The dinner show Elvis performed on January 29th was a short one, it didn't last for even 40 minutes. Nevertheless the man from Memphis is in fine fettle and even includes the song "Snowbird", another track from his new album "Elvis Country - I'm 10,000 Years Old".

The orchestra plays an excerpt of "Also Sprach Zarathustra", then the band takes over with the "Opening Riff" and Elvis enters the stage. He's wearing a white suit with long fringes.

After Charlie gave him his guitar, Elvis walks to the mircophone and starts with "That's Alright", not even waiting for his band to switch from the "Opening Riff" to the song itself. He also omits the instrumental part and asks his musicians to "take it home". It's a powerful performance, but the man seems to be in a hurry.

The Ray Charles classic is presented with zest, too. Here and there the king toys with the melody. After he's finished his rendition, Elvis gives his guitar back to Mr. Hodge and welcomes the audience.

Now Elvis announces to sing "Love Me Tender", but stops the band after a few bars. "That's how it went, very short and sweet" he quips. But of course he starts the tune again and uses it to kiss a lot of eager ladies. However, as a man appears at the edge of the stage the king rejects him. Maybe a handshake wouldn't have hurt. After everything has been said and done, the king repeats his usual joke about having the flu.

Up to this point the show was made up of oldies, but now Elvis performs his next to last single "You Don't Have To Say You Love Me". It's a powerful rendition, spoiled by kissing another lady in mid-song. Before starting the next tune, the singer talks about his outfit: "I had this outfit made for LA one night and had the fringe all the way to the floor ... I finished the show and got tangled up ... I couldn't leave ... hung up in the cord, microphone ... at the end of the show I'll fly away!"  

The king continues with a song from his last live album "On Stage - February 1970". This time the tune is played faster and The Imperials support their boss at the low parts of the tune. It's a nice approach, I like this incarnation of Neil Diamond's hit very much.

Staying with his current material Elvis sings a track from the album "That's The Way It Is", released last November. It's a good rendition, albeit a tad below the one on the longplayer.

Elvis switches back to his "On Stage" album and presents "Polk Salad Annie". Once again he leaves out the spoken intro, but he delivers Body English at its very best. At the end he remarks "These beads beat me to death". Maybe this kind of suit wasn't a great idea.

To catch his breath the king introduces the band. James Burton gets the spotlight with a rousing performance of "Johnny B. Goode", to which Elvis rocks along in great style. There's no doubt why this man is called the king of rock'n'roll! He also jokes a bit, when he says "on piano is Glen D. Hardin, on bass is Jerry Scheff...and on dope is Charlie Hodge".

Now Elvis pays tribute to The Beatles, who dethroned him six or seven years ago, but recently declared to split. "Something" was one of their final outings and a massive hit. The ballad fits Elvis very well.

For the final part of his program the king turns back to the past. He starts with "Heartbreak Hotel", his first number one hit.

The rocker "Blue Suede Shoes" is performed within a minute or so, but Elvis invests a lot of energy.

At first the king intones "Loving You", but then he makes up his mind and opts for "Teddy Bear" instead. Jokingly he changes the lyrics and sings "Put your hands along my..." instead of "Put a chain around my neck".

Elvis closes his trip to the past with a short, but powerful rendition of "Hound Dog".

Now the king wants to sing "Snowbird", a song from his new album "Elvis Country - I'm 10,000 Years Old". It's obviously a spontaneous idea, because he asks "How's the start, how does it finish and what's the middle of it?" Ironically he adds "I got the rest of it". Of course the track was rehearsed, it just takes the orchestra a few seconds to get out the sheet music and start to play. However, their boss doesn't like it and he stops them by saying "That's too slow...snowbird cuts up!". The second attempt is taken at a faster speed and works very well. Today we know, that Elvis sang "Snowbird" just thrice, so it's great to have a recording of one of those rare occasions.

Before singing the next song the king talks to some fans at the edge of the stage. Refering to their emotional status he quips "People from Atlanta think, when they die, they go to Memphis". Quite abruptly he ends the conversation by saying "You've been a fantastic audience and I enjoyed entertaining you" and starting to sing "The Impossible Dream". It's a good performance, but unfortunately also the finale of the show. Seamlessly the band segues into the "Closing Riff" and the golden curtain comes down. The show is over.