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Memories Of The '68 Comeback Show

June 14, 2008 | Music
Due for release late June 2008 by the Dutch It's Elvis Time fan club is the talking only CD "Elvis Memories of The 68 Comeback Show" featuring the memories of Steve Binder and DJ Fontana as recorded on the fan club meeting November 26, 2006. The CD has a running time of 70 minutes.
From the press-release:

Packaging Elvis Presley for the "small screen" after ten years of Hollywood treatment was no easy task, The Colonel wanted "more of the same", the sponsor wanted "holly leaves and Christmas trees", and all Elvis wanted was the freedom to take care of business. A young director Steve Binder had enjoyed considerable success with a Pet Clark special, and a TV series featuring soul legends Chuck Berry, Marvin Gaye, and James Brown. Elvis loved the show and warmed towards Binder's approach. His partner was former Radio Recorders engineer Bones Howe, so the chemistry was perfect. NBC Network Chief Bob Finkle gave the two young Turks a free hand, which resulted in the Colonel being stone-walled, and a sexy burlesque presentation, packed with sincerity, lust, and compassion.

The 1968 Elvis Presley Christmas Special, when broadcast on 3rd December gave the network its biggest ratings victory for the year, and captured a record breaking 42% of the American viewing public. Elvis was back! Hear Steve Binder recapture this iconic time recorded exclusively in Rotterdam, Holland on November 26, 2006. ?
Source:For CD Collectors Only
circleG wrote on June 15, 2008
For the life of me I can't understand why interviews with producers and musicians and dancers from the show were never made into 'extras' for the DVD releases. In fact a 'making of' documentary would have been a cool extra. Surely Binder was an important part of the whole 'comeback' equation surely. This kind of stuff really needs to be recorded while these people are alive. I have snippets of interviews over many dics but it really needs to be brought together. I guess such a thing would have been too obvious.
dressingroomrehearsa wrote on June 15, 2008
would fit in very well into the 4cd comeback package
Harvey Alexander wrote on June 16, 2008
Creating extras costs money, and EPE (in the case of the 68 Special DVDs) will not shell out. They are cheap. Just look at the muck they sell through their website. They want our money but are never willing to go the extra mile to actually earn it by doing anything of any worth. And Elvis' movies have been released so many times on both video and DVD, I can't see any company going to the expense of creating extras when they know they will not get their money back. It's sad but true.
Steve V wrote on June 16, 2008
Harvery is right on as usual. With the exception of the original 1957 Christmas LP, when did they ever go the extra mile on an Elvis release?