Elvis Presley - That's the Way It Is: Special Edition (Keeper Box)

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Free Music Notes for That's the Way It Is: Special Edition (Keeper Box)

Free Music Review: That's the Way it Should Be!
Hit: 5 Stars

After the successes of Elvis' 1968 comback special and 1969 return to live performing, it was inevitable that something even bigger was going to happen. That something was the stunning live documentary film "Elvis: That's the Way it Is". A soundtrack album to the film was released in tandem with the film and for a long time stood as on of the highlights of Elvis' '70s career. Cut to thirty years later...

BMG has now released a "special edition" of _That's the Way it Is_. Instead of merely reissuing the original album with five or six bonus tracks, they have supplemented the original album with TWO DISCS of top notch unreleased performances.

The first twelve tracks on disc one are the original album remastered. Here, we have a stunning mixture of 1970 Nashville studio recordings and live Las Vegas recordings. Studio highlights include the pastoral "Mary in the Morning", "The Next Step is Love", the joyous "Stranger in the Crowd" and the glorious recording of Simon and Garfunkle's "Bridge Over Troubled Water". The live highlights are "I Just Can't Help Believin'" and an incredible rendition of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling".

Disc One is rounded out by seven additional performances which later turned up on _Love Letters from Elvis_ (1971) and _Elvis Now_ (1972). I was somewhat disappointed that they didn't include the studio versions of "I've Lost You" or "Patch it Up" but I guess I'll live...

Disc Two is the complete midnight performance from August 12, 1970. Finally, we have a complete document of one of Elvis' legendary 1970 concerts and it was worth the wait! This is now the best Elvis live album on the market. In addition to energetic and playful performances of "Hound Dog", "Heartbreak Hotel", and "I Was the One" (Elvis hadn't yet completely tired of performing these songs), we are treated to stunning renditions of "Walk a Mile in My Shoes", the Bee Gees' classic "Words", the swamp funk of "Polk Salad Annie" and thoroughly enjoyable medleys of "Mystery Train/Tiger Man" and "Little Sister/Get Back". This incredible performance was quite possibly never equalled before or after.

Disc Three starts off with nine additional concert performances from the summer of 1970. The undisputed highlight is the medley of "Don't Cry Daddy" and "In the Ghetto". On a humorous note, Elvis introduces "Twenty Days and Twenty Nights" by telling the audience that he doesn't really like the song, but will sing it because it's on the program.

The set closes with a series of rehearsals from summer, 1970, some of which were included in the "That's the Way it Is" film". Here, Elvis is extremely relaxed while running through some of his hits and more recent tracks with his band (minus orchestra and backup singers). Highlights include "It's Now or Never", "Such a Night", "Little Sister/Get Back", "Johnny B. Goode", and a slow bluesy take on "Santa Claus is Back in Town". On an interesting note, Elvis' arrangement of Leadbelly's classic "Cottonfields" sounds curiously similar to the Beach Boys recording of the same song the previous year.

Overall, this (along with the excellent _Elvis Country_ album) is the definitive document of Elvis in 1970. An essential purchase for any serious music fan.

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