Best track on "From Elvis Presley Boulevard..." LP 1976

#636751

Elvis´ doom album. This poll might be extra interresting, because of the fact that you only have one choice, compared to the poll held a few months ago.
I wonder what people thought in 1976, when they heard this album, or perhaps Elvis´ voice. The difference between the 1975 recordings and those songs, are remarkable. Elvis sounds like he carries the whole world on his shoulders (which he maybe did). On some songs it works, but on a few, it´s a disaster in my opinion.

"Hurt" is a late Elvis classic. There are a few live versions that are better (especially the last notes), but the spoken part is brilliant in all it´s darkness atmosphere.

"Never again" is one of his worst 70´s recordings and vocals sounds very fragile. Overproduced is the right word.

"Blue eyes crying in the rain" seems to be liked by many here, but I don´t think Elvis sounds that good. Lots of effects (echo/reverb) on the vocals. To me it sounds like Felton tried to hide a partly weak performance.

"Danny boy" is a great performance and sung with great care.

"The last farewell" isn´t my cup of tea at all, but at least, Elvis does a fine job vocally. And those heavy overdubs...

"For the heart" is suprisingly convincing vocally and the bass-playing is sleazy and sexy. But I would have prefered a bit rawer production. Good anyway.

"Bitter they are, harder they fall" is hard to review. It doesn´t sound like anything Elvis had done before. I would like to repeat what a another reviewer wrote: "It´s hardly hit material, but could hardly been performed better. I like it a lot better than some of the other heavily produced numbers on this LP.

"Solitaire": A good performance of a bit tiring song.

"Love coming down": For some reason I´m a real sucker for this song. I like the production, James does some very nice licks (before the bridge) and Ronnie drums tastefully. Again, Elvis sounds a bit fragile, but it suits the lyrics.

"I´ll never fall in love again" starts off good, but parts and especially the ending sounds painful. He just didn´t had the power that night for this song.

This is not the album to start with for a new Elvis listener, but at least, it almost feels like a concept album that I prefer instead of "Elvis" 1973 or "Love letters from Elvis". But it must have been a huge step down from the last 3 studio LP´s.

My vote goes to a song that won´t be the winner: "Love coming down".

Please vote and have a wonderful summer!

Kind regards

Björn

Rob · #636778

Larry Gatlin's "Bitter They Are, Harder They Fall" gets my vote.

#636819

Best vocal track would be Danny Boy. Best track would be Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain.

#636885

midnightx wrote:Best vocal track would be Danny Boy. Best track would be Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain.

Which one got the vote? The second I guess?

Regards/Björn

#636891

dreambear wrote:"Hurt" is a late Elvis classic. There are a few live versions that are better (especially the last notes), but the spoken part is brilliant in all it´s darkness atmosphere.

"Never again" is one of his worst 70´s recordings and vocals sounds very fragile. Overproduced is the right word.

"Blue eyes crying in the rain" seems to be liked by many here, but I don´t think Elvis sounds that good. Lots of effects (echo/reverb) on the vocals. To me it sounds like Felton tried to hide a partly weak performance.

"Danny boy" is a great performance and sung with great care.

"The last farewell" isn´t my cup of tea at all, but at least, Elvis does a fine job vocally. And those heavy overdubs...

"For the heart" is suprisingly convincing vocally and the bass-playing is sleazy and sexy. But I would have prefered a bit rawer production. Good anyway.

"Bitter they are, harder they fall" is hard to review. It doesn´t sound like anything Elvis had done before. I would like to repeat what a another reviewer wrote: "It´s hardly hit material, but could hardly been performed better. I like it a lot better than some of the other heavily produced numbers on this LP.

"Solitaire": A good performance of a bit tiring song.

"Love coming down": For some reason I´m a real sucker for this song. I like the production, James does some very nice licks (before the bridge) and Ronnie drums tastefully. Again, Elvis sounds a bit fragile, but it suits the lyrics.

"I´ll never fall in love again" starts off good, but parts and especially the ending sounds painful. He just didn´t had the power that night for this song.

This is not the album to start with for a new Elvis listener, but at least, it almost feels like a concept album that I prefer instead of "Elvis" 1973 or "Love letters from Elvis". But it must have been a huge step down from the last 3 studio LP´s.

Salient portions in red.

Björn, of all his albums, why a poll for this train wreck?

"Danny Boy" may be the best recording, but in 1976, as today, it offers no impact at retail or on radio.

#636896

dreambear wrote:
midnightx wrote:Best vocal track would be Danny Boy. Best track would be Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain.
Which one got the vote? The second I guess?

Regards/Björn

The echo effect on the vocal is somewhat bizarre, but Blue Eyes Crying In the Rain would get the vote as it was still a viable performance vocally, musically and lyrically.

Regardless, this is one sad album on so many levels....

#636899

drjohncarpenter wrote: "Danny Boy" may be the best recording, but in 1976, as today, it offers no impact at retail or on radio.

Perhaps a remix or duet treatment could propel it to the top of the charts?

#636908

But who in the world could handle the duet voice overdub?

#636918

drjohncarpenter wrote:But who in the world could handle the duet voice overdub?

Err.......................................... Adam Lambert ?

#636919

ColinB wrote:
drjohncarpenter wrote:But who in the world could handle the duet voice overdub?
Err.......................................... Adam Lambert ?

Or you could go old-school and bring out Sherrill Nielsen.

#636924

It is a concept album in a way, I think Roy Carr and Mick Farren called it required uneasy listening. I didn't like it at all until I was about twenty but now it's pretty interesting if hardly at the top of my favorites. For The Heart is great basic rock and roll and I don't have to be in a certain dark mood to enjoy it. Hurt and Danny Boy are also very good. I go with For The Heart though, it's fun and has a lot of the old fire.

#637118

I voted for "Danny Boy".
This was one my first Elvis albums actually, it was combined with "Moody Blue".

#637253

Love coming down is best track

But there are several contenders

A much better album than people give it credit for (because it is a dark concept?)

#637273

No votes yet for Hurt. Surprising.

Amazing tracklisting, isn't it? Solitaire missing the "He'll never love again" verse is my only quibble with this
dark masterpiece!!

Hurt
Never again
Blue eyes crying in the rain
Danny Boy
The Last Farewell
For the heart
Bitter they are, harder they fall
Solitaire
Love coming down
I´ll never fall in love again

Lonely Summer wrore: "I suspect the overproduction was an attempt to mask Elvis' tired voice. For the most part, I prefer the versions on Jungle Room Sessions."

Elvis' voice does appear tired in a couple of the songs, but do you not think that your statement is a bit of a contradiction? If the JRS versions are your preference, and they do not have this supposed attempt to cover up Elvis' shortcomings, this suggests you prefer the tired sound? The true joy of first receiving the JRS FTD was that this myth was largely dispelled, and the undubbed session outtakes sounded surprisingly good.

#637284

I hesitate to admit it, but I agree with Rob: Bitter They Are, Harder They Fall gets my vote.

#637291

BigredG wrote:No votes yet for Hurt. Surprising.

Amazing tracklisting, isn't it? Solitaire missing the "He'll never love again" verse is my only quibble with this
dark masterpiece!!

Hurt
Never again
Blue eyes crying in the rain
Danny Boy
The Last Farewell
For the heart
Bitter they are, harder they fall
Solitaire
Love coming down
I´ll never fall in love again

Yes, amazing that Elvis released an album with such a mediocre song sequencing.

Dark masterpiece? You are stretching just a tad....

#637545

drjohncarpenter wrote:
dreambear wrote:"Hurt" is a late Elvis classic. There are a few live versions that are better (especially the last notes), but the spoken part is brilliant in all it´s darkness atmosphere.

"Never again" is one of his worst 70´s recordings and vocals sounds very fragile. Overproduced is the right word.

"Blue eyes crying in the rain" seems to be liked by many here, but I don´t think Elvis sounds that good. Lots of effects (echo/reverb) on the vocals. To me it sounds like Felton tried to hide a partly weak performance.

"Danny boy" is a great performance and sung with great care.

"The last farewell" isn´t my cup of tea at all, but at least, Elvis does a fine job vocally. And those heavy overdubs...

"For the heart" is suprisingly convincing vocally and the bass-playing is sleazy and sexy. But I would have prefered a bit rawer production. Good anyway.

"Bitter they are, harder they fall" is hard to review. It doesn´t sound like anything Elvis had done before. I would like to repeat what a another reviewer wrote: "It´s hardly hit material, but could hardly been performed better. I like it a lot better than some of the other heavily produced numbers on this LP.

"Solitaire": A good performance of a bit tiring song.

"Love coming down": For some reason I´m a real sucker for this song. I like the production, James does some very nice licks (before the bridge) and Ronnie drums tastefully. Again, Elvis sounds a bit fragile, but it suits the lyrics.

"I´ll never fall in love again" starts off good, but parts and especially the ending sounds painful. He just didn´t had the power that night for this song.

This is not the album to start with for a new Elvis listener, but at least, it almost feels like a concept album that I prefer instead of "Elvis" 1973 or "Love letters from Elvis". But it must have been a huge step down from the last 3 studio LP´s.
Salient portions in red.

Björn, of all his albums, why a poll for this train wreck?

"Danny Boy" may be the best recording, but in 1976, as today, it offers no impact at retail or on radio.

There is a very simple answer: I have done polls for at least 25 albums the last couple of years, including "Paradise, Hawaiian style", "Harem Holdiday" and "It happened at the world´s fair", so I don´t know why I should exclude this one. By the way, there´s still more black letters than red...

Kind regards

Björn

#637556

midnightx wrote: Dark masterpiece? You are stretching just a tad....

I knew you would love that bit.

The beauty of art is in the eye of the beholder.

#637570

BigredG wrote:
midnightx wrote: Dark masterpiece? You are stretching just a tad....
I knew you would love that bit.

The beauty of art is in the eye of the beholder.

Of course, Mr. Subjectivity.

#637611

midnightx wrote:
BigredG wrote:
midnightx wrote: Dark masterpiece? You are stretching just a tad....
I knew you would love that bit.

The beauty of art is in the eye of the beholder.
Of course, Mr. Subjectivity.

What is your implication?

#638084

For The Heart???? No Way! That's the worst track on the album!!!!

Danny Boy all the way. It's flawless. His last piece of musical gold!

#638130

I don't think it's rock n roll at all really. It's a slowish country song with a slight beat.

I'm not knocking your choice Lonely - I'm all for personal preferences.I'd rather have Danny boy though

#638131

"For the heart" got my vote!

Lennart

Deleted User 1099 · #638267

How can junk such as "For the Heart" get five votes? It’s unquestionably the poorest track on the album. To call that silly excuse of a song rock ’n’ roll is an insult to the genre. The song goes nowhere in mid-tempo, and Elvis’s vocal is totally uninspired. It bores me to death.

#638284

FOR THE HEART is a good track but I prefer the "Platinum" out-take (I think it´s take #1). It has a nice Rockabilly feel.

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