Memphis Recording Service adds another themed item to their collection. Is it as good as we expect from them by now?
Design
Overwhelming is about the only word I can come up with. The 6” book is filled with tons of pictures, well-known and unknown (at least by me). There are even some rare color shots of our man, among it “the first ever of Elvis” (which looks colorized to me, but I’m no expert). In addition to all photos there is a lot of memorabilia: souvenirs, labels, newspaper clippings, contracts and so on. Above all the Hayride Archive is very well documented, I think nothing more can be said about Elvis’ appearances there and this book/CD.
Content
Next to the content of the book, which is described above, there is of course the CD. Most of us are familiar with the recordings. To me they are a must, not to play on a weekly base, but to enjoy the way Elvis played crowds early on during his career every now and then. I must admit I never heard these recordings in better quality. Was Heart Of Stone almost unlistenable in the past, here we have a pretty decent restoration of it. I can’t compare the December 1956 show to Sony’s recent release, since I decided to skip that overprized one, but I easily believe MRS’s claim that this one is better, based upon past experiences with the official outings.
Conclusion
I can only say this is a real jewel, of the same level as Elvis was as an artist in the mid fifties
A real and pure jewel indeed ! That's how it was in the beginning.An absolutely must-have for every Elvisfan. MRS never let me down so far. Great,great,great release! Always El.
Finally a product I'm looking forward to!
Steve, you won't be disappointed, I can assure you! Always El.
Surely by now MRS has established itself long ago in the Elvis world that nothing really needs to be said.......apart from a big 'THANK YOU' from me for another well product product at a realistic price compared to other certain labels.
FTD and Sony take note...This is how it should be done.
Brilliant , Brilliant , Brilliant. I look more forward to these MRS releases than I do FTD. Joe, when is the next one, I want more, more, more.
Now this is what this heart of an old Rocker gives an extra kick. Just received my copy. So there's going to be good rockin' tonight.
This is a thing of beauty. It was fun to listen to this with headphones and try to imagine what it must have been like to experience this time in Elvis' career. His last show from Dec. of 1956 is a wonderful piece of music history - it truly is like listening to the birth of the King of R 'n' Roll. He's in total control and leaving the crowd stunned. His version of "Love Me" is pure perfection. No true fan should be without this historic release. As far as the book, the photos are amazing and contain numerous unseen images. The narrative is also superbly written and quite informative. I can't imagine how this set could be improved upon. MRS outdoes Sony/BMG - uh - um AGAIN.
Orion, 100% agreed ! I'm a little bit surprised there are only 8 reactions so far ! Does that mean that we ( permit me to say "we =the older generation" ?) are the only ones being interested in how it all started ? Never mind, what a beautiful piece of musical (Elvis)-history this is . Many, many thanks to MRS ! Always El.
I pre-ordered my copy from a well-known online seller long before it was due for release but it is already listed as "out-of-stock" from the seller, so I have not received my copy yet. This may be the reason for a just a handful of comments so far JeanMarie. Will share my views upon listening to it although I would probably have nothing but praise for it, judging by previous MRS releases.
JeanMarie,let me assure you, the sound on this MRS release is the best on the Hayride full stop. All the Hayride in one place, with the best sound of all the tracks including the great remastered works on 'Hearts of Stone' and 'Money Honey'. This is the best deal at only £11 delivered.
JeanMarie - I'll be perfectly honest. The sound is not comparable to soundboards or up to today's digital standards of reproduction. However, the sound is excellent for what is being presented radio broacasts from nearly 60 years ago. If you going into it with that in mind, I'll really feel you'll be amazed by what you are in possession of - or if you have owned any previous Hayride sets. This is by and far the best release of this material sound and presentation wise.
This package contains all of the Louisiana Hayride recordings known to exist in their best yet quality, a 1956 concert that has remained unreleased for 55 years and a 100 page booklet. We get all of this for the small cost of £11.99, so I despair when I read that somebody will not support this release and will have a copy of the material made. Regarding being ripped off so many times in the past, I would like details of exactly when MRS have ripped us off. We have these people to thank for the release of the 1956 Tupelo concert footage and for making the 1958 Eddie Fadel tape more available than it has ever been. Over to you.
MRS produce good product. They dont rip people off. When I read that Tunzi was involved with this one I was skeptical because of past DVDs & books of his that let me down. But this is a good product. As Tony mentioned dont expect 70's soundboard quality but its the best that is out there.
Tony, I don't think JeanMarie was aiming at MRS in particular, maybe he had some bad experiences in the past with other labels . Nevertheless, I wish him luck with his 6 euro copy! All I know is that I paid 16.75 euro for the original stuff, nice 90-pages book included ! A real fair price for a real good product. As I wrote before, MRS never let me down, I bought all their Elvis-products released so far and will do so in the future. Always El.
Brilliant, made an old man happy
Well after having a great rockin' night I can advise everybody: buy this one. The whole package is great and worth every dime. Steve V, this is what made us happy and keep us on our toes for the King of Music. I wish FTD would deliver me this type of releases, at least once a year. Even a euro more would be acceptable. Lately I skipped their releases, either the album is not my taste or they have an 'improved' version which is debatable according to most. MRS productions have been superb all the way, so I am keen on knowing their next project!
One sentence can sum this up : "MRS produces deluxe editions as standard". The book alone is worth the £11.00 I paid. It's great to have all the Hayride stuff together on one CD and a special mention has to be made of the Tunzi remix of Maybelline. It's like having a new 1956 studio-recorded rock standard ! Reverb has been added (I'm no expert on this) and there's a new guitar solo, replacing probably the worst one I have ever heard (was Scotty caught off guard?). It all sounds seamless. A word of praise, too, for Elvis's diction on this track and for his remembering the words - not so easy on this fast song.
This will be in my Christmas list this year!!! This is my Elvis The Pelvis. The Young King. This is a piece of music history and you are all right: MRS is making a fantastic job with Elvis legacy from the 50's. Long live the King. Thank you MRS.
I put my order through Amazon. It's delayed till end of Dec. I guess the people that have copies are from Europe or sent to Europe for their copy. I am very enthused about this release.
Well Amazon UK prices have increased by £1 to £12 but the links are above just under the tracklisting lol
The sound quality is the best we are ever gonna get on this. Finally we have listenable tracks.
disappointed about the soundquality, but great to have it though ? OK, fair enough ! But as John Burrow states : the best we will ever get. So don't be too disappointed about the sound if the Pearl Harbour concert ever should see the light of day. The current quality is far from good and to be honest ( in spite of everything I've always defended Ernst and Co) I think if MRS should do the job it would be better soundwise than done by FTD, just my opinion. Merry X-Mas !
Just got the MRS package. Its the best sound quality to date for the Hayride. You probably will never get better, lets face it. So enjoy.
