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Let Me Be There

March 05, 2005 | Music
Memory Records will soon release the CD "Let Me Be There". Here you have excerpts from the booklets and track listing.

In early 1974, after the indespensable rehearsal sessions, a new Las Vegas season began on January 26 with a very good, if somewhat sedate opening night (released in 2002 as "Something Old, Something New", Memory Records CD MR 2028-2). With the exception of some short jokes, Elvis restricted his on stage monologues to a minimum and unlike September 1973, he paid full attention to his vocal control. He strengthened the repertoire with recent Stax Studio recordings "Help Me" and "Spanish Eyes" in which he added an extra "Old Mexico" verse not found in his studio version. Also, older songs i.e. "Sweet Caroline" and "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" were revived and performed on a regular basis once again. Other “newies” included the beautiful gospel song "Why Me Lord", sung as a duet with bass singer J. D. Sumner, and his very favorite Olivia Newton-John tune "Let Me Be There" where Elvis reprised the ending often due to terrific audience response.

The midnight concert from February 8 was chosen for this release to illustrate the atmosphere of the season’s progression. After three somewhat predictable opening cuts, "Trying To Get To You" is the first excellent performance and it's nice to hear Elvis giving a full effort to this old Sun Studio song. "Suspicious Minds" is performed with the power, but the real enthusiasm as heard in 1969 and 1970 is missed here. "Help Me" can be considered the very best song of the show. It's pure joy to listen to the magic of Elvis’ voice during this song.

Track listing :

01. Also Sprach Zarathustra 02. C. C. Rider 03. I Got A Woman / Amen (medley) 04. Love Me 05. Tryin' To Get To You 06. Sweet Caroline 07. Love Me Tender 08. Johnny B. Goode 09. Hound Dog (with reprise) 10. Fever 11. Polk Salad Annie 12. Killing Me Softly (by Voice) 13. Spanish Eyes (incomplete) 14. Why Me Lord 15. Suspicious Minds (with false start) 16. Band Introductions 17. Celebrity Introductions 18. Blueberry Hill (false start only) 19. I Can't Stop Loving You 20. Help Me 21. An American Trilogy 22. Let Me Be There (with reprise) 23. Can't Help Falling In Love 24. Closing Vamp.

Bonus tracks (recorded in Las Vegas 27.01.1974 Dinner show):25. You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin' 26. Sweet Caroline 27. Long Tall Sally / Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On / Mama Can't Dance / Flip, Flop And Fly / Jailhouse Rock / Hound Dog (medley) 28. Spanish Eyes.
Source:For CD Collectors Only
Ton Bruins wrote on March 05, 2005
Soundboard or audience recordeng ?
Ton Bruins wrote on March 05, 2005
I mean recording...sorry.
Lex wrote on March 05, 2005
Don't know, I have my question marks for the hairdresser. Or did he just come out of the swimming pool? One of the most terrible covers I have ever seen.
glennd wrote on March 06, 2005
This is an audience recording also the Opening Night from the 26th of 1974 they release. Elvis is this season in good mood and in fine voice. I surely buy this one. Indeed I have all of there CDs. TCB.
pacer1965 wrote on March 06, 2005
Love the photo of Elvis on the cover.Not sure if I should get this cd though
PaulFromFrance wrote on March 06, 2005
Ok, Obviously, Elvis had a shower just before the show. ;-) Beside this interesting fact, if it's an audience recording, I'll save my money.
PaulFromFrance wrote on March 06, 2005
Stone, I don't know if Lex was abused, and I wonder if it's the point. Actually, I'm pretty sure it's not. The truth is that this picture looks like Kurt Russel trying to look like Elvis. To make things short: it's a bad picture where El doesn' look that good. Nothing more. And if this is an audience recording, I don't need it, and people with some musical ears don't need it too. Nothing more.
creole wrote on March 06, 2005
A new audience recording but to me it s great because i don t have.If i waiting of this show in sounboard i am waiting many mnay many...years.
CD King wrote on March 07, 2005
Why is Memory Records keep on releasing only Audience Recordings? Don't they have some good Soundboards?
dailyone wrote on March 07, 2005
come on stone cold , lex is allowed his opinion . i dont like the live music . the cover is 70's at least instead of 50's , yes i know this is a 70's album . when i was in memphis in 72 , i missed elvis by a day , sorry about that would have liked to shook his hand . i could have went to las vegas and seen elvis live but i am happy playing my albums and films .
Tony C wrote on March 07, 2005
They obviously do not have access to soundboard recordings, because if they did they would release them ahead of audience recordings. I personally like the series of CD's that Memory have given us, but that is just my humble opinion. The packaging is always great and they do not hide the origins of their recordings. Please keep 'em coming, guys.
CD King wrote on March 07, 2005
Even though I am not keen in any audience recordings I must say that some of the artwork and packaging of the Memory Records release are quite good. I have all their earlier Studios & Soundtracks CDs and they were superb. I bought some of their Audience CD and then I gave up altogether. I've just bought the EL PASO Soundboard Import CD and this is brilliant quality, both Elvis' performance, sound quality and the superb 12 page color booklet.
abbs007 wrote on March 07, 2005
Concerning soundboards from memory: Due to EU legislation the memory label is not longer allowed to publish soundboard recordings. As far as I remember the released 2 or 3 soundboards in the past. At this time the czech law allowed this. Anyway, memory audience cd's - on my opinion - are the best audinece recordings i know.
King Of Western Bop wrote on March 07, 2005
Here we go again. Very little constructive comment on the CD's contents, just the usual suspects complaining about Elvis looking like Kurt Russell, just had a shower, the cover is the worst I've seen, etc. If you're such perfect examples of human-kind then why not spend time looking in the mirror and admiring yourselves. I'm sure you'd enjoy it a lot more than listening to (or looking at) Elvis, who had the cheek to be less than perfect. Don't you lot get fed up of knocking Elvis because he put on weight and didn't sing a '50s song exactly like he did it in the '50s? So bloody what! In the end it's the music that matters. If you don't like one particular aspect of Elvis' career then fine. The thing that gets up my nose about the whole thing is that you present your own personal opinions as though they are written in blocks of stone. Not everyone dislikes the man because he didn't stand frozen in one particular moment in time, looking and sounding the same. Will you? (Not you Lex. As we all know, God is just keeping your throne warm for you until you decide to leave us poor imperfect mortals. Oh how wonderful it must be to be so perfect!) P.S. I'm being sarcastic. Perfect you ain't!!