The Live Greatest Hits

A nice CD to listen to, for both the real and the "new" fans. BMG made a good decision releasing a CD like this for the general market.

This new compilation, originating from the British Isles, arrived last week.

Design

The cover art, although done very stylish, it is nothing special. The image used on the cover is well known. Probably they used this one because they think it is more appealing to the mass market this release obviously aims at, than a picture of a "jumpsuit Elvis".

Inside the booklet, a 3-page fold-out, with a story about Elvis (mainly in Las Vegas) and telling which year which track was recorded on stage.

Content

For most fans there isn't much new on it, even the unreleased version of "The Wonder of You" was released on video in "Lost Performances". Some of the tracks saw the daylight just recently, on one of the TTWII-releases. All in all it turns out to be a nice compilation. Roughly chronologically this CD covers Elvis' performances from 1969-1973. Probably for balance in the type of songs some recordings from 1970, which year is represented by 9 of the 21 tracks, are mixed up. February tracks separate some tracks recorded in August 1970.

This compilation makes a great concert of Elvis not already being tired of singing the same songs again and again. For a real fan the idea of knowing it's a fake concert takes some of the pleasure off this release. If only this had been a complete concert … For the average fan, for which this CD is made (a follow up to "The 50 Greatest Hits") this release shows Elvis giving it all on some of his greatest hits.

Conclusion:

A nice CD to listen to, for both the real and the "new" fans. BMG made a good decision releasing a CD like this for the general market. They will not trigger on a concert from a specific date or period, but look at the songs.

CD

ElvisNews review

Tracklisting