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Elvis On Tour

By BlogCritics/ General Jabbo, August 03, 2010 | Video

In 1972, Elvis Presley was still riding high from the commercial and critical rebirth that started with the ’68 Comeback Special and continued with his return to live performances the following year. His previous documentary, Elvis: That’s The Way It Is was a success, showing the King at the height of his physical and vocal ability. Hoping to recapture some of that magic, directors Robert Abel and Pierre Adidge followed Presley on his 15 cities in 15 nights 1972 tour, the results of which became Presley’s 33rd and final film, Elvis On Tour. Long out of print on VHS, it makes its DVD and Blu-Ray debut with this release.

Not just a concert performance, Elvis On Tour gives a behind-the-scenes look at Presley’s tour with plenty of backstage moments. We see Presley just before he hits the stage, candid moments with the Memphis Mafia in his limousine, studio footage and footage of Presley and his band singing gospel songs on their off hours. A true highlight comes when Presley leads them through a rendition of “I, John.” Gospel music moved Presley and it shows in these scenes.

There are also a number of complete live performances, filmed in Hampton, VA; Greensboro, NC; and San Antonio, TX including the first-ever performance of Presley’s last U.S. top-10 hit, “Burning Love.” The song is so new that Presley reads the lyrics off a sheet of paper while he sings, but the performance is dynamic. Other highlights include a rocking “Polk Salad Annie,” powerful versions of “Bridge Over Troubled Water and “An American Trilogy” and a fine version of “Funny How Time Slips Away” that is made ever more poignant as Presley would be gone just five years later. Elvis On Tour also features a career-retrospective montage supervised by Martin Scorsese and the middle of “Love Me Tender” is intercut with love scenes from Presley’s movies.

Keen fans may notice the intro to the movie is different and that’s because Chuck Berry’s classic, “Johnny B. Goode” has been replaced by ‘Don’t be Cruel.” Seems Presley’s people could not get a hold of Berry’s people and they were unable to get the licensing for the song. As “Don’t be Cruel” is shorter, one section of the lyrics had to be repeated, making for a clumsy intro. Still, some movie is better than no movie. The DVD is also included as part of the Elvis 75th Anniversary DVD Collection, while the Blu-ray is in the Blu-ray book format, featuring 40 pages of photos, quotes, biography, and set lists for the shows filmed.

While both discs feature remastered video and audio (The standard DVD has Dolby Digital 5.1 while the Blu-ray has DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 Surround) the content is identical. The picture and the sound quality are fantastic, especially on the Blu-ray, but there are no extras included on either version. This will be disappointing news to Presley fans, many of who are aware a plethora of footage for these shows exists. There would have been plenty of room on either disc (the Blu-ray especially) to include commentary, cut scenes, behind the scenes footage or even the new 20 minutes of footage shot for the recent theatrical rerelease. Instead, all fans were treated to was a bare bones version of the film. The film itself is great — something any Presley fan would do well to have in his or her collection — but for such a big release, the presentation disappoints.
 

 

Note ElvisNews:

We underline most of the review. The image is more than fair, regarding the source (filmed in not optimal circumstances, with hand held cameras). Most disappointing was the fluctuation in sound. Especially close to the endings of showstoppers (Bridge, Proud Mary) it sounds like the sound is squeezed, as if a limiter is involved.

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ttwiise wrote on August 28, 2010
sound is excellent not superb but after all it is from 1972. Picture is also excellent though a black line can be seen on the print for about 60% of the movie most noticable on seperate ways, therefore this shows that mgm didn't master from a pristine print but the same old one used numerous times before
I am Buffalo-Horn! wrote on August 28, 2010
Why on earth is this not on sale in the UK?
Steve V wrote on August 28, 2010
Very sub-par release Read the review in the new issue of The Man and His Music. That about sums it up.
Tony C wrote on August 28, 2010
The Australian PAL release is set for September 29th, so I would imagine it would be released in the UK around that time. However, Amazon do not have a UK release listed yet, which is strange as most things are mentioned months ahead of release.
Thorsten_Germany wrote on August 30, 2010
Recieved my copy shortly after release in Germany. I must say that I am really disapointed. The sound is fine, but I could not see any improvements in the picture. The much discussed openeing sequence is not my cup of tea. The cuts in Don't Be Cruel are amateurish and do not fit the picture very well. Ok, I must admit that I am used to JBG for 25 years when I saw the movie for the first time. To me it's a cheap transfer from the VHS version with no additional benefit. I'll stick to my previous DVD edition.
Jesse Garon Presley wrote on August 30, 2010
well i most definately see improvement of EOT and just for the record? my eyes are perfect there are so many fans who are amazed by the sound and picture of EOT i cannot even count the comments on that.. fans who saw this in a theatre or at home,common,this a not cheap copy of a VHS tape you see so much more detail on this dvd and blu-ray i see things on the blu-ray and dvd which i never saw before and the sound is awesome too, people who are saying that the sound and picture is not good is really getting a life on it's own and quite frankly its getting boring really Warner did a good job on this dvd and Blu- Ray and i'm proud i own both the Dvd and Blu Ray the positive reactions wins hands down over the negative reactions about this release.
Santa Claus wrote on August 30, 2010
Anyone else have this black line through Elvis's face during "Separate Ways" and a number of other scenes? I have the Blu-Ray but also realized it on DVD. This is very disturbing for me. I never saw this black thin line before and I wonder why nobody mentioned this error. Another minus .. along many others ... in my opinion.
dgirl wrote on August 30, 2010
I'll stand by what I said before the website went down. I am glad this was released, but it is a shoddy release to say the release, from the opening of Dont Be Cruel , to the black line, to no extras, not even a trailer. Even $5.00 DVDs contain a trailer! As for the quality, I think its better than VHS but not by much. To think otherwise is talking yourself into believeing it. Basically, to wait all these years and get this release the way it was done is a disgrace to Elvis fans and proves once again, that no one really cares when it comes to Elvis product. It was released to appease the fans and thats it.
Jesse Garon Presley wrote on August 30, 2010
i see what i see and it's not shoddy you have your opinion and i have mine this dvd is not disgrace in any way my eye are not deceiving me,the dvd version stands way way above this in picture and in audio quality as far as the vhs tape is concerning and the blu -ray is even better so fans stating that fans who are saying that the quality is fantastic those fans want to believe that it is fantastic? and it's not? maybe it's the other way around fans who think the quality is bad do want to believe the quality is bad.. it simply is NOT bad ..this quality is already perfect and it's perfect in what they achieved with 16MM footage it's not getting any better than this but i'm glad i have this release period and what about the book who came together with the blu- ray is that a disgrace too? no way but to each his own period.
ttwiise wrote on August 30, 2010
Santa Claus see my review at the bottom. The black line was on the Laserdisc from years ago so they used the same source. I however have not noticed it throughout the movie before
MEMPHISMUSIC wrote on August 30, 2010
To be honest it was great getting this finally released, well almost released, as you can't buy it in UK shops yet! The high was getting it in Blue-ray disc, which is very nicely packaged with a stunning cover to stand out in the shops - When it gets to the shops. The content - We all know and love " Elvis On Tour" so nothing i can say to add how great this release is. The sound is very good and the picture is an improvement on anything "EOT" released before. But - I must agree with most that i was also expecting a release as good as the 68 & Aloha DVD's. It is Not! All could have been better. The opening credits was ok, but lost the feel of the original. Not a second of additional performances! We could have at least had the lost performances tagged on as bonus. A small making of as a bonus would have been nice and it wouldn't have hurt to have put at least an hour of unused footage on as a bonus! I'm pleased to have this at last. But can't help thinking what could have been.............
Jesse Garon Presley wrote on August 30, 2010
MEMPHISMUSIC it's like the saying "What you see is what you get" and that is exactly what it is and i also agree with you concerning "' what could have been" yes exactly, but that is not going to happen because it's filmed with 16mm unlike Aloha and 68 that's why they differ in quality,but what they got out of EOT ( filmed with 16mm) is still simply amazing, i just watched it again an hour ago and i can't stop watching it because of the sound and picture quality it's the best you can get and i'm happy with that,I'm pleased to have this at last too
johnnygb wrote on August 31, 2010
Hi, can anyone tell me why this movie, considered by most of us to be the holy grail on our wish lists, has NOT been released in the UK. Its available just about every where else, even India. Thanks
Bob Finkel wrote on August 31, 2010
Hello Santa. Yes, you are right! I have seen this black thin lines through Elvis's face during "Separate Ways" and a number of other scenes too. I only have the Blu-Ray. But you are right. Bad recording, äh, bad quality. The on stage scenes are in good quality. Only the backstage scenes are very bad.
theoldscudder wrote on August 31, 2010
I agree with DGirl. The only thing worthy about this release is the convenience of having it in DVD.
Jesse Garon Presley wrote on August 31, 2010
the only thing that counts for me is that this dvd is great nothing wrong with this release at all for the last time fantastic picture and sound fans who are saying this release is bad well sorry to say it's your loss not for the fans who love this release.
eric c wrote on October 17, 2010
I wish they had releaased a deluxe edition....I wish the single dvd had some outtakes on it....I wish ted turner would grow a heart and decide to release all the footage he owns....but at the end of the day I'd rather have this than nothing at all.I love my copy and am wearing it out.I hope someday we get a deluxe edition.It would be cool to see the four concerts filmed-greensboro,hampton roads,richmond and san antonio-released individually or as a concert box set.That would be cool.But at least ted turner gets too see it.