Sony: The Complete Elvis Presley Masters

Why only a 'first run of 1000 copies'.....surely all Elvis fans should have the opportunity to purchase this??......does this mean there will be a 2nd,3rd run or are SONY/ERNST ETC worried that the price will warrant small production runs? Yet again thinking $ and not catering for the devoted fans who buy this stuff. Just know the price for this will be high and out of the reach of most hardworking fans and in view of the recession in most coutries and financial circumstances this may reflects sales at the end of the day??

Of course, Sony is thinking about money before all else. That's what corps. do. Money is their lifeblood. Without money they are nothing. I won't make a decision on this release until I know the exact price and track listing.

Will pass on this one.

jesus bet thats going to cost more than 3 months rent. and only released to 1000 thats rediculous. why not break the set down into 3 volumes possibly 6. that way it can be more affordable for people who cant afford the big set. i mean come on sony/bmg the economy stinks theres more people out of work than working how are you ever going to draw new elvis fans out.

I think it means that there will be a limited edition run of 1000, which I would think is to satisfy/capitalise on the collecors amongst us, with additional non-limited editions for everyone else. I can't see a run of 1000 on its own being commercially viable. Sounds great, although I do wonder how many things will be missing due to copyright disputes and/or because someone made a mistake as per recent major releases.

This one will most likely have a huge ticket price. It is interesting to me as all the songs will be in chronological order. I wish the franklin mint set was like that although I have enjoyed my set. I am sure I will also be purchasing this one. Does anyone know what the problem was on Disc #6 on the Frankilin mint set. My set came witout it and I just received this disc. It is dissapointing that two set's were released though but it does not surprise me.

Hello, Elvis's musical legacy has come to be represented by so much more than the master takes released in his lifetime and I see they are being augmented with a massive 103 other recordings. However, I would raise some of the familiar concerns about this release. Firstly, there surely hasn't been a paradigm shift in audio software since the 3 CD HitStory set and the Memphis sessions Legacy Edition to warrant an overhaul. Moreover, BMG and FTD have released Elvis's essential sessions (eg, those from the 1950's, 'Elvis Is Back', 'On Stage/'In Person') in crystal clear quality. My suspicion is that this product is going to ooze class in its content and its presentation but I don't think it's going to give Elvis's fans a discernibly better listening experience. I do think though the thought of owning it will eat away at quite a few people who will eventually save their sanity by buying it. Please Lord, let me be strong.

Would love to have this one but there is no way i can afford it once again all about money as usual. I don't think it's fair that this will be limited to 1,000 copies and with the high price that will come along with it i believe it will hurt sales.

Maybe it's limited to a 1000 copies because most fans wouldn't buy this anyway. I don't care to have all of the movie soundtrack albums, thankyouverymuch. The albums I do love, I already own. So where does that leave me? I would spend a fortune for a collection that repeats much of what I have, and contains stuff that I don't want. Mixed in there will be a few treasures I can find on other single disc CD's, if I care to look. I know I sound harsh, but that's the way I see it. For better or worse, I'd still like a chance at the unreleased material. On Tour is a smokin' hot property at the moment, why not give us the Greensboro concert or Hampton Roads? Every bootlegger this side of The Netherlands has made a killing off of the CBS tapes. Jeez, sounds like the fans want Elvis In Concert. You think EPE might listen? I wonder what will be next, the ultimate, ultimate, super spectacular rehash of what we already have!? Woo-Hoo! I can't wait.

i've never really understood the point of these when i think about the high prices. surely it would make more sense to release the original albums in better quality for new/younger fans ( which FTD is doing and adding outtakes!) or if Ernst feels that Elvis music can better appreciated when listened to in a 'sessions' format ( and i agree with him) then I understand releases such as the 'suspicious minds anthology' but this...? The recent film soundtrack cd releases of girl happy, roustabout, viva las vegas etc. are nice but about 15 years too late! I'd like to see the 90's boxsets of the 50's 60's and 70's back on the shelves in upgraded sound, now THEY made sense and did a whole lotta good for elvis and his musical legacy.

If this is 'THE DEFINITE COLLECTION' are we looking at the end of the tunnel with future Elvis releases from Sony etc??...after all what's the point of another Greatest Hits or Anthology project if we already have the 'Masters in best sound quality'. FTD are surely in the near future also coming to the end of it's appeal and i have to wonder where EPE and Sony are going with the Elvis Presley brand.Have to agree with comments so far and feel this project will be out of reach for most of us cost wise but will wait and see track listings, details,cost etc before making a final-final commitment.

For an artist of Elvis’ calibre it makes sense that his master recordings be collected together in one release. Other major artists of the 20th Century (The Beatles, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, etc.) have had similar releases, so why not Elvis? Yes, we had the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s box sets, but we have NEVER had ALL of Elvis’ master recordings available at the one time EVER, with the new set finally achieving this (even the 1997 50 CD set was incomplete). Also, as pointed out by some on this site, previous releases have sometimes suffered from less-than-perfect audio quality, however, as the entire catalogue has now been re-mastered, this should no longer be an issue. As CDs have increasingly been replaced by downloads, this may be the LAST CHANCE to purchase all of Elvis’ master recordings in a physical format. The good news is that there is no obligation for anyone to purchase this set if they don’t want to (I’m not sure whether I will buy it), but for those who do want to, they can. Although the set includes 103 rarities, there has been no mention at this stage of any of the tracks being previously unreleased, so if you already have all previous releases, then you may not be missing out on anything new if you pass on this. I am intrigued to see what the final track listing will be. I have compiled all of Elvis’ mater studio recordings (Sun and RCA) onto my iPod (using Ernst’s ‘A Life In Music’ as my reference) and have come up with 632 tracks. Even if I included acetates like ‘My Happiness’, ‘Fool, Fool, Fool’, etc., multiple released versions of ‘Suppose’, ‘A Little Less Conversation’, etc., movie versions of ‘Frankie & Johnny’, ‘One Broken Heart For Sale’, etc., I still come up considerably short of 711 tracks, so it will be interesting to see exactly what will be included. (I assume that live recordings will not be featured, as this would blow out the total considerably, as between 69 – 77 there were 6 live albums, as well as numerous other releases containing live tracks). Also, it will be interesting to see which tracks they have included as rarities....... As to the question of there only being 1,000 sets produced, the promotional material states refers to a “Limited edition FIRST-RUN of only 1,000 copies” “housed in a limited edition display case”. No doubt, a ‘regular’ version will become available in due course for those who do not want / need a limited edition display case (maybe the 240 page book will be removed, or changed from hardcover to softcover). As Elvis fans, we are lucky to have so much of his material available and once ‘Elvis On Tour’ and this set are released, there is comparatively little that will be unavailable in one way or another (I for one would appreciate an official release of ‘Elvis In Concert’, but can understand the reluctance to release it). Thank you Ernst, Sony, EPE and anyone else involved in making this new set a reality!

I'm looking forward to this. Every master in chronological order & in updated sound. I love it. Bring it on.

I want one.

I am really enjoying the relatively inexpensive to own Franklin Mint set (which contains RCA / Sony CDs). To me it's the ultimate Elvis collection and has all 711 master recordings. I don't see any reason to get this set if you have the Frankling set (which has really good sound). I think the Franklin set is the way to go. It took a little while to get used to it being grouped by them instead of by date of recording but now I can find any song I want and really enjoy the theme of each CD. I like the Franlin approach better.