Pre-order Aloha Deluxe DVD Set

How long do we have to keep mentioning promotion and marketing before something happens ? There is no promotional campaign for these releases end of story. EPE,BMG whoever, are just happy for the hardcore fans to buy and for them to make a steady profit, which is a tragedy. Trust me, ask any of your friends who like music but are not really hardcore Elvis fans and I absolutely guarantee you, they will have no idea about these forthcoming DVD releases and that is criminal !! Just look at Ultimate Gospel and 2nd To None, which were / are generally a flop in the vast mojority of countries worldwide.

The cover artwork is real UGLY. But I will still have to buy it - for the unseen footages.

There is another online site that is offering the Aloha set for approx $22 and the Comeback Special for around $32 ! which I think is a fair price....Look around !

elvissessions, I take your point about there not being too many television commercials, etc to promote new albums, but it's wrong to assume there aren't well organised marketing campaigns. The big difference lies with the fact that Elvis is dead, so a common avenue for promotion is not available - ie ensuring the band/singer is seen and heard as much as possible in the period leading up to the release. They have the chat-show circuit, radio and magazine interviews, etc to arouse enthusiam and awareness for new product - all arranged by the record company! We don't all know about new releases by accident - there's a lot of both overt and subliminal hype. With Elvis no longer being with us, there are obvious restrictions on how new releases can be promoted, but I do believe both BMG and EPE could and should step up their efforts.

For sure Dismas. Elvis never did that, but then I think that was as much to do with the Colonel's tactic of keeping Elvis elusive and mysterious as RCA's reluctance. Also, the Colonel would price Elvis out of doing such things with his 'nobody gets mah boy for nuthin' approach.

When his record sales were falling and his movie grosses were dropping-off at various career lows back in the Sixties and Seventies -- when making the rounds on the talk-show and variety show (remember them?) circuit and submitting to radio-magazine-major newspaper interviews could make or break a new single, album or movie -- just how many of these promotional tools do you think Elvis made use of? I hate to tell you, TonyP, but the answer is zero, nada, none of the above. So, living or dead, I guess the powers that be in Elvisworld figure it's just business as usual.

I agree with your assessment of the situation, TonyP; you are, of course, !00% right about the Colonel. But why would he never shift in his approach -- and why oh why did Elvis so rarely balk at it -- when his boy's very career seemed to be on a serious downswing? I've thought about this a lot over the years, and if I could have, I'd like to have asked the Colonel "What's the good of maintaining the cloak of mystery if fewer and fewer people seem interested?" As far as the financial question goes, many of the big stars of the day who did indeed do the talk/variety-show circuit to promote their latest projects/products donated their television paychecks to charity. Thus, they got the exposure they were looking for, and as a side bonus, came across as old-fashioned good guys for helping out some folks in need. And this was an image that the Colonel worked very hard at projecting and protecting for Elvis. So, what could they have possibly lost with an appearance on Ed Sullivan, Andy Williams, Dean Martin, etc?? And on those shows Elvis wouldn't have had to worry about his natural shyness or uneasiness about speaking in public like a Johnny Carson (or any other talk-show) appearance. And what would they have gained? Well, #11s like "One Broken Heart For Sale," "(Such an) Easy Question," "I'm Yours" and "You Don't Have To Say You Love Me" would likely have been boosted into the Top 10, well, you get the idea. In the meantime, I'm looking forward in a big way to the upgraded DVD special editions, promotion or not.

I'm never sure what promotion people are expecting to see. Maybe things are different outside the United States, but here a TV ad -- even a radio ad -- for a new album or DVD is rare. It's generally not done that way unless it's made-for-TV CD compilations, which are generally viewed as low-end product certainly not for the serious collector. Occasionally, there'll be a 15- or 30-second snippet for an album, but these generally originate in local markets, targeted at niche markets. In fact, those usually tend to be quite cheesy because of their limited nature. There are a couple of rare exceptions -- including Elvis -- but nobody's getting a multimedia marketing blitz that's going to start a buzz.Again, it may be different overseas, but I can say here in the United States, Elvis isn't being shortchanged. You just have to consider how music is marketed and who it's marketed to. You can argue things should be different, but even the other big-name back-catalog artists like the Beatles don't get blowout TV advertising the way, say, a new paper towel does.

It´s very reasonable what BMG does; they know they can live up with hardcore fans, and as we buy their products, they will be doing it. Anyway, I´ll buy them

When is this Major promotion blitz going to start? BMG and EPE, are in charge of the this deal, and without the major effort, only fans will know about it. It has to be promoted in a big way in order to reach the new generation, that is in cultural limbo now. There is no better time than now to make that SUN rise again.. I hope they go all out...

No Good, and not fair to Elvis.. The time to strategize is now. They have to take a Pro-active stand now. Like all artists alive, Promotion is key, and I'm concerned about the future generations. It is common sense that in a few years the Elvis popularity will start to wane if nothing is done. I know there is a starving youth culture that is in limbo now. The envelope has been pushed far enough, in terms of the music today, and society is searching for balance. Elvis is right there... time for the SUN to rise again, and for Elvis' dream to come true. There is a window of opportunity right now, and the '50th anniv' along with this dynamic duo of dvd's is part of the vehicle. We might have to rally and make some demands of the powers that be. I see all the time childrens eyes light up when Elvis is mentioned and others show curiousity to learn more about Elvis. What is going on. A summer of tv promotions with cuts from both the Aloha, and 68 special, splashed all over channels usung Elvis ' electricity and charisma in a strategic way will bring the Masses to the stores in droves. This I am sure of, and it becomes win win for all involved.. This is not the time to play it safe. 'A little less conversation a little more action'..Look what Nike did overseas. Imagine what could be done with these new DVD's if the campaign took off. I would appreciate some ideas, so we can get busy and take some kind of action. It has to be done within a month or so...