Just as in 1970 Elvis returned to the International Hotel from January 26th to February 23rd and was on stage 57 times.
Musicians
James Burton (guitar), John Wilkinson (guitar), Charlie Hodge (guitar and harmony vocals), Jerry Scheff (bass), Ronnie Tutt (drums), Glen D. Hardin (piano) and The Joe Guercio Orchestra. The harmony vocals were provided by The Sweet Inspirations (Myrna Smith, Sylvia Shemwell & Estelle Brown), The Imperials (Jim Murray, Armond Morales, Terry Blackwood, Roger Wiles & Joe Moscheo) as well as Kathy Westmoreland.
About The Engagement
Nine days before the curtain went up the first time, Elvis and his band met in Los Angeles/California to rehearse. Later the group moved to Vegas, where the harmony singers and the orchestra joined them. The last mentioned element was very important, because this time the king wanted to open his shows with the "Einleitung, Oder Sonnenaufgang" from Richard Strauss' classical piece "Also Sprach Zarathustra". The finale of the concerts was also new, instead of the usual "Can't Help Falling In Love" Elvis planned to close the show with "The Impossible Dream". The core of the program was a mix of the well known songs, but the king also added "Only Believe", "Snowbird" and "Help Me Make It Through The Night". The Beatles' hit "Something", which he had performed just twice during the last season, was now a constant part of the show. Once in a while he also sang "How Great Thou Art" and a medley of "Little Sister" and "Get Back". For this engagement Elvis ordered several new jumpsuits. Some of them were the "Turquoise Concho Suit", the "White Wing Suit", the "Square Nail Suit", the "Tassel Star Suit", the "Knot Suit" and the "Black Two-Piece Sunlight Suit".
Compared to the "Elvis Summer Festival 1970" the king's vocals appeared to be sloppy at times. Besides that, many songs were done faster and some of them were shortened. Maybe Elvis felt bored without a movie or a recording project and he knew, that his fans would let him get away with anything. But his increasing abuse of medication certainly contributed to his changed behevior and lack of professionalism. This engagement marked the first time, some reviews were negative and even some fans thought, their idol needed a break. Despite all these negative signs, the shows were still entertaining and Elvis performed them with zest. He was in good voice and joked and communicated with the audience. Without doubt he was THE attraction of Vegas, albeit not as brillant as before.
Audio
