The more I look at pictures of Elvis in 1977, the more I reach the opinion, that he really did not look so bad in '77. Yes he was overweight, but there seem to be plenty of images of him in the gallery's in this forum, where he looks quite well and happy entertaining the crowd. I think that that the whole issue has become over stated through the years.
Much of the image of his later years is overblown and exaggerated, at least from the physical appearance point of view, obviously we all know how his performances and emotional condition and drug use was an issue, but just looking at the photo's, he was still fine really.
Some of the issue stems from the poor quality bootlegs going around of "Elvis In Concert" if only they would release this officially, then we would get a good copy and he would not look so bad, the image quality of the bootlegs makes Elvis look bad.
I think it is a shame that this 30 year old exaggerated issue causes us true fans not to be able to watch "Elvis In Concert" on an official release.
As for protecting his image, surely this would be better than allowing all those poor quality copies to float around the internet.
If some journalist really wants to dig up dirt on EP, it's a simple matter of searching utube for the footage, in poor quality.
i think the truth is that in today's world, outside of the fan community, I don't think anyone would realise or care if this footage was released.
The whole 'protecting his image' argument no longer holds true, especially since EPE have already released segments of the footage anyway.
Come EPE, let this issue go and give us an official release.
Just a thought or two, what do you think?
Well the story goes on and on. The idea here seems to be that Elvis was out of it at the end, beyond his peak of '68 - '70. The least he could have done in '77 was appearing athletic and coherent while talking..
But I do agree with you. The footage is in poor quality, have even heard fragments where the tone was affected, so Elvis and the crew were singing and playing too low, albeit not too slow.
all the goons I left behind,
memories still linger..
Sorry but I have to disgaree. I don't want to offend anybody so I'm going to be as fair as I can. Elvis in 1977 was NOT well at all. Photos are very misleading one way or another - comparing photos of the same show can give opposing results where Elvis appears fine and awful in the next photo. The angle at which the phot is shot also makes a difference as well as photos from the belt up tend to show more bloatness than there is. I was one who in the past was in favour of a commercial release of Elvis in Concert. But with times I came in terms with myself that it was not a good idea.
The problem with Elvis in Concert is not the overweight Elvis but the way he behaves on stage. He is not confident, not funny and very very tense. His movements,facial expressions and dialogue are a proof of this - he is erratic at best. I'm not mentioning the weight or bloatness of the face at all. The voice is good - very good but unfortunately other aspects of the show would leave many scratching their heads. If you listen to bootlegs from shows from 1974, 75 and 76 (omitting the summer 76 tours) Elvis is in control, funny and entertaining. Unfortunately, by 1977 especially the final tour (with possible exception of the Cincinnati and Indianapolis shows (25th June and 26th June 77 respectively) he wasn't well. Just check the Kansas City bootleg footage available...
To Joe Public - the occasional music lover who was awed by TTWII, entertained by ELvis on Tour, wonders what happened to Elvis after viewing the Aloha 4 years earlier, the Elvis in concert show would be a shock. Elvis changed A LOT between 1973 and 1977 and the general public (not the fans) who did not follow Elvis except when in the news or cinema would find the change too much. Remember that the press was constantly presenting Elvis as 'finished' by 1975 and there were many harsh reviews even back in 1974. The Elvis in Concert Special would, unfortunately comfirm the press reports.
Most fans do have a copy of Elvis In Concert, though not in optimal quality so why release it to the GENERAL PUBLIC? If it is going to be released it should be reedited, choosing more songs from the Rapid City show and omit most the Omaha show. It should be made available via mail order from and authorised EP site to FANS.
For those of you wondering "Is this a fan who hates EP in the 70's or what?" On the contrary I only follow Elvis from 1968 onwards and am an EP in the 70's freak. Jumpsuits music, concerts etc. But we must make a distinction between the FAN, and the GENERAL PUBLIC. The fan closes an eye (or 2) and may adore EP and whatever he did. But the general public is another piece of cake. They are more critical (and sometimes more objective) that the fan. I would say that June 1977 was not a good choice for filming a special.
But you cannot hide the truth. The many smiling faces of EP's entourage and band members during Elvis in Concert were just that - hiding the sadness of the truth.
Hmm, is it possible that the entourage and band members were actually enjoying the show? In fact some of the music from EIC is rather lively and playful. For some reason Elvis enjoyed singing with Sherril Nielsen and (playing) with the instrumentalists too..Originally Posted by medleyofcostumes
Perhaps Elvis wasn't healthy, but he was funny. It was good enough for me and Bobby McGee, that's for sure - and that song wasn't even included.
Understandable however is that some people wouldn't like the style or form of EIC and they might prefer experimental modernistic nihilistic relativistic fusion soul-blues-jazz.
all the goons I left behind,
memories still linger..
The point I was trying to make is that the majority of general public would rather prefer a half-hearted, recycled, bland documentary saying how great Elvis was, how caring, how generous, how they were his friends rather than EIC. Most people will see what they want to see and not what we want them to. That's why many fans did not read 'Elvis what happened?' back in 1977 because people in general have a preconceived image of everything from music to politics, sports to anything else. If something will go against that image they will avoid it and put it down. Us fans may see EIC as a great man's swan song giving all he had left - his voice to us for a final time on film. But others - the majority, would see it otherwise, I'm afraid. And they may not be the ones who like "experimental modernistic nihilistic relativistic fusion soul-blues-jazz."
IMO, I think we'll find out that the "image" and many other things were greatly exaggerated . To each their own. But I liked him & his music better in the '70's.
I agree that he still was good-looking in 1977.He always is beautiful.
in 1977, Elvis did look his worst - in terms of health especially
but back in 1977, the vast majority of people in the US were not overweight - especially not celebrities
so, in the post Roseanne / John Goodman / Jack Black and many other fat celebs - Elvis wouldn't really stand out as "fat" as he did in 77
and EPE does need to get over it and stop pretending 1973 was Elvis' last year - the video, pictures and memories are out there
not showing Elvis in all his stages, just makes 77 seem worse than it really was
_________
there is no snooze button on a cat that wants breakfast.
Nina's Elvis blogs: http://ntrygg.wordpress.com/elvis-index/
Sadly the worst possible photos of Elvis are often used to illustrate his decline (often from his Feb 12, 1977 concert). There is no doubting he was overweight and unwell in 1977 but I agree that the image is often worse than the reality.
There are many good photos from 1977, particularly from the second half of his February tour, off-stage shots and even his last two concerts. He was 42, not 21 any more.
"but back in 1977, the vast majority of people in the US were not overweight - especially not celebrities
so, in the post Roseanne / John Goodman / Jack Black and many other fat celebs - Elvis wouldn't really stand out as "fat" as he did in 77"
I agree. It's strange looking at him now after all those years he does'nt look that bad. Yes, he was carrying a bit of weight, but then Elvis always carried his weight in his upper body, re: Paradise Hawaiin Style & Follow That Dream.
In regards the release of EIC, I guess it's out of our hands anyway, EPE will not change their position, at least it is unlikely at this time. It seems ironic that Elvis did give much better concerts than the two that were filmed, and even then the producers did not select the best segments to make up the show.
I wonder what drove the choices they made?
I can't help but wonder if Elvis allowed his nerves to show too much, perhaps he found making this show even harder than 'Aloha'.
Perhaps he thought "well I just take a little xxxxxx to calm down" and ended up harming his performance even further.
As far as the 'general public' perception and image, 'medleyofcustumes' may be correct, it's very hard to change the publics perception, even when it is wrong.
I remember once a relative (by marriage) of mine came over while I was watching 'Aloha'. He looked at it and said "oh that's from when he was fat". EP was most certainly not 'fat' during the aloha show, but this shows just how the public perceive his later years.
As you see I am starting to change my mind since the start of the thread, reading the post by 'medleyofcostumes' is shifting my opinion a little...
There is always going to be talk about this Elvis or that Elvis, you know what? I am just gong to enjoy Elvis and his music, that's all that matters to me.
That's why it's called a forum Kathy. Let's face it, Elvis was not a one dimensional cartoon character.
You are correct Cliff, there's nothing wrong with this forum at all, i welcome a healthy discussion,we are all here for Elvis, that's all that counts.
Ever wondered what complexities make up a fan? The aura of an artist captures a bunch of individuals and how do you explain that? There is no logic behind being a fan - it's not math, it's an emotion that goes beyond talent or achievement (that's why certain singers of today's generation have fans). I like Elvis from 1968 onwards - seems illogical to some who believe Elvis' prime was in 1956. I cannot explain it but that's the way it is (sorry for the pun).
I think that In Concert is release for FTD on DVD or Blue-Ray. Rapid City show is pretty good - but I really think that some parts of the show should be cutted out even on FTD release - the long speech before Unchained Melody for example.... But the show deserves to be released - at least on CD as last proffesionaly recorded show.
(Blackmore - Gillan - Glover - Lord - Paice)
Sweet child in time
you?ll see the line
line that?s drawn between
good and bad
see the blind man
shooting at the world
bullets flying taking toll
If you?ve been a bad
oh Lord I bet you have
and you?ve not been hit
by flying led
you?d better close your eyes
you?d better bow your head and
wait for the ricochet
- Lyrics of most beautiful song in rock music ever!!!
I guess it all depends what Elvis era you were born in. For me it started right from the beginning as a ten year okd kid. The aura of Elvis grabbed me before I even heard him sing. I'd seen his pic in a magazine and I took an immediate liking to him. Of course, when I finally saw "Love Me Tender" that cemented the admiration I had for him.I did not expect Elvis to always stay the way he was in '56. The world had changed while he was in the Army. Payola had killed the rock 'n' roll market. There were new kids on the block and he had to go with that market.Ever wondered what complexities make up a fan? The aura of an artist captures a bunch of individuals and how do you explain that? There is no logic behind being a fan - it's not math, it's an emotion that goes beyond talent or achievement (that's why certain singers of today's generation have fans). I like Elvis from 1968 onwards - seems illogical to some who believe Elvis' prime was in 1956. I cannot explain it but that's the way it is (sorry for the pun).
Why stop at artists? Why does anything capture a persons emotion? ie:religion etc. The human psyche is a very complex thing indeed.
Why is it illogical to believe he was at his prime during the 50's ? The records (excuse the pun) speak for themselves. Hence the '68 Comeback Special.
I did not say it is illogical to say Elvis was at his prime in the 50's - on the contrary Elvis was at his peak in the 50's. I said that I liked the later period best when some were saying that Elvis was past his prime.
[QUOTE=gilesm;381314].
As far as the 'general public' perception and image, 'medleyofcustumes' may be correct, it's very hard to change the publics perception, even when it is wrong.
I remember once a relative (by marriage) of mine came over while I was watching 'Aloha'. He looked at it and said "oh that's from when he was fat". EP was most certainly not 'fat' during the aloha show, but this shows just how the public perceive his later years.
QUOTE]
Absolutely right. People (non fans) just relate the white jumpsuits to the "fat Elvis period". If you ask someone who was around during that time (again, non fans) they will probably say the fifties was the music period, the sixties the rubbish films and the seventies the fat white jumpsuitede Elvis". Its all about perception. there is no way he was overweight in 1973.
[QUOTE=May;381368]You're right, he certainly wasn't overweight in "73. We saw him in Tahoe that year and he was just gorgeous. Not his usual happy self but still beautiful and he looked and acted very healthy.
I do feel he looked a bit overweight in "77, not as much as some men I know but what bothered me the most watching EIC was that he looked so ill and seemed to be trying so hard to be his old self. I did find that he did really great with some songs and was so proud of him.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
