Contents
The first two discs present the A and B sides of every single released in the United States by Presley during the decade, with the following exceptions: "Kentucky Rain" b/w "My Little Friend," and the B-side "Mama Liked the Roses," recorded in the 1960s; the gospel single "He Touched Me" b/w "Bosom of Abraham," the gospel b-sides "Only Believe" and "Help Me," already included on his first gospel compilation; and "O Come All Ye Faithful," the flipside to the 1971 Christmas single "Merry Christmas, Baby." His final two singles issued posthumously, the #22 "My Way" b/w "America the Beautiful" from November 1977, and "Unchained Melody" b/w "Softly As I Leave You" from February 1978, are also not included, although "Unchained Melody" is on the fifth disc, and versions of "My Way" and "Softly As I Leave You" are also on other discs in the set. Of the 23 American singles on these discs, 19 made the Top 40, with "The Wonder of You" and "Burning Love" also making the top 10. Included as well are four tracks issued at 45 rpm in Great Britain only: the top ten single "I Just Can't Help Believin'" b/w "How the Web Was Woven," the A-side "Green Green Grass of Home," and "Loving Arms," the British flip side to "My Boy." In the U.S., the "Can't Help Believin'" single appeared as two LP tracks on That's the Way It Is, "Loving Arms" on Good Times, and "Green Grass" on Today.
Discs 3 and 4 compile studio tracks from various albums, with 10 previously unreleased recordings or alternate takes. All but five of the 23 tracks on disc three originate from a single series of sessions, held over four days during June 1970, at RCA Studio B in Nashville, Tennessee. A facsimile of the album "Elvis Country" can be assembled from this disc, minus the lead single, "I Really Don't Want to Know" b/w "There Goes My Everything," included on disc 1. Disc 4 continues highlights through Presley's final studio session, at home in Graceland on October 30, 1976. It also includes a take of "Merry Christmas Baby" shorter than the album track but longer than the single, as well as two songs by Bob Dylan, "I Shall Be Released" and "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right," and a master studio take of the Sinatra signature song, "My Way."
The fifth disc approximates a Presley stage show typical to the era, taken mostly from shows in 1970 and 1972, with 21 songs running to about an hour. Eleven of the concert tracks are previously unreleased, "Reconsider Baby" and "I'll Remember You" originating from the matinee show at Madison Square Garden issued in 1997 on An Afternoon in the Garden. The disc does not open, as Presley shows often did, with the introduction to Strauss' tone poem Also sprach Zarathustra, played by the backing orchestra to announce the entrance of Elvis. The rock and roll instrumental support consists of the TCB Band, in addition to Presley's usual coterie of back-up vocalists, and the orchestra led by Joe Guercio. The final five songs present a "rehearsal" for the show, deriving from informal recordings made at actual rehearsals at RCA Studios in Hollywood in preparation for Elvis: That's the Way It Is and for a summer 1974 engagement in Las Vegas.
RCA issued two similarly configured box set companions, one for the 1950s, and another for the 1960s, the former his complete known masters from that decade, and the latter set chronicling his non-soundtrack/non-gospel recordings from the second decade of his career. Additional two-disc sets featuring his complete gospel recordings and selections from his soundtracks were also issued under this series. Unlike the first two decades collections, however, the compilers of Walk a Mile in My Shoes chose not to collect every studio recording Presley made during his final decade, choosing to focus on the singles, a sampling of "studio highlights" and an example of his live work.
Professional studio recordings made at RCA Studio B in Nashville, RCA Studio C in Hollywood, Stax Studio in Memphis, and in the Jungle Room at Graceland. Live recordings from The International Hotel in Las Vegas, Madison Square Garden in New York, the H.I.C. Arena in Honolulu, and the Crisler Arena in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Original recordings produced by Felton Jarvis. "Are You Sincere" recorded at Elvis' home in Palm Springs, California, and produced by Presley.
Read more about this topic: Walk A Mile In My Shoes: The Essential '70s Masters
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