Elvis doing 2 shows a day on tour was crazy.

Folks, Peter has opened my eyes and I've seen the light. I've wasted 42 of my almost 53 years on a fat, dope-taking, lazy-a$$ b*stard who was only good for maybe 6 years (if even that much). No more! I'm giving away my collection and am going to start seriously collecting Sinatra, since we all know that spaghetti strangling, mob-connected, toupee-wearing, woman beater was perfect.

Folks, Peter has opened my eyes and I've seen the light. I've wasted 42 of my almost 53 years on a fat, dope-taking, lazy-a$$ b*stard who was only good for maybe 6 years (if even that much). No more! I'm giving away my collection and am going to start seriously collecting Sinatra, since we all know that spaghetti strangling, mob-connected, toupee-wearing, woman beater was perfect.

The question I was answering was whether any other artist of Presley's stature were doing 2 shows a night. My answer was yes, and provided the evidence. If you can't debate with sarcasm, perhaps you shouldn't bother attempting.

I asked the question, was it normal for a star of Elvis's stature in the 70's (arguably the biggest music star in the world) to be doing 2 shows a day. To me, it seems crazy that some one as big as Elvis had to have such a hectic schedule, whether he worked only 93 days or not. When he was working his schedule seemed too grueling for someone as big and established as him. In that question I am alluding to the psychological toll and of course the increased drug use. I didn't think I needed to spell those out. They are a given. It seems that his schedule should have been more slower paced when he was on tour. I also wondered if it was the norm for any other performers at the time. I don't think it was. I don't recall any other performers like McCartney, Neil Diamond, Led Zepplin, etc. doing an afternoon and evening show the same day. If there was high ticket demand they would add a second show the next night, not an afternoon show the same day. Like I said, except for seeing Johnny Cash on a Sunday afternoon in the 80's, I have never been to a afternoon concert. That just seems strange. Vegas seemed more logical; a dinner show at 7:30 and then a midnight show.

After that you came up with all these things about stars having to do talk shows and videos and how it's so much harder for stars today than for Elvis which I don't agree. You also floated some lame theory on how Elvis was much more protected that todays stars which I clearly debunked. Stars today (even lower wrung stars) have publicists, agents, professional assistants, professional accountants and full time attorneys. All Elvis had was the Colonel. Elvis was really under represented compared to today's stars.

So I will ask the question again; Was there any stars at or near Elvis's stature doing 2 shows a day (a afternoon and evening show) in the 70's ?

BTW; telling someone they are wrong about something is not being rude.

Wrong on ALL counts, Nothing debunked!

So Elvis was being so well protected by the Colonel when all the unflattering photos of him were splashed all over the tabloid and movie magazine covers on display in every supermarket check out line, drugstore and newsstand around the world in 75, 76, 77 and beyond? Was he so well protected if covers like the National Lampoon were able to come out making him a national joke? Was he so well protected if Elvis What Happened was allowed to come out or his picture in his casket was able to be published on the cover of the National Enquirer? So how was Elvis so much more protected than today's stars? Do tell!

Sure, tell me which of it wasn't Elvis' fault and then imagine what that would translate into via social media in the modern age

Don't forget that nowadays society is much more open and tolerant to people that have problems with addiction. So I guess the pressure was higher in the 70ies, because a scandal like Elvis' drug addiction could cost him his carreer. If you listen to some of the comments on TV after Elvis died. How he lived a lie etc. Very judgemental stuff, exactly what Elvis was affraid of.

And even now Elvis is the only artist that people still judge for his drug abuse.. Jim Morrison was cool, Kurt Cabain couldn't help it because he was screwed up etc. Somehow Elvis' addiction is not looked upon as a disease, but as a deliberate choice to selfdestruct. When I hear people talking about it being his own fault. 76/77 Elvis had no free will, his addiction had taken over.

Folks, Peter has opened my eyes and I've seen the light. I've wasted 42 of my almost 53 years on a fat, dope-taking, lazy-a$$ b*stard who was only good for maybe 6 years (if even that much). No more! I'm giving away my collection and am going to start seriously collecting Sinatra, since we all know that spaghetti strangling, mob-connected, toupee-wearing, woman beater was perfect.

The question I was answering was whether any other artist of Presley's stature were doing 2 shows a night. My answer was yes, and provided the evidence. If you can't debate with sarcasm, perhaps you shouldn't bother attempting.

I suspect you meant to write "without sarcasm." Regardless, what I wrote above, Peter, was satire. There's a difference. I don't always put a smile, wink, or laughing icon at the end of my posts as I tend to credit folks with the intelligence to pick up on this. Ever see The Boondock Saints films Peter? Think of me as the Rocco of FECC (but without the cat-shooting bit. I like cats).

But Seriously Peter, we can all do the same thing that I did with Sinatra with any major artist - and that's my point. Was Elvis the hardest workin' man in show business? No, but neither was he the lazy, lackadaisical skater you and a few others have made him out to be.

Folks, Peter has opened my eyes and I've seen the light. I've wasted 42 of my almost 53 years on a fat, dope-taking, lazy-a$$ b*stard who was only good for maybe 6 years (if even that much). No more! I'm giving away my collection and am going to start seriously collecting Sinatra, since we all know that spaghetti strangling, mob-connected, toupee-wearing, woman beater was perfect.

The question I was answering was whether any other artist of Presley's stature were doing 2 shows a night. My answer was yes, and provided the evidence. If you can't debate with sarcasm, perhaps you shouldn't bother attempting.

I suspect you meant to write "without sarcasm." Regardless, what I wrote above, Peter, was satire. There's a difference. I don't always put a smile, wink, or laughing icon at the end of my posts as I tend to credit folks with the intelligence to pick up on this. Ever see The Boondock Saints films Peter? Think of me as the Rocco of FECC (but without the cat-shooting bit. I like cats).

But Seriously Peter, we can all do the same thing that I did with Sinatra with any major artist - and that's my point. Was Elvis the hardest workin' man in show business? No, but neither was he the lazy, lackadaisical skater you and a few others have made him out to be.

I'd like to see that sentence proven during the last 6 years of his life. The Jan/Feb 1971 Vegas season saw shows of 40 minutes, the May sessions of that year saw him hardly making an effort on many titles, he sleepwalked his way through Aloha, abandoned all thought of new songs for MSG, sleepwalked through many shows in 1973, behaved erratically and unprofessionally through the second half of 1974, and it almost seems as if he didn't turn up to some of the shows after that. I don't judge Elvis on his drug habits, and I haven't seen anyone doing that here on this thread actually; dependencies were not treated as kindly then as they are now and the various clinics etc weren't around for treatments. However, no matter how much I like his 70s studio recordings, nothing can hide the fact that for much of the time he performed with little or no enthusiasm (long before the ultimate final decline - listen to those Jan/Feb 73 Vegas shows), and even treated his audience with disdain as he performed songs he half knew, threw away songs as he mumbled the lyrics, and so on.

Peter, if you look at the first 2 or 3 winter Vegas engagements, they're all on the short side (45-50 minutes) - but that was actually more or less the standard in Vegas at the time, and, what's more, the winter season is the slow season in Vegas. The fact that Elvis sold out in the slow season was a big deal. What's more, the management of the International weren't too happy about the 70 minute shows of '69 (which, for the record, were rather long shows for Vegas for the period), and wanted Elvis to keep the shows no more than an hour in order to get the folks back to the casinos to gamble.

I disagree that Elvis sleepwalked through Aloha, the lack of movement was deliberate. He was the only major figure of early rock & roll to still be a major success in the 70's, and as such, he had no precedent. In other words, he was basically trying to figure out how to be a middle-aged rock & roll artist (or, more accurately, a middle-aged artist associated with rock & roll). He was blazing the trail, and Lord knows he made some missteps.

The '71 sessions were obviously marred by his escalating dependency on pills, but the Gospel lp is on the whole strong (and in the opinion of this fan, his last consistently good lp. That accolade usually goes to Elvis Country, but for me it's He Touched Me). And there's enough quality in the secular material for a decent 10 track album.

Peter, I absolutely despise the Closing Night FTD, but the August 20th show released A Profile Of The King Vol. 1 (the Bob Hope show) is a rather good show from that engagement, so we shouldn't judge an entire month-long engagement by a couple of substandard shows at the end of the run. I also have a show from Uniondale NY in June '73 and I find it to be an enjoyable tour show with Elvis still in reasonably good form.

The MSG shows work just fine as they are. He did rehearse some new material but ultimately decided against incorporating those tunes into the setlist. This is neither here nor there, as the shows were acclaimed at the time, and remain critical and fan favorites. When you invoke the lack of new material for these shows it seems to me you're dredging for negative stuff to say.

Lastly, I saw Elvis twice (July 17 '75; July 30 '76, the latter the FTD New Haven show) and I can tell you the '75 show was by no stretch of the imagination a sleepwalking show. I mentioned Springsteen in an earlier post, and how on that tour he was the king of rock & roll. That remains my favorite concert to this day, but I tell you flat out that it took a youthful Bruce working his butt off for 3+ hours on what remains in my not-so-humble opinion the greatest tour by a rock & roll artist ever to come close to the feeling I got from seeing an animated, engaged Elvis work the crowd for 65 minutes in July '75!

I asked the question, was it normal for a star of Elvis's stature in the 70's (arguably the biggest music star in the world) to be doing 2 shows a day. To me, it seems crazy that some one as big as Elvis had to have such a hectic schedule, whether he worked only 93 days or not. When he was working his schedule seemed too grueling for someone as big and established as him. In that question I am alluding to the psychological toll and of course the increased drug use. I didn't think I needed to spell those out. They are a given. It seems that his schedule should have been more slower paced when he was on tour. I also wondered if it was the norm for any other performers at the time. I don't think it was. I don't recall any other performers like McCartney, Neil Diamond, Led Zepplin, etc. doing an afternoon and evening show the same day. If there was high ticket demand they would add a second show the next night, not an afternoon show the same day. Like I said, except for seeing Johnny Cash on a Sunday afternoon in the 80's, I have never been to a afternoon concert. That just seems strange. Vegas seemed more logical; a dinner show at 7:30 and then a midnight show.

After that you came up with all these things about stars having to do talk shows and videos and how it's so much harder for stars today than for Elvis which I don't agree. You also floated some lame theory on how Elvis was much more protected that todays stars which I clearly debunked. Stars today (even lower wrung stars) have publicists, agents, professional assistants, professional accountants and full time attorneys. All Elvis had was the Colonel. Elvis was really under represented compared to today's stars.

So I will ask the question again; Was there any stars at or near Elvis's stature doing 2 shows a day (a afternoon and evening show) in the 70's ?

BTW; telling someone they are wrong about something is not being rude.

Wrong on ALL counts, Nothing debunked!

So Elvis was being so well protected by the Colonel when all the unflattering photos of him were splashed all over the tabloid and movie magazine covers on display in every supermarket check out line, drugstore and newsstand around the world in 75, 76, 77 and beyond? Was he so well protected if covers like the National Lampoon were able to come out making him a national joke? Was he so well protected if Elvis What Happened was allowed to come out or his picture in his casket was able to be published on the cover of the National Enquirer? So how was Elvis so much more protected than today's stars? Do tell!

Sure, tell me which of it wasn't Elvis' fault and then imagine what that would translate into via social media in the modern age

How would social media make it more or less Elvis's fault? And how would social media be any worse than Elvis's unflattering images visible from every supermarket check out for all to see? Or any worse than all the media surrounding the release of Elvis What Happened? If Elvis had had proper representation Elvis What Happened could have been stopped.. Again, I ask you, were you alive and aware in the 70's? Do you remember all the media attention Elvis was getting in the 70's?

I asked the question, was it normal for a star of Elvis's stature in the 70's (arguably the biggest music star in the world) to be doing 2 shows a day. To me, it seems crazy that some one as big as Elvis had to have such a hectic schedule, whether he worked only 93 days or not. When he was working his schedule seemed too grueling for someone as big and established as him. In that question I am alluding to the psychological toll and of course the increased drug use. I didn't think I needed to spell those out. They are a given. It seems that his schedule should have been more slower paced when he was on tour. I also wondered if it was the norm for any other performers at the time. I don't think it was. I don't recall any other performers like McCartney, Neil Diamond, Led Zepplin, etc. doing an afternoon and evening show the same day. If there was high ticket demand they would add a second show the next night, not an afternoon show the same day. Like I said, except for seeing Johnny Cash on a Sunday afternoon in the 80's, I have never been to a afternoon concert. That just seems strange. Vegas seemed more logical; a dinner show at 7:30 and then a midnight show.

After that you came up with all these things about stars having to do talk shows and videos and how it's so much harder for stars today than for Elvis which I don't agree. You also floated some lame theory on how Elvis was much more protected that todays stars which I clearly debunked. Stars today (even lower wrung stars) have publicists, agents, professional assistants, professional accountants and full time attorneys. All Elvis had was the Colonel. Elvis was really under represented compared to today's stars.

So I will ask the question again; Was there any stars at or near Elvis's stature doing 2 shows a day (a afternoon and evening show) in the 70's ?

BTW; telling someone they are wrong about something is not being rude.

Once again, the internet allows those images to reach far more people than a publication from one country ever would.


Wrong on ALL counts, Nothing debunked!

So Elvis was being so well protected by the Colonel when all the unflattering photos of him were splashed all over the tabloid and movie magazine covers on display in every supermarket check out line, drugstore and newsstand around the world in 75, 76, 77 and beyond? Was he so well protected if covers like the National Lampoon were able to come out making him a national joke? Was he so well protected if Elvis What Happened was allowed to come out or his picture in his casket was able to be published on the cover of the National Enquirer? So how was Elvis so much more protected than today's stars? Do tell!

Sure, tell me which of it wasn't Elvis' fault and then imagine what that would translate into via social media in the modern age

How would social media make it more or less Elvis's fault? And how would social media be any worse than Elvis's unflattering images visible from every supermarket check out for all to see? Or any worse than all the media surrounding the release of Elvis What Happened? If Elvis had had proper representation Elvis What Happened could have been stopped.. Again, I ask you, were you alive and aware in the 70's? Do you remember all the media attention Elvis was getting in the 70's?

I disagree that Elvis sleepwalked through Aloha.

As do I.

The Aloha performance makes me proud to be an Elvis fan every time I see it.

Like it was written before, the majority of the 60's and 70's important bands and singers have more than one manager, PR spokeman, very qualified accountants and a lot of professional people taking care of their business (Beatles, Stones, Zeppelin, Clapton, Springsteen and many others). Who had Elvis: the Colonel and his father Vernon and Freddy Bienstock with all his mediocre songs he gave to Elvis in the 60's and 70's which was maybe even a greater mistake than all ones the Colonel did.

How would social media make it more or less Elvis's fault? And how would social media be any worse than Elvis's unflattering images visible from every supermarket check out for all to see? Or any worse than all the media surrounding the release of Elvis What Happened? If Elvis had had proper representation Elvis What Happened could have been stopped.. Again, I ask you, were you alive and aware in the 70's? Do you remember all the media attention Elvis was getting in the 70's?

Yes I was around in the 1970's and to be perfectly honest Elvis had dropped off the face of the planet by 1977 in the UK! My bet is it was pretty much the same around the world! Elvis didn't tour across the world and the albums he was releasing after 1973 did little to set the world on fire. When Elvis died people in the UK were shocked that he died so young and were even more shocked at what appeared a sudden change in appearance through lack of recent media publicity.

The media attention in the 70's was tough, but as I have repeatedly tried to enlighten you (to no avail) the same things Elvis suffered are equally valid to today's artists, more so. Information is available at the touch of a button nowadays! Fans and reporters alike could re-post, tweet & use other sites to get their messages around the world in seconds, not just the end of a supermarket checkout. The information super highway wasn't around when Elvis was alive, nor the viciousness of the paparazzi today, the pictures you posted earlier in the thread are of an overweight Elvis, are they incorrect caricatures? The National Lampoon magazine is well known for their satire and the 'Elvis What Happened' was a tell all book which although sensationalist, was nevertheless mostly true and written by friends. And finally the photo of Elvis in the coffin was taken by a member of his family!

I'm not trying to suggest that Elvis was by any means having it easy, he was clearly aware of his appearance and how the press viewed him! The point I'm trying to make is that had he been around today and behaved the way he did in the 70's he would be under siege, web sites would have had thousands of unflattering pictures & video's floating on the net (as there is now). How would Elvis have reacted if at all? The internet is not policed, people upload whatever they want and remain nameless!

Elvis turned up to the Aloha announcement stoned! this would have be played and replayed nowadays and speculation would have be rife! But because it was in the 70's it was shown and then forgotten by the every day Joe. Perhaps an Elvis scrutinised by the press by today's standards could have brought him back from the brink?

You said he was stoned without any proof in Aloha press conference. If you like that, I am agree wih you: Elvis was strong medicated in Houston August 1976.

How would social media make it more or less Elvis's fault? And how would social media be any worse than Elvis's unflattering images visible from every supermarket check out for all to see? Or any worse than all the media surrounding the release of Elvis What Happened? If Elvis had had proper representation Elvis What Happened could have been stopped.. Again, I ask you, were you alive and aware in the 70's? Do you remember all the media attention Elvis was getting in the 70's?

Yes I was around in the 1970's and to be perfectly honest Elvis had dropped off the face of the planet by 1977 in the UK! My bet is it was pretty much the same around the world! Elvis didn't tour across the world and the albums he was releasing after 1973 did little to set the world on fire. When Elvis died people in the UK were shocked that he died so young and were even more shocked at what appeared a sudden change in appearance through lack of recent media publicity.

The media attention in the 70's was tough, but as I have repeatedly tried to enlighten you (to no avail) the same things Elvis suffered are equally valid to today's artists, more so. Information is available at the touch of a button nowadays! Fans and reporters alike could re-post, tweet & use other sites to get their messages around the world in seconds, not just the end of a supermarket checkout. The information super highway wasn't around when Elvis was alive, nor the viciousness of the paparazzi today, the pictures you posted earlier in the thread are of an overweight Elvis, are they incorrect caricatures? The National Lampoon magazine is well known for their satire and the 'Elvis What Happened' was a tell all book which although sensationalist, was nevertheless mostly true and written by friends. And finally the photo of Elvis in the coffin was taken by a member of his family!

I'm not trying to suggest that Elvis was by any means having it easy, he was clearly aware of his appearance and how the press viewed him! The point I'm trying to make is that had he been around today and behaved the way he did in the 70's he would be under siege, web sites would have had thousands of unflattering pictures & video's floating on the net (as there is now). How would Elvis have reacted if at all? The internet is not policed, people upload whatever they want and remain nameless!

Elvis turned up to the Aloha announcement stoned! this would have be played and replayed nowadays and speculation would have be rife! But because it was in the 70's it was shown and then forgotten by the every day Joe. Perhaps an Elvis scrutinised by the press by today's standards could have brought him back from the brink?

You are still wrong about here in the states and in other pats of the world. I don't know about the UK but in 1976 and 1977 Elvis had a unique level of fame. Any little thing he did was big news. When he came here to Aspen and Vail Colorado to vacation in 1976, it was all over the news. When he came here to Denver and was giving away Cadillacs and Lincolns it was big news. When he came here to perform in 1976, they only ran one radio commercial and his show sold out faster than any other artist to date. Faster than Paul McCartney. And the media here went crazy when he came to perform. It was front page news, taking up the whole front page for 2 days! TV weathermen were doing the weather dressed up like Elvis! Same was true when he performed in Chicago. My friend gave me the newspapers that had full color pictures on the front page. In record stores, his records were always well stocked with almost all of his available releases. The 2 record stores I used to go to had Elvis walls that had all of his records displayed and of course he was the king of the tabloids and movie magazines, being on their covers a and having stories more than any other celebrity. There were special magazines that came out in 74, 75, 76, and 77 that were dedicated to only Elvis. There was an article that ran in the Parade magazine in early 1977 about how Elvis was have a resurgence in Germany and his records were selling record amounts. When Elvis died, it was huge here. TV was interrupted in the middle of shows to report the news. There were network tv specials that same night. radio stations went to playing only Elvis records. I went to my favorite record store that night and people were lined up with stacks of Elvis records in there hands openly crying. So no, Elvis hadn't dropped off the face of the earth by 1977 here in the states.

I went to my favorite record store that night and people were lined up with stacks of Elvis records in there hands openly crying. So no, Elvis hadn't dropped off the face of the earth by 1977 here in the states.

I can remember the same thing about the record stores. I saw it myself. Even a couple of years ago when I went to Bloomington, Indiana to see Elvis On Tour in the theater, it was packed. At the conclusion of An American Trilogy, most of the theater stood up and applauded. It gave me chills.

There were, and still are, plenty of fans in these parts.

I went to my favorite record store that night and people were lined up with stacks of Elvis records in there hands openly crying. So no, Elvis hadn't dropped off the face of the earth by 1977 here in the states.

I can remember the same thing about the record stores. I saw it myself. Even a couple of years ago when I went to Bloomington, Indiana to see Elvis On Tour in the theater, it was packed. At the conclusion of An American Trilogy, most of the theater stood up and applauded. It gave me chills.

There were, and still are, plenty of fans in these parts.

It should be remembered, I think, that scenes of people crying over such things does not necessarily mean they are fans. How many people do we see laying flowers by the roadside where there has been a car accident and people killed...but don't know any of the dead or injured? How many thousands of people laid flowers etc when Princess Diana died...and how many were actually great fans? Of course there were a great many real fans of Elvis who were distraught, but not everyone who raided those record shops in the days following his death - and felt compelled to buy an Elvis album - were fans. It's just a constant from our life that is suddenly gone.

My point here is that the public (or a certain cross-section of it) is somehow affected more by this kind of news than other people, and unable to somehow realise that a celebrity is not actually someone they know. Eddie Izzard in one of his stand up shows did a serious section on the death of Diana and equated her life story to a soap opera that a certain section of society were watching each day through the news and newspapers (not much internet back then, of course), which I tend to agree with when it comes to the public and celebrity - possibly even more now that we can actually talk to celebrities through twitter and suchlike. A rough transcript:

[Diana] died and we were thrown by it. Some people were big fans and were having a lot of grief. I was not a big fan. I didn't dislike her. I preferred Diana's direction
to the Queen's direction...but I think we were thrown because it was like a soap opera. Front page for the last four months, Dodi and Di, on holiday, and that was so in your face that you had to be thrown. ...It happened one night and you woke up and went, "What? Weird." And it was something like The X-Files... imagine if an episode came out on a Monday and they killed off the characters and we went, "What? Has it finished now?" "I was watching that.” … It just throws you, you know.

It should be remembered, I think, that scenes of people crying over such things does not necessarily mean they are fans. How many people do we see laying flowers by the roadside where there has been a car accident and people killed...but don't know any of the dead or injured? How many thousands of people laid flowers etc when Princess Diana died...and how many were actually great fans? Of course there were a great many real fans of Elvis who were distraught, but not everyone who raided those record shops in the days following his death - and felt compelled to buy an Elvis album - were fans. It's just a constant from our life that is suddenly gone.

There are certain things that I do not know. I don't know how many people lay flowers where there has been a car accident and people killed...but do not know any of the dead or injured. I also do not know how many people laid flowers etc when Princess Diana died ...and how many were great fans. I also do not know how many stars are in the sky. I certainly do not know what fire lights a firefly. God only knows what miracle brought you to me. However, I do know that there were an abundance of Elvis fans in the theater in Bloomington the night I saw Elvis On Tour. I was there and talked to many of them.

Like I said, there are still plenty of fans around here. Not fans like you and I, but fans nevertheless.

You are still wrong about here in the states and in other pats of the world. I don't know about the UK but in 1976 and 1977 Elvis had a unique level of fame. Any little thing he did was big news. When he came here to Aspen and Vail Colorado to vacation in 1976, it was all over the news. When he came here to Denver and was giving away Cadillacs and Lincolns it was big news. When he came here to perform in 1976, they only ran one radio commercial and his show sold out faster than any other artist to date. Faster than Paul McCartney. And the media here went crazy when he came to perform. It was front page news, taking up the whole front page for 2 days! TV weathermen were doing the weather dressed up like Elvis! Same was true when he performed in Chicago. My friend gave me the newspapers that had full color pictures on the front page. In record stores, his records were always well stocked with almost all of his available releases. The 2 record stores I used to go to had Elvis walls that had all of his records displayed and of course he was the king of the tabloids and movie magazines, being on their covers a and having stories more than any other celebrity. There were special magazines that came out in 74, 75, 76, and 77 that were dedicated to only Elvis. There was an article that ran in the Parade magazine in early 1977 about how Elvis was have a resurgence in Germany and his records were selling record amounts. When Elvis died, it was huge here. TV was interrupted in the middle of shows to report the news. There were network tv specials that same night. radio stations went to playing only Elvis records. I went to my favorite record store that night and people were lined up with stacks of Elvis records in there hands openly crying. So no, Elvis hadn't dropped off the face of the earth by 1977 here in the states.

I didn't say that Elvis wasn't important in America, because he clearly was, but are we talking about the same Elvis Presley who was being ridiculed by magazines in the supermarkets at every checkout? It seems to me that your trying to have it all ways. Next you will telling me he could play a flute from his ass

Next you will telling me he could play a flute from his ass

Elvis couldn't.

However, I heard that Charlie was going to give it a shot on the August '77 tour during the band intros.

I went to my favorite record store that night and people were lined up with stacks of Elvis records in there hands openly crying. So no, Elvis hadn't dropped off the face of the earth by 1977 here in the states.

I can remember the same thing about the record stores. I saw it myself. Even a couple of years ago when I went to Bloomington, Indiana to see Elvis On Tour in the theater, it was packed. At the conclusion of An American Trilogy, most of the theater stood up and applauded. It gave me chills.

There were, and still are, plenty of fans in these parts.

Same over here.The packed audience at Elvis The Concert in the SECC Glasgow the last time I went to see it in 2005 was testament to that.A mixture of all ages and all kind of fans but fans they were as they knew every song and when Suspicious Minds came on the place went absolutely ballistic,equal to anything I've ever witnessed at a concert from a live performer never mind a videoscreen.Singing,screaming,dancing on seats and in the aisles it was a sight to behold and proof to me that Elvis will always have a place in the heart and minds in the UK at least.

Folks, Peter has opened my eyes and I've seen the light. I've wasted 42 of my almost 53 years on a fat, dope-taking, lazy-a$$ b*stard who was only good for maybe 6 years (if even that much). No more! I'm giving away my collection and am going to start seriously collecting Sinatra, since we all know that spaghetti strangling, mob-connected, toupee-wearing, woman beater was perfect.

I think you're being sarcastic.

Next you will telling me he could play a flute from his ass

Elvis couldn't.

However, I heard that Charlie was going to give it a shot on the August '77 tour during the band intros.

Same over here.The packed audience at Elvis The Concert in the SECC Glasgow the last time I went to see it in 2005 was testament to that.A mixture of all ages and all kind of fans but fans they were as they knew every song and when Suspicious Minds came on the place went absolutely ballistic,equal to anything I've ever witnessed at a concert from a live performer never mind a videoscreen.Singing,screaming,dancing on seats and in the aisles it was a sight to behold and proof to me that Elvis will always have a place in the heart and minds in the UK at least.

I have seen Elvis The Concert twice, Once in Liverpool and Once in Manchester in the last few years and both were packed, the audience response was similar to your experience. I think that Elvis has a good reputation now, the Image and legacy has moved on from the late 70's and early 80's, for the most part the younger audience has not been subjected to a cynical media coverage. The Elvis & JXL release was a watershed in this country and certainly a gateway single.

"But he never rarely bothered to learn new material"

Fans booed him in 74 when he wanted to try new songs.....he shouldve just done them anyway and told those that didnt want to hear em to leave.