Alternate Aloha

[Danny Ocean]

"Elvis wanted to show the people around the world the best side of himself. He wanted to do a show without messages or songs he just did because the people liked it. He sang the songs he liked and wanted that the people saw him as a performer, not a rock'n'roll singer.

In '72 he did several shows in Hawaii, and he get a kick out of that. When he did Aloha he told me and the guys that he wanted to bring himself up again, in a phychical way. Sometimes I saw him took pills or any other medicines. The time of the concert, even weeks before I didn't saw him do that. He was in a topcondition and we had so much fun in those days. But after that, he just went downhill again.. 'Cause he was at the top because of Aloha. So things coudn't go better.. he thought..' Linda Thompson 1983

[0349054]

"Elvis wanted to show the people around the world the best side of himself. He wanted to do a show without messages or songs he just did because the people liked it. He sang the songs he liked and wanted that the people saw him as a performer, not a rock'n'roll singer.

In '72 he did several shows in Hawaii, and he get a kick out of that. When he did Aloha he told me and the guys that he wanted to bring himself up again, in a phychical way. Sometimes I saw him took pills or any other medicines. The time of the concert, even weeks before I didn't saw him do that. He was in a topcondition and we had so much fun in those days. But after that, he just went downhill again.. 'Cause he was at the top because of Aloha. So things coudn't go better.. he thought..' Linda Thompson 1983

Yeah and apparently after the real Aloha From Hawaii they were all eman to go out to the Pearl Harbour Memorial with Elvis. But he had taken some stuff after the show and wasn't able to go. Such a shame.

[Trev1]

Got news for you Trev1, that press conference you refer to was actually taped at the Hilton Hotel in Vegas after his show on September 4, 1972, five months before the Aloha show

And yes, he was clearly doped up and not in good shape.

Please try and get your dates and facts right before launching a tirade ...

I stand to be corrected then.... okay the press conference may have been 4 months before but I still suspect he was on something for the rehersal, he looked a bit under the influence to me. Some friends of mine have watched it and agreed

Anyway whats this about getting your facts right ? I didnt know you had to be an expert on absolutely everything to use this forum

And I would not call my post a TIRADE !!

I just come on this forum to meet and get to know other Elvis fans, but to be honest i'm getting quite sick of agressive reponses from posters like you

[srj1967]

I just come on this forum to meet and get to know other Elvis fans, but to be honest i'm getting quite sick of agressive reponses from posters like you

Whatever, dude ...

[Danny Ocean]

SRJ1967 just be nice to Trev1. Every Elvisfan is an friend.

[Burning_Love]

Elvis looked Good, acted differently. He didn't move around much and his voice was at a higher pitch. Of course, he was high, high on drugs (prescribed). We all know that. Great concert though, and very very famous. But he was on drugs, well i think, and you can tell, like Toffe said..Live with it ! Elvis did some stupid things.
I think he took them because he was nervous, i mean it was to be shown via satellite to 40 countries...whhooaa i would be nervous !

[toffe]

Elvis looked Good, acted differently. He didn't move around much and his voice was at a higher pitch. Of course, he was high, high on drugs (prescribed). We all know that. Great concert though, and very very famous. But he was on drugs, well i think, and you can tell, like Toffe said..Live with it ! Elvis did some stupid things.
I think he took them because he was nervous, i mean it was to be shown via satellite to 40 countries...whhooaa i would be nervous !

Yeah, i agree with you Burning_love

[Joe Car]

Elvis looked Good, acted differently. He didn't move around much and his voice was at a higher pitch. Of course, he was high, high on drugs (prescribed). We all know that. Great concert though, and very very famous. But he was on drugs, well i think, and you can tell, like Toffe said..Live with it ! Elvis did some stupid things.
I think he took them because he was nervous, i mean it was to be shown via satellite to 40 countries...whhooaa i would be nervous !

C'mon guys, from all accounts, Elvis did not do drugs during this Aloha stretch, this from people who were with him 24/7, especially Linda Thompson. The guy looked awesome in both the rehearsal and main show and sang brilliantly, which was his goal. Don't you think that Sonny and Red, would have said as much in their book, had he been "high" for these shows! Next, we'll be saying that he was "high" during every great moment in his career.

[Joe Car]

i was just a little unsure about that i asked about the drugs, because in the movie "Walk the Line" Elvis is aksing Johnny Cash to try some pills, because he gets more energy..etc..etc..you know! and that was before the army? maybe i am wrong? ...but as you are saying..he used drugs...live with it, we can`t do anything with it now!

There is no such evidence to suggest that Elvis gave Johnny Cash any pills. Elvis was given uppers from his Seargent in the army, in 1958,59. That boundless energy from the mid-fifties, was strictly all Elvis. Just keep in mind, doctors were prescribing speed or uppers for years, even for people who had a weight problem. Truck drivers were notorious for taking these to stay awake for long periods of time. Now of course everything has changed, for the better.

[srj1967]

Anyway whats this about getting your facts right ? I didnt know you had to be an expert on absolutely everything to use this forum

Apologies if I was curt, it's just that the way you talked about Elvis stoned at the press conference, it sounded like you were putting s**t on him (and the impression from the post I got was that you were looking down on him for being out of it just before the Aloha show, when the conference was months before).

So, from both our points of view, written threads such as this, like emails, tend to lose their nuance, and points are missed on both sides.

A misunderstanding, I feel ...

[toffe]

There is no such evidence to suggest that Elvis gave Johnny Cash any pills. Elvis was given uppers from his Seargent in the army, in 1958,59. That boundless energy from the mid-fifties, was strictly all Elvis. Just keep in mind, doctors were prescribing speed or uppers for years, even for people who had a weight problem. Truck drivers were notorious for taking these to stay awake for long periods of time. Now of course everything has changed, for the better.

Okei, thanks for info!

[Trev1]

Whatever, dude ...

I agreed with your point and sorry for getting the dates mixed up

Regardless of pills or no pills they were great concerts

[Trev1]

Apologies if I was curt, it's just that the way you talked about Elvis stoned at the press conference, it sounded like you were putting s**t on him (and the impression from the post I got was that you were looking down on him for being out of it just before the Aloha show, when the conference was months before).

So, from both our points of view, written threads such as this, like emails, tend to lose their nuance, and points are missed on both sides.

A misunderstanding, I feel ...

Hey sorry bout that....I assure you I am as big as Elvis fan as there is... didnt mean to offend. and its no problem.... are we okay then?

[srj1967]

Hey sorry bout that....I assure you I am as big as Elvis fan as there is... didnt mean to offend. and its no problem.... are we okay then?

Cool ...

[ruggishboo]

Ever since I first watched the Alternate Aloha concert on video many years ago, I couldn't quite figure out why Elvis seemed different compared to the actual satellite show. Perhaps he was stoned; it would explain some of it. My own opinion is that he was tired. The man had lost a good deal of weight in about a six week time period thanks to a double dose of that insane crash diet Sonny West and him had went on. He also seemed slightly bloated at this concert than the actual telecast. Just my perception. As far as fumbling with the lyrics to some of the songs, I agree with another poster, it had been nearly two months since the last tour in November, and several of the songs in the show were not on his typical setlist, so a small amount of rust was to be expected. The whole purpose of the concert was to be a full dress rehearsal for the satellite broadcast, and to have a taped backup in case the real deal messed up for some reason. It served its purpose well. Overall, I like the satellite show better, if only because it was more polished and he looked and sang great (plus I've seen it about 20 more times)...

[rickb]

My understanding is that he was `clean' during the shows and in the lead-up to them
why do people have to always come back to drugs when discussing Elvis?
rick

[0349054]

C'mon guys, from all accounts, Elvis did not do drugs during this Aloha stretch, this from people who were with him 24/7, especially Linda Thompson. The guy looked awesome in both the rehearsal and main show and sang brilliantly, which was his goal. Don't you think that Sonny and Red, would have said as much in their book, had he been "high" for these shows! Next, we'll be saying that he was "high" during every great moment in his career.

Yes according to everyone who was with him he was clean for BOTH Aloha shows.

Following the Satellite show he went back on the pills.

[thehillbillycat]

Yes according to everyone who was with him he was clean for BOTH Aloha shows.

Following the Satellite show he went back on the pills.

All the bodygurads, band members and friends have said that he wasn't on the drugs during the Aloha shows. He also had the crash diet to slim down some. I think that is why he looked the way he did.

[nashville cat]

The rehearsal concert was worth it if only because the version of "Steamroller Blues" performed trumps the version from the actual broadcast by a country mile.

[toffe]

The rehearsal concert was worth it if only because the version of "Steamroller Blues" performed trumps the version from the actual broadcast by a country mile.

What do you mean Nashville cat?