

On August 19th the king opened his "Elvis Summer Festival
1974" with a completely re-booted show. After
more than three years he finally changed the
format and focused on his current material. But
instead of going ahead with the idea he went
back to his old show on the very next day and
wouldn't ever stray from the concept for the
rest of his life. Fortunately this special
concert was recorded through the mixing desk of
the sound engineer.
As usual the original recording was issued
first by Sony's own collector's label Follow
That Dream Records, but since the copyright in
Europe runs out after half a century, the
Memphis Recording Service was free to release it
again from 2025 onwards. According to their
business model the original mono source was
transformed into artificial stereo. The result
doesn't match a professional multitrack
recording, but it certainly sounds better than
the previous incarnation of the show. The
compact disc is housed in a small
hardcover-book, which includes liner notes,
photos and much more. In contrast to the
"official" FTD releases, this one here can also
be found on several streaming platforms.
Big Boss Man
Of course the audience expects the show to be
opened with the gandiouse "Also Sprach
Zarathustra", but instead Ronnie Tutt starts to
play a simple drum staccato. Elvis (dressed in
his "Peacock Suit") enters the stage and ignores
another standard by not receiving his guitar
from Charlie Hodge. Instead the assistant hands
him a microphone and the king starts to sing
"Big Boss Man". The track itself has been
released by him on a single back in 1967 and was
added to the live set list in May. Now the r&b
tune is used to open the show and serves the
purpose well.
Proud Mary
This song was laid to rest after the "Elvis
Summer Festival 1972", but now it's back and
presented with as much zest as on the album
"Elvis As Recorded At Madison Square Garden". In
reference to his suit the king introduces
himself as the NBC Peacock (the corporate logo
of the network is a peacock) and jokes a bit
with the audience.
Down In The Alley
Now Elvis jestingly claims to have recorded the
next song when Charlie (Hodge) was a child. In
fact it was released back in 1966 as a bonus
song on the soundtrack album of the movie
"Spinout". Compared to the rendition on the
record Elvis sounds less boisterous tonight, but
it's a good performance by any means. As it
turned out, the king would never sing "Down In
The Alley" again.
Good Time Charlie's Got The Blues
The same applies to "Good Time Charlie's Got The
Blues", a track from his current studio album
"Good Times". Maybe the lyrics were a bit too
close to his real life. After having sung the
line "You play around, you loose your wife" he
ad-libs "Already done that" and he follows "You
play too long, you loose your life" with "Almost
done that". Obviously the man is aware of his
problems!
Never Been To Spain
Just like "Proud Mary" this one was combed out
after the "Elvis Summer Festival 1972". Here the
king also uses the same arrangement as on the
album "Elvis As Recorded At Madison Square
Garden" and presents a powerful rendition.
It's Midnight
Now Elvis presents his forthcoming single "It's
Midnight". The ballad fits him like a glove and
the chorus offers him a nice opportunity to
display his powerful voice.
If You Talk In Your Sleep
Despite being the a-side of his current 45, the
king forewent "If You Talk In Your Sleep" in his
concerts and sang "Help Me", the flipside,
instead. However, now he also presents the main
track, a funky and modern popsong. It's far away
from being a typical Presley tune, but he
handles it well. Regarding the lyrics about
cheating on his wife Elvis jokingly claims to
have nothing to do with the song and
mischievously adds "Charlie wrote it!".
I'm Leavin'
The king asks his assistant what to do next.
Obviously this is an open spot on the set list
and Elvis can choose between "Fever", "I Just
Can't Help Believin'" and "I'm Leavin'". He opts
for the last mentioned one and delivers one of
the best performances of the night.
Let Me Be There
This country pop is one of the new (at least in
the Presley incarnation) tunes on his current
album "Elvis Recorded Live On Stage In Memphis",
which was taped on March 20th in the singer's
self-chosen hometown. Today's rendition is not
bad at all, but the performance on the record
has more zest.
Softly, As I Leave You
If you attended the closing show of the "Elvis
Summer Festival 1973", you witnessed a
spontaneous rendition of this ballad. But now
the king has worked out a proper arrangement and
presents a professional performance of "Softly,
As I Leave You". The lead vocals are handed over
to Sherrill Nielsen while Elvis recites the
lyrics in a very moving way. The only letdown
is, that the spotlight is on Mr. Presley only
and not on the guy, who does the vocalizing.
If You Love Me (Let Me Know)
Elvis really must like the music of Olivia
Newton-John, because after "Let Me Be There" he
covers another one of her recent hits. It's
anything but inventive, nevertheless one has to
admit that country pop fits him well.
Love Me Tender
Now the king strays from the prepared setlist.
Instead of "The Twelfth Of Never", another new
song, he opts for the tried and tested "Love Me
Tender". As usual he uses the tune as a tool to
kiss some ladies. Artistically it is a bad
barter, but he certainly wouldn't have gotten a
similar reaction with a performance of the other
song.
Polk Salad Annie
Elvis continues with another one of his
standards. The previous years' concerts aside,
"Polk Salad Annie" is part of the show ever
since early 1970. Nowadays Mr. Presley moves
less and somewhat slower, but still enough to
turn 30+ ladies into teenagers.
Introductions
To catch his breath the king takes a few minutes
to introduce his musicians and singers. As usual
he includes some funny remarks here and there.
Promised Land
Up next is the b-side of the forthcoming single.
The rock'n'roll king doesn't rock as much as on
the record, but still enough to deliver a more
than solid performance. To be fair it has to be
mentioned, that his studio recording easily can
be considered to be the best version of this
rock classic ever. After the applause has faded
Elvis introduces the actor Telly Savalas, who
has played Blofeld in the James Bond movie "On
Her Majesty's Secret Service" in 1969 and
is currently
riding high on CBS as "Kojak".
My Baby Left Me
The king's recent longplayer "Elvis Recorded
Live On Stage In Memphis" includes the flipside
of his second single release, the ballad "I Want
You, I Need You, I Love You". While the version
on the album sounds a bit impromptu at times,
today's performance is well thought out and a
good trade for "All Shook Up", "Teddy Bear" and
all the other stuff performed to death.
Bridge Over Troubled Water
Elvis' cover version of Simon & Garfunkel's
"Bridge Over Troubled Water" has been a
highlight of the show since he started to
present it in August 1970. Today's rendition is
no different and offers a great opportunity for
the king to show off his voice.
Fever
With "Fever" Elvis delivers one of the audience
favorites. Everytime the singer moves a leg to
the beat, the girls are beside themselves.
Hound Dog
Once again the intro is enough to make the
ladies scream. However, Elvis' performance
doesn't justify these reactions at all. He
repeats the same four lines over and over again
and doesn't invest much energy. In a lot of ways
stuff like "Fever" and "Hound Dog" destroy the
show. However, the ladies are screaming and
unfortunately convincing Presley to keep rubbish
like this on the set list.
Can't Help Falling In Love
Charlie Hodge cues his boss with a song title
(maybe "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face"),
but Elvis declines and closes the show with the
usual "Can't Help Falling In Love". On the album
the performance is quickly faded out, most
likely it wasn't recorded in full.
Verdict
The opening show of the "Elvis Summer
Festival 1974" was the first major re-vamp
of the king's concert format since 1970.
Despite being not in comparable shape, he
still delivered a fine and well-balanced
show. MRS' audio enhancement really adds to
the excitement, the packaging also leaves
very little to be desired.

(C) Memphis
Recording Service