ElvisNews.com: New Strategy Needed

New Strategy Needed

By Keith Dambra, Jun 29, 2007

I have been an Elvis fan since the 1960's. So I have seen his music released in various ways. As a marketing graduate I think bmg/sony have run out of steam for innovative strategies to release his music. If I may I would like to suggest the following:

Idea #1
In the early to mid 60's Elvis recorded a number of ballads that had some of his best vocal performances. However they were overlooked by spreading them as extras on sometimes bad movie soundtracks (not where they belonged. Examples of these were: Something Blue, That’s someone you'll never forget, Indescribably Blue, Starting today, Anything thats part of you, I met her today, Suspicion, You don’t know me, love letters, am I ready, please don’t stop loving me, and you'll be gone. These could have a new instrumental track (such as the new Beatle album ("LOVE) that was just released- the Beatle fans went crazy over that. Or remixed from the original . Marketing thois prject would have been about a selection of songs that actually create a concept piece of overlooked work.

Idea #2
A duet cd: there are many tracks spread over his career, "The lady loves me" with Ann Margaret would be great (watch the video- they were on fire doing this song) Edge of reality would sound great with Cher mixed in as a duet. Don’t cry daddy could be done with Lisa Marie (its on bootleg and sounds great)

Idea #3
A concept album where huge artists were allowed to remix and produce one song each ex: Paul Mc cartney, Bono, Celina dion- there are many huge entertainers that would love to do this as a collaborative project. It would breath an interesting a new array of interpretations of his music

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kbd (profile/ contact) wrote on Aug 2, 2007report abuse

Well one thing is for sure, 53 people wrote in about this article. That in itself should be a wake up call to Sony/Bmg. Would it hurt to have someone agt the record company do some research gathered from the fans to see where and what could be done to fill the obvious gap that exists. Maybe a contest for the fans to put together their own ideas and publisize the contest. It would create a lot of interest and curiousity from his fans and help sell the idea and the release. All the Elvis web sites would be definatly be involved and update and finally announce the winners. Sony?Bmg and the fans could only benifit from the idea. Anyone have any feelings on this idea??

RossII (profile/ contact) wrote on Aug 1, 2007report abuse

Yeah agree: a new FTD strategy is needed. The ideas are good although nothing new...we've heard that before and better.BMG goes for the easy money. I agree we want more studio session outtakes (Now, Fool, GTimes, PromLand, BLove and Lletters, PotLuck, For asking etc etc) plus the great unreleased BMG songs and above all outtakes of GGGirls, KCousins, Roust, etc plus complete sessions of GIBlues, BHawaii and KCreole !!! Man that would keep our feet tapping. But we need also new innovative material from SonyBMG for GenPublic releases (Movie love songs for Valentine's Day 2008), Extended and upgraded/enhanced yes Sir releases of On stage, In person and TTWII but only the live versions. And then there is the OnTour project....
Hope 2007 will give us even more new releases of outtakes stuff plus CDs with DVDs incl. (of the On Tour show segments, not the talking nor interviews). Anyone listening ?Agree with most fans like Keith, Lex, Robban, Paul...It seems indeed that BMG needs better marketing directives and innovative thinking. Surprised you guys are worried about remixes while the mature hardcore fans still await "missing and above all important FTD releases" like the remaining studio session outtakes, the movie outtakes, an EonTour 3CD Box (hopefully with DVD of the 12 72 Concerts without interviews and nonsense). bring out new extended CDs of In Person, On stage, TTWII live renderings of songs (like they successfully did on FTD with From 1974 Memphis Concert... Why not learn from good sellers ? Anyone listening out there? Believe you should not put so much emphasis on the young and remixes...for most of us this issue is not as interesting as the remaining good stuff we want to buy, right ?

Robban (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 22, 2007report abuse

Very well written Brian, I agree with you. But if Sony BMG would do something new with Elvis music and it sells like ALLC, wouldn´t that make them alot of money? Personally I don´t think they know what a treasure they have in their vaults and what they could do with it and how much money they can get from it, if they weré to do the right thing off course. Knowledge and interest in Elvis music is their biggest problem in my opinion.

I can also name another good thing, members of Stray Cats made a single a few years ago, 6 songs i think it was, named Good Rocking Tonight. They overdubbed the old music and kept Elvis voice with new musical background and it sounded great. I think it was taken from Elvis live concert in 1956 Lousiana Hayride or M.A.F. I hope more bands see this oppotunity to do the same now when that music is over 50 years old and the publiching rights to it etc. loosens up and give people of today and tomorrow a chance of playing with the King almost for real.

Brian Quinn (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 21, 2007report abuse

Personally I think that Sony BMG are only interested in one thing and that is money. It is painfully obvious that they are not willing to take a chance on novel ideas e.g. more remixes, new orchestral backings, duets etc. The last innovative idea on how to present Elvis came with the Celine Dion duet which was universally acclaimed by fans worldwide. We also had the BBC TV advertisement featuring Elvis in the Aloha Suit introducing stars such as Keith Moon and Jimmy Paige from Led Zeppelin. Again universally acclaimed by the general public and fan alike.

Also you will also have noticed, Sony BMG have stopped the upgrades to Elvis' record sales. The last major upgrade was in January 2004. Despite Ernst Jorgensen stating that there were thousands of boxes in the New York Vaults containing past sales records of all RCA artists, no project has been forthcoming to look into these for Elvis' sales. Sony BMG just will not spend the money for research to be undertaken. All this despite Elvis being their most consistent seller over many years.

Disgraceful is the word that comes to mind. They do not care about his Legacy. I sincerely hope that the new 85% owner of Elvis Presley Enterprises, Bob Sillerman, will see that Sony BMG are now the main problem with the Elvis Legacy and try to do something about it. Perhaps he could buy Elvis' back catalogue from them - he certainly could do no worse and I suspect a lot better. His track record speaks for itself.

I have been an Elvis fan since 1956 and whilst I love the original recordings, I feel that many could now do with an overhaul to keep up with modern recording techniques. I am sure that if Elvis were still with us he would endeavour to keep up with the times. He always did that anyway. Don't forget that we will always have the original recordings anyway so I see no problem in experimenting with new ideas. Anything that adds to the legacy of 'The King' is OK in my book.

mature_elvis_fan75 (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 17, 2007report abuse

First,there are not 12 concerts recorded from on tour, and second youll do good to get one full show,your not going to see a 3 dvd set in my oppion,i mean if they seem to think Elvis wasnt nothing special in ttwii then i doubt they have a differt oppion for on tour,as for what they can do to get fans,they can remix all they want,i still say if thats the only way someone will buy the music then they wont buy much afterwards,unless of course u wont to strip down every song and just completely redo them!

Robban (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 11, 2007report abuse

I don´t care what they do, as long as it´s well done and get´s Elvis name and music popular and recognised among others than us already Elvisfans. When did you hear a Elvissong played on your mainstream Radio channel lately and how often can you see Elvis on TV today, time has changed from when I was young and discovered him through Radio and TV. Yeah sure he´s often played on oldies channels like internetradio and TCM etc. but what young kid today spend time on those channels? If todays youth doesn´t come in contact with Elvis, then I´m afraid we will be the last generation Elvisfans, for some of you this doesn´t seem to matter at all (scary), this is the most important thing within the Elvisworld today in my opinion. I don´t want to take Elvis leagacy with me in my grave, I want to share it with new generations. If the new generations won´t find Elvis, then Elvis must find them. The original recordings won´t dissapear because of this, they will be found because of this, by new fans.

colnago (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 10, 2007report abuse

What they could do with Elvis' music is not so much remix it but strip it down, so that Elvis'voice is out in front accompanied by the minimum of instrumental backing.A bit like those LPs 'Our Memories Of Elvis'.Elvis'1970s music always seemed heavily overdubbed with strings and backing vocals.In order to improve it's appeal generally Elvis' music needs to be stripped down to mainly Elvis' voice and the basic rhythm section.If you listen to a lot of bands today they sound great and yet there's only three or four of them on stage.As examples I'm thinking of Keane and The Manics.

Steve V (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 9, 2007report abuse

Colonel7 - you miss the point completely. The new strategy is not for die-hard Elvis fans, it is for mass marketing. The public doesnt give a hoot about outtakes which are mostly inferior versions. That was tried on the Platinum and other boxsets and I know it turned off people who bought these sets & thought they were getting the cream of the songs. Now Sony/BMG wants a new strategy for new mass appeal. It may be duets (I dont like that) or stripped away backing with modern music arrangemets or dance remixes like ALLC. It will never be outtakes. Thats reserved for FTD & collectors at this point.

PaulFromFrance (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 9, 2007report abuse

kbd... maybe it's my bad English, but... Don't DRY Daddy... :-) Also, "Your groovy self" a duet? I guess it's "There ain't nothing like a song" instead.

kbd (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 9, 2007report abuse

Im reading the responses and it seems they are split down the middle. for every fan that only wants original material there is also a fan that wants the opposite. They are all elvis fans, its obvious BMG?SONY needs to market their products to both audiences. By doing that everyone gets something and it could be very profitable.

As far as the duets....most fans are not aware that there are enough duets from his movies to put out a complete duet release. Examples are: The lady loves me, Your the boss etc with Anne Margret, Your groovy self with nancy Sinatra . The list is long, its a package that has been somehow overlooked. LIsa Marie has already recorded Dont dry daddy as a duet. So there is a release that will be refresshing even to the fans that want original material.

As far as outtakes that have not been released ill say this. One if you have noticed the quality of many of the outakes are questionable. If their are any GOOD outtakes Sony isnt going to run the well dry and leave nothing left. So they will released them slowly and carefully.

THere are also a large number of his recording that had great vocals but the backing for wahtever reason was not up to par. That combination lkeaves MOST listeners uninspired which is a shame. Those are a very good choice to run nedwe instrumental tracks and bring those songs to light. If this is done creatively by a top notch producer the results could be mind boggling. Im sure since we have all heard many outtakes of a song , that some of the outtakes are just no comparrision to the best. In such a case it was either the vocals OR the instrumental backing that was the cause. Working thses tracks up to there potential would be a great honor to the king.

Colonel7 (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 9, 2007report abuse

Agree with Colnago: there is that unreleased and still missing EonTour project! We have suggested Jerry Schilling does the editing of MGM's EonTour movie and bring it onto a DVD carrying only the (unreleased) 12 concerts of 1972 for sale together with a 3CD Box and booklet all for an attractive price of only US$50 (fifty...not more, do you hear) and it'll be a smashing sales success for BMG,Turner/Warner/MGM and EPE Mgmt!! That is the kind of innovative stuff we want to buy. Forget the remixes for the young. We are not complaining, just think that the marketing crew handling Elvis materials should take some more and better marketing courses, that's all. Elvis couldn't agree more with us, if he'd still be there.

Colonel7 (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 9, 2007report abuse

KCreole, Paul from F and mature EP fans don't like remixes for the young. Where's For the Asking studio outtakes ?? Where's the GMan/USMale/Monkey buzz, the Prom Land and BLove studio outtakes? Since BMG has to pay more royalties to EPE Mgmt/Graceland for Now, LLetters, GTimes and Now albums, will those will never see the light on FTD? Can Anyone answer us? If so, it would be very unfair and un-business like to Elvis fans. Hope there are some fans who like our observations. Let's hear it!? C'mon ev'rybody, write about your priorities and let us know, please.

Colonel7 (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 9, 2007report abuse

Agree with most fans like Keith, Lex, Robban, Paul...It seems indeed that BMG needs better marketing directives and innovative thinking. Surprised you guys are worried about remixes while the mature hardcore fans still await "missing and above all important FTD releases" like the remaining studio session outtakes, the movie outtakes, an EonTour 3CD Box (hopefully with DVD of the 12 72 Concerts without interviews and nonsense). Hate to repeat myself but there's so much more creative stuff to be done with re-releases that could be upgraded, further enhanced and completed (like Double Albums plus outtakes or hits) or re-do them as compilation CDs, bring out new extended CDs of In Person, On stage, TTWII live renderings of songs (like they successfully did on FTD with From 1974 Memphis Concert... Why not learn from good sellers ? Anyone listening out there? Believe you should not put so much emphasis on the young and remixes...for most of us this issue is not as interesting as the remaining good stuff we want to buy, right ?

KingKreole (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 8, 2007report abuse

The smartest thing would indeed be to do what was done with the Beatles' Love album. The duets idea is cheesy. That Celine Dion thing was the worst thing I have ever seen. Then again, Celine Dion is a joke, so maybe with someone better. What was done with the acoustic demo of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" on the Beatles cd is what they should do with some Elvis tracks. Take "Lonely Man" "In My Way" "Forget Me Never" and add nice understated string arrangements. Take "Love Me Tender" and "Are You Lonesome Tonight" and strip off the Jordinaires and also augment with strings. Elvis' perfect voice never ever sounds dated and it never will--but the arrangements of some songs do sound dated--and there is nothing wrong with that and they will always be there--but we can update without it becoming a dance remix. (Although I thought A Little Less Conversation was great. It was wonderful to hear Elvis in a dance club and see people in 21st century dancing to Elvis). The second remix of Rubberneckin was a stupid stupid choice of song. Let Yourself Go was the smarter choice. BTW, I bet the "marketing degree" was supermarketing, or bagging groceries. These ideas have been around forever.

kbd (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 8, 2007report abuse

check out the review of the new Beatles "Love" release that was produced for the Cirque du soleil production. This could give you an idea of one direction Elvis's work could betaken in an respectful and interesting manner. Its on the highfidelityreview com web site. It is the first review on the home page at the top. It goes into detail about how the project was approached, produced and finished.

Lex (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 8, 2007report abuse

EspenK, that is a tough question. I'm afraid I'm pessimistic on both... money will be the guide in both cases. The DVD sets are not profitable enough and making money is more important than global heating. That's just an early conclusion, not an opinion ;-).

PaulFromFrance (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 8, 2007report abuse

Robban... YES, the ALLC remix was lousy. It's so bad that I don't know how to express my feelings, with my basic English ! On the other hand, the duet with Celine was well done. Maybe this is one of the ways to explore: I can imagine a duet with Michael Bublé for example. I'm not saying this must be made, just that maybe they could think about it. But, for me, I can live without it and I'm not sure I would be happy with a CD full of these duets.

EspenK (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 7, 2007report abuse

Hmmm... So, Lex, how then do you rate "a 6 DVD pack of each TTWII and On Tour that will never come", compared to real problems? :D

Lex (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 7, 2007report abuse

I really don't see how I can benefit from younger fans because of remixes. I don't like them, I want the originals... they hardly will buy them. Maybe a handful of people got really in to Elvis because of ALLC, which I think is lousy, but then again I think all remixes are lousy. The bucket is about empty, there is not much more material available. And yes, I want a 6 DVD pack of each TTWII and On Tour too, but it will never come because of a handful of "fans" that are into remixes.

Stating my look on the future isn't related to Elvis and shouldn't be expressed here is very cheap. It exactly shows how I think about it, and I think I am entitled to my opinion. I am not saying you can't care for the future if you want remixes... I am only saying that it is not important at all, compared to real problems.

Robban (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 6, 2007report abuse

I worry about the earth too but it hasen´t got anything to do with this topic. Let´s keep this site about Elvis and his fans, ok Lex? Was ALLC a lousy remix? It finally put Elvis name and music on top of the charts worldwide and gave Elvis alot of new fans, what´s wrong with that? I´m pretty sure the Celine Dion duet of If I Can Dream would do the same with the right promotion. Why has it be either or for some of you, I think if Elvis gets popular among new younger fans, all of us will benfit from that in the future.

Lex (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 6, 2007report abuse

Robban, I kinda worry if my grand children still have an earth to live on, not if they will have Elvis to listen to. I guess they will by inheritance... but you get the point. Of the many artists of the last 50 years I bet Elvis will be among the survivors on his own, because of the quality of his music, not because of some lousy remixes.

And Jesper, I have nothing against covers, but leave Elvis' voice out of it then... since that is what Elvis did with the originals. The big problem for those artists is that Elvis is very hard to improve in most cases. He had the gift to make a song really his own, even if the originals were big hits already. Still you can have an incidentally nice cover of an E-song.

ELV75 (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 6, 2007report abuse

I can only party understand the fans who say Elvis' music can't be "touched". If Elvis really cared about how he sounded he would have taken some real action when the Colonel and RCA messed with the versions he recorded in the studio or on stage for a release adding strings, overdubs and other effects. On stage he messed around with songs himself, so he was in for an occasional joke too.

I can agree with the before mentioned fans that it shouldn't be a new policy to release complete albums with remixes of duets, keep it a fun thing.

EspenK (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 6, 2007report abuse

"as i said before remixes have very little to do with Elvis or a artist in general" - Is this opinion based on the remix of ALLC, Mature? Cause I think that Elvis still is very present in that work! In my opinion the remix of ALLC focus on what's already there and boost that, it doesnt radically change the track or make Elvis sound like a distorted "sample puppy" as he does on so many of the homebrew remixes out there - quite contrary. If Elvis released that track today it would probably sound more or less like that! So how wrong can it be then...

mature_elvis_fan75 (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 5, 2007report abuse

So what about the people who will only like his music if its remade,isnt that being narrow minded? and by the way do people think that only young people are the ones not likeing Elvis,or are we saying lets only go after the young people who are not into his music,as i said before remixes have very little to do with Elvis or a artist in general,there more about the remix itself which is only the music!

Colonel7 (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 5, 2007report abuse

Yeah Keith agree: a new FTD strategy is needed. Your 1st and 2nd ideas are good although nothing new...we've heard that before and better. However Elvis should not be together in the same bag with McCartney, Bono a.o. Lefty you're right: BMG goes for the easy money. However, Mature EP fans will agree we want more studio session outtakes (Now, Fool, GTimes, PromLand, BLove and Lletters, PotLuck, For asking etc etc) plus the great unreleased (except on boots) songs and above all outtakes of GGGirls, KCousins, Roust, etc plus complete sessions of GIBlues, BHawaii and KCreole !!! Man that would keep our feet tapping. White Tigerman's observations are on target. But we need also new innovative material from SonyBMG for GenPublic releases (Movie love songs for Valentine's Day 2008), Extended and upgraded/enhanced yes Sir releases of On stage, In person and TTWII but only the live versions. And then there is the OnTour project....
Hope 2007 will give us even more new releases of outtakes stuff plus CDs with DVDs incl. (of the On Tour show segments, not the talking nor interviews). Anyone listening ?

byebye (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 5, 2007report abuse

Actually I have no problem with putting a mustache on "Mona Lisa or a Elvis song, IF it is done in a "Andy Warhol kinda way". Elvis put mustaches on songs during all of his career according to the original performers who did the songs before him. So in my opinion it all goes down to how it is done. But the risk is about 95% though that a remix would not be good or tastefull, but that is due to the fact of the amateurs responsible at BMG. Their aim has proven not to lie in the respect for the music and innovative thinking, but instead flooding the market with compilations. Purhaps they have at least some knowledge about their own incompetence in this field ;) and in that case I lift off my hat for their self critisism, and for NOT trying to mess with things they do not have control over.
Elvis work was art, and the musicians work also. Maybe a remix must only be done with a forgotten nonsense type o song like "ALLC", so no one would care?! And then comes the million dollar question, -Why make a remix no Elvis fan or anyone else really like or care about, except just for the sake of chart success?? Who is it done for and why? Why make something that only appeals to being a vain fan in terms of publicity. Is that a good thing? Truth is Elvis´name will live on forever anyway, but I on my part will not feed the monster with money (BMG) believing it will do Elvis´name any good. MRS is evidence, and a good example of new ways to think!

Robban (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 5, 2007report abuse

Comments like "I don´t care if young people likes Elvis or not, it´s their problem not mine" only show how narrow minded and selfcentered some Elvisfans really are and it´s scaring me quite a bit. What´s wrong with remixes and so on if it helps young people finding Elvis and his music? The original recordings don´t dissapear because of this and maybe some new Elvisfans can get interested in Elvis and can keep his name alive in the future, when we are dead and gone.

Matt W (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 5, 2007report abuse

So basically all of these ideas involve releasing music not as Elvis recorded them? Great. No really, that's just great. How about we forget all the classic work the original musicians contributed to these now vintage recordings. Genius.

No, this should not be the future of marketing Elvis' recorded legacy. Availability and top quality mastering should be the order of the day. Elvis' complete recorded masters should be available for download for example - keep the outtakes for specialist releases. Reinstating the masters boxsets with the latest re-masters such as a re-issue of the Complete 50s Master utilising Kevan Budd’s work and keep them on the shelves alongside such long standing boxsets as The Beach Boys Pet Sounds set that I usually always see in music stores.

Many grumble about the constant flow of compilations but these do have a place in the market. Casual buyers garner an intro to Elvis. As long as the powers that be use these releases as marketing tools directing would be followers to other releases such as original albums, FTD, and indeed the career boxsets then they can be effective tools.

Beyond this effort, licensing Elvis’ music for use on movie and television soundtracks, perhaps producing a portfolio that different recordings could be suited to ie romantic comedies, period pieces, action adventure etc and submitting these to production companies.

One thing is for sure, they need to stop pushing elvis.com as the go to site – a full on official site needs to be available detailing the complete recorded works of Elvis only.

mature_elvis_fan75 (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 4, 2007report abuse

There are plenty of young people interested and buying Elvis music,im a seller,so i know this to be true,in my oppion most who would onlywont to hear Elvis if his music is remixed, will not buy much else after that,if your going after these types then your wasting time and energy not too mention messing with something that doesnt need to be messed with!

Natha (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 4, 2007report abuse

I fully agree with Lex on this point. I have some remixes in my collection, but even within my daily two and a half hours of ELVIS music I tend to skip them. The ELVIS legacy is that what he did. The youngsters I know like his music exactly for what it is and not so much what it should have been. The other day one of them said to me that given the right plugging a song like Promised Land would still be a tremendous success - that is to say: as it is on the LP or CD and not altered. As they say: beauty is a joy forever. And that is the music of ELVIS as it was done by the master himself. His music is the classical music of our era.

PaulFromFrance (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 4, 2007report abuse

Useless to say I agree with Lex. ;-) Keep your hands off his work (not Lex work, but Elvis'). I, like him, don't give a damn about what youth thinks about Elvis music. If you're unable to understand his greatness and his genius, go away ! You don't deserve him and I don't want someone, in a studio or behind a computer messing with his music, just to try to attract some new customers. Noone tries to alter Louis Armstrong or Sinatra music, so...

WhiteTigerman (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 4, 2007report abuse

I think Keith has a great idea, Sony/BMG should do some different things as far as getting new stuff out there.Look at all the alternate takes of all those great songs that are still out there.Why not put out the movie soundtracks that are not on cd yet out in their original form.All the shows & rehearsals from On Tour & ttwii along with the cbs special on dvd would be good.I know it sounds like a broken record repeating this stuff over & over,but this is what we Elvis fans want, need & love to have.Another thing I think would be great is to put all of Elvis' gold singles on one set.He had many that were double sided million sellers.I know that volumes 1-5 are out there,but not all the songs are on these volumes such as One Broken Heart For Sale & Where Do You Come From,as well as a few others.It would be nice to be able to enjoy this stuff while we are still here to enjoy them. Elvis Presley Forever. P.S.think of each recording session being released as it was done take by take,just another thought.

ijustcanhelpbelievin (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 4, 2007report abuse

well spoken LEX...leave the remixing alone. let the classics be classics. ELVIS was well spoken about his material not being changed or altered. you don't do 20 takes on a song to have someone play around with the tempo,or add something else in that was never there.

Lex (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 4, 2007report abuse

I said it before in remix discussion, but I'll repeat it once more :-). I don't give a damn if today's youth like Elvis or not. Certainly not if it's for the wrong reason: messed up music. My alter ego Paul ;-) wrote once "you won't draw a mustache on the Mona Lisa either" or something like that. And that's exactly what you do when overdubbing, remixing or do whatever with Elvis' orginals.

And hey, what are you complaining about... the man is dead for 30 years almost. And still this site has a right of existance, still there is news every day. Not many more dead guys or gals can claim that.

dbacke1 (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 3, 2007report abuse

I totally agree with Keith regarding the lack of a good marketing strategy for E. As last year was ending, I was truly hoping that EPE would seize the moment and make this year, the 30th anniversary of his passing, a monumental year for The King. I myself was thinking that On Tour should be released on DVD, and of course in remastered picture and sound format, and possibly with bonus footage and features added in. More than that, though, I was really hoping for a multi-DVD release of the Elvis In Concert material from 1977. A lot of people knock this stuff, but it is pretty good if you give it a chance. Unfortunately, the only material available at this time is either bootleg material or a VHS transfer from the original taped special. The quality overall is not that good, but there are some very fine moments in the footage, and Elvis' voice was very strong. I think that the set could be as many as 3 DVDs, including the original CBS special, Omaha concert, Rapid City concert, as well as bonus footage and features. With remastered picture and sound, this would be beautiful, and it could be marketed in a very positive manner. I plan to write more about it in the weeks ahead. What does everyone else think?

colnago (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 2, 2007report abuse

All we want is a huge Elvis On Tour project.There's loads of video and audio to work with.Why not release complete concerts on dvd from the film,or remaster Elvis On Tour with new material and better picture and sound like TTWII, SE.Elvis and the band were awesome in '72 and with remastered picture and sound we'd really be able to see and hear just how good they really were.Just don't show the movie on TCM before it's released on dvd!

mature_elvis_fan75 (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 2, 2007report abuse

Im 32 and never had a problem with the original music,after all thats why i like it, cause its differt than todays music,i have been a fan since my teens,sure go ahead and do remixes but im not intersted, because like alot of todays music it will be about the beat and not the artist!

benny scott (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 2, 2007report abuse

I must admit that some of the younger Elvis-fans may have a point here. As an "old" El-fan I'll always prefere the original recordings, and I don't have the intention to buy remixes,duets,songs with new backing-tracks etc... But I fully can underdstand the younger ones who prefer another approach of the releases, with a more " modern " sound, and/or other backing tracks, duets, etc... It would be great if both opinions in the future should be served by the record company, Sony/Bmg as well as FTD , it could make everybody happy then. In the meantime : wishing everybody all the best !

mature_elvis_fan75 (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 2, 2007report abuse

lefty i agree with you on ftd, but i dont see and releases coming with booklets,expect of course the repackaged material put on the classic albums,as for you people,they could find his cd if they tried,you can do all the remixes you wont, but as long as the label continues to release garbage nothing will change!

Ruthie (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 2, 2007report abuse

As an old Elvis fan, I think Keith has some very good points. I have heard the same recordings over & over packaged in different ways yet I know there are some wonderful recordings out there that would not only be entertaining to me but would also attrack the attention of the younger fans. I can't comment one way or the other about his specific suggestions but it certainly wouldn't hurt to try some new ideas. There are so many younger Elvis fans who "think" they have heard everything Elvis ever did but actually have no clue. There is so much to explore but you won't get their attention without some innovative changes.

Lefty (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 1, 2007report abuse

All nice thoughts and ideas, but none of these will ever happen. FTD and BMG make a bundle on selling reissues, stripped down soundboards, and compliations. Little to no effort--not to mention cost--is required, thus the profit margine is enormous. Why invest in the tedious work of remastering, getting Sir Paul McCartney to produce, or contracting with Cher? All of that costs money. Just slap a new photo on the front, leave glitches and static in the sound, pawn cheap digi-packs for $30, and laugh all the way to the bank! Honestly, I'd be happy if for just once FTD would do a "standard" soundboard release with a decent 16 booklet and liner notes.

Mofoca22 (profile/ contact) wrote on Jul 1, 2007report abuse

all you old fans who are against these ideas need to get with the times you guys seen elvis a lot of you were a live when he was around me i wasnt i was born 2 years after his death. younger people like elvis but we will never hear him in the mainstream unless there are remixes or duets done. tehre isnt anything wrong with it either. hell allc became a number 1 hit because it was remixed same with guitar man in 1982. you cant keep the songs the same all the time elvis changed with the times oir kept ahead of them it would be respectful to elvis to do it. i read in many books he always wanted to do duets with other performers this could be his chance though hes no longer alive. you grannys and grammpys need to quit thinking about your likes and dislikes you have it all already and then some. time to get the younger generation a piece of the man who made music what it is today. johnny cash changed with the times and done songs by rock groups of today so what now? as a lot of you say if you dont like it dont buy it. someones gotta keep elvis's legacy alive after you all croak sad to say and who will do it if the youth aint got no intrest in it?

Robban (profile/ contact) wrote on Jun 30, 2007report abuse

I totally agree with Steve V, the only way för Elvis music to hit a large new generation is to do something that they like, and then when he´s got their attention, they can start exploring Elvis on their own. Maybe they could make a new remix of a practically unknown quite cool and forgotten Elvis song like Hey Little Girl from maybe his worst motion picture Harum Scarum, but the song is great on the soundtrack, listen for yourself it has a groove to it and it would be like a new song even for most of the Elvisfans, who probably has forgotten it long time ago.
There are of course other good songs aswell, that are practically forgotten, but how do you make them popular in the music field today, that´s the problem. You just have to do something new and exiting to get common peoples attention through radio and tv why should they play 30-50 year old songs today, they don´t see the point. If your not on top of the charts you don´t exist and many new (could have been) Elvisfans will be lost in the process. If you don´t reach the big masses of people and get them interested in Elvis what will become of his memory in the future generations?

Steve V (profile/ contact) wrote on Jun 30, 2007report abuse

I understand where Marco & Lex are coming from about messing with originals. I also understand the need for new ideas to appeal to a mass public. This is the label's job. The boxsets mentioned were fine for collector's but the average person doesnt care at all about an outtake. In fact they dont like them. The sales of those boxsets werent that impressive, although they did turn profits. But lets face it, the well is dry. The many outtakes have made their way to various boxsets, regular releases and FTD releases. Live shows dont hold much appeal, so it is time for a new strategy whatever that will be. I thought 2002 was a great year with the Disney movie, the ALLC remix and 30 # 1's. It can happen again. Out of all of the mentioned options I like the idea of an up to date remix of a little known Elvis classic (like ALLC was) and putting it in a movie, commercial, etc and eventually a single release. I also like the idea of stripping away all the backing of Elvis tracks, classics or non-classics, and having rock greats like McCartney, Clapton, etc privide new instrumental & vocal backing. Homage to the King in the highest honor.

marco31768 (profile/ contact) wrote on Jun 30, 2007report abuse

Yeah, dear benny scott: you have understand me totally. I'm sorry for my bad English (I'm Italian fan).

benny scott (profile/ contact) wrote on Jun 30, 2007report abuse

I fully agree with Marco D.E. Please no remixes,duets,new backingtracks, etc... Let's stick to the originals! And I do exactly en perfectly understand what Marco means. Platinum,Today, Tomorrow and Forever, Close Up, etc... had all several unreleased outtakes and those boxed sets were all available and buyable in regular stores. So what Marco means is : give us more unreleased stuff, but released by Sony/Bmg, so that everybody can purchase those CD's in regular shops . FTD releases are inded not available ( or should not be, but there are always exceptions ) in regular stores. If one wants an FTD-release he has to turn to an Elvis-fanclub owning a shop ( on line or not ), or to companies like,for instance, Amazon.( there are others )

SuziB (profile/ contact) wrote on Jun 30, 2007report abuse

Sorry but I fail to see what any of these suggestions has to do with being a 'marketing graduate' - unless you consider marketing to be restating someone elese's ideas. So, as a marketing graduate, what is your job exactly? There is a real marketing/business genius regularly on this site (who, incidentally has a Double First in business and law, an MBA, and an MSC in marketing) someone who has won award after award but he earns so much money in banking and loyalty prgrammes ($600k+ and recently turned down a $million+ dollars a year to move to the US - crazy fool!) he's unlikely to give away anything free!! Dave, over to you!!!

RonBaker (profile/ contact) wrote on Jun 30, 2007report abuse

All three ideas sound good to me. We already have (at least I do) all the already released tracks (I doubt there are any unreleased masters lurking about...although takes 9 and 10 of "Don't Ask Me Why" on an acetate went for just a little over $50 on eBay last week). Remixes, duets...they all sound promising. If something besides the same old repackaging doesn't happen, then there won't be anything substantial in print.

Rimestimes (profile/ contact) wrote on Jun 30, 2007report abuse

marketing Back Catalog Releases should be on the minds of BMG in their original form.

Lex (profile/ contact) wrote on Jun 30, 2007report abuse

I don't understand exactly what Marco means... but I have to agree on the point I do understand. Keep your hands off of it! The original is good enough, don't mess it up with overdubs, remixes, duets or whatsoever.

mature_elvis_fan75 (profile/ contact) wrote on Jun 29, 2007report abuse

Would someone tell me why the ftd label is not advertsied in cd's that are in the stores?Or is that also top secret? lol

marco31768 (profile/ contact) wrote on Jun 29, 2007report abuse

Please: no remix! Please, no duets! Do you remember the best releasings of the last years? "Platinum", "Today, tomorrow and forever", "Close up"... We need unreleased tracks, not remix or others ugly things... The FTD isn't available on the regular stores so the medium Elvis' fan want some unreleased performances.

Mofoca22 (profile/ contact) wrote on Jun 29, 2007report abuse

woooo hooo someone who has a good idea or ideas. if i worked at sony/bmg dude i would hire you