i mean. While 72 was far better than what was to come, and MSG was good vocally, the cat like attack was replaced with an artist that had complete control of the audience and knew it implicitly. In retrospect i think 71 was an amphetamine and perhaps cocaine fueled jaunt-he was totally amped up and over the top. By 72 i suspect the drug cocktail had changed with more downers in the mix. To be clear, i had never before or since seen anything like his Spectrum71 appearance. It was take no prisoners, no b/s, get out of my way or get steamrolled. By 72, it was workman-like; nothing left to prove- all he need to do was show up, after all he was the king of rock and roll. Vegas ruined the man- total boredom had set in by april 72.

Wonderful, first-hand observations, and a healthy dose of hindsight to boot. Thank you.

Could have done without trying to guess the drug regimen Elvis may have been using for the different engagements. Totally unneeded for this discussion.

As for this topic, hard to think Red Hot In Richmond is inferior to November 1971 or MSG. They're all so good. I have to revisit that Boston show again to comment. Like fn2drive, I have the benefit of seeing a 1971 show (Minneapolis) coloring my objectivity. With only CD's to judge by, I like both Red Hot and MSG better than Boston. The 1971 show didn't have Mountain, Trilogy or Impossible Dream on it. Elvis sings like a dream on Red Hot and that probably ekes out a slight win over MSG for me.

I had the good fortune to see him in Phil in71 and 7 months later at MSG plus the footage from April. Given that the first time i saw Elvis in person has to color my recollections, there is simply no comparing 71 to anything that came later. 71 was like an uncaged tiger attacking for 50 minutes non stop. By MSG he was far more controlled and disciplined. If you've ever seen the 71 Roddy footage, you will know i mean. While 72 was far better than what was to come, and MSG was good vocally, the cat like attack was replaced with an artist that had complete control of the audience and knew it implicitly. In retrospect i think 71 was an amphetamine and perhaps cocaine fueled jaunt-he was totally amped up and over the top. By 72 i suspect the drug cocktail had changed with more downers in the mix. To be clear, i had never before or since seen anything like his Spectrum71 appearance. It was take no prisoners, no b/s, get out of my way or get steamrolled. By 72, it was workman-like; nothing left to prove- all he need to do was show up, after all he was the king of rock and roll. Vegas ruined the man- total boredom had set in by april 72.

Excellent observations...Kudos !

I had the good fortune to see him in Phil in71 and 7 months later at MSG plus the footage from April. Given that the first time i saw Elvis in person has to color my recollections, there is simply no comparing 71 to anything that came later. 71 was like an uncaged tiger attacking for 50 minutes non stop. By MSG he was far more controlled and disciplined. If you've ever seen the 71 Roddy footage, you will know i mean. While 72 was far better than what was to come, and MSG was good vocally, the cat like attack was replaced with an artist that had complete control of the audience and knew it implicitly. In retrospect i think 71 was an amphetamine and perhaps cocaine fueled jaunt-he was totally amped up and over the top. By 72 i suspect the drug cocktail had changed with more downers in the mix. To be clear, i had never before or since seen anything like his Spectrum71 appearance. It was take no prisoners, no b/s, get out of my way or get steamrolled. By 72, it was workman-like; nothing left to prove- all he need to do was show up, after all he was the king of rock and roll. Vegas ruined the man- total boredom had set in by april 72.

You're forgetting that by the Nov '71 tour Elvis had been off for 4 months, had not toured in a year, and was playing some high profile markets such as Boston Garden, Philadelphia Spectrum, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Minneapolis, as well as some guaranteed fan base areas such as Louisville and Tuscaloosa. All these venues sat a minimum of 10K people, most sat between 13K to 18K. This was also his first major tour since the 50's, that had to be a motivator as well. He was always better on tour than in Vegas or Tahoe, and in 1971 that's all he had seen up to this point. Parker made a huge mistake not doing a spring or summer tour, but all of this added up to a great incentive. I doubt any other stimulants were needed.

I had the good fortune to see him in Phil in71 and 7 months later at MSG ...

Gulp. Wow.

I had the good fortune to see him in Phil in71 and 7 months later at MSG plus the footage from April. Given that the first time i saw Elvis in person has to color my recollections, there is simply no comparing 71 to anything that came later. 71 was like an uncaged tiger attacking for 50 minutes non stop. By MSG he was far more controlled and disciplined. If you've ever seen the 71 Roddy footage, you will know i mean. While 72 was far better than what was to come, and MSG was good vocally, the cat like attack was replaced with an artist that had complete control of the audience and knew it implicitly. In retrospect i think 71 was an amphetamine and perhaps cocaine fueled jaunt-he was totally amped up and over the top. By 72 i suspect the drug cocktail had changed with more downers in the mix. To be clear, i had never before or since seen anything like his Spectrum71 appearance. It was take no prisoners, no b/s, get out of my way or get steamrolled. By 72, it was workman-like; nothing left to prove- all he need to do was show up, after all he was the king of rock and roll. Vegas ruined the man- total boredom had set in by april 72.

You're forgetting that by the Nov '71 tour Elvis had been off for 4 months, had not toured in a year, and was playing some high profile markets such as Boston Garden, Philadelphia Spectrum, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Minneapolis, as well as some guaranteed fan base areas such as Louisville and Tuscaloosa. All these venues sat a minimum of 10K people, most sat between 13K to 18K. This was also his first major tour since the 50's, that had to be a motivator as well. He was always better on tour than in Vegas or Tahoe, and in 1971 that's all he had seen up to this point. Parker made a huge mistake not doing a spring or summer tour, but all of this added up to a great incentive. I doubt any other stimulants were needed.

interesting points of view from both of you.....

Also worth mentioning is the Cincinnati show from the November tour, released as "The Unreachable star". I've always suspected the Boston concert not to be quite representative for the November tour. Although it's difficult to compare an audience recording to a soundboard, Cincinnati seems superior to Boston in every aspect, and a ten minuites longer show. For me it establishes the November tour above the very solid April and June 1972 tours.

Also worth mentioning is the Cincinnati show from the November tour, released as "The Unreachable star". I've always suspected the Boston concert not to be quite representative for the November tour. Although it's difficult to compare an audience recording to a soundboard, Cincinnati seems superior to Boston in every aspect, and a ten minuites longer show.

Right,..the problem here ..a good show is even felt better the better sound is..
This makes the Cinci show felt inferior..in fact it really IS better..pity we don`t have a SB as yet..

Based on set list alone, this had to be the prime show to see on this tour (from Elvis Presley In Concert):

November 14 1971 (2:30 pm). Tuscaloosa AL. University of Alabama
TRACKLIST
2001 Theme / That's All Right / I Got A Woman / - segued medley with - / Amen / Proud Mary / Love Me Tender (+ 1 false start) / You Don't Have To Say You Love Me / You've Lost That Loving Feeling / Polk Salad Annie / Love Me / Heartbreak Hotel / Blue Suede Shoes / One Night / Its Now Or Never / Are You Lonesome Tonight ? (+ 1 false start) / Hound Dog / How Great Thou Art / Band Introductions / Lawdy, Miss Clawdy / Bridge Over Troubled Water (+ reprise) / I Cant Stop Loving You / The Impossible Dream / Suspicious Minds / Funny How Time Slips Away / Mystery Train / - segued medley with - / Tiger Man / Jailhouse Rock (+ reprise) / Cant Help Falling In Love / Closing Vamp

ATTENDANCE: 12000

Deep in the heart of Elvis' fan base, he's a huge football fan and Univ of Alabama is one storied legacy in the NCAA, and throw in a possible opportunity to meet Coach Paul "Bear" Bryant. He told the Auburn Univ audience in 1974 he was a huge fan, he was obviously a Tennessee Volunteer fan, and probably like a lot of southern men near his age group they ate up SEC football. He had to be about as up as he could get for this show. I would also agree with a lot of folks here that Boston is not a good representative of this tour, a little sloppy here and there along with a somewhat pedestrian set list compared to most other dates.

April may be the least of the three but they are all tours Elvis would never better later.