Due for release from Gravel Road Music are two volumes entitled �Elvis Presley � You Know, It Doesnt Have To Be Strictly Country� with acetate recordings Elvis supposedly took home and agreed to be released. Volume 1 contains recordings from June 4, 5 and 6, 1970. The second volume cintains recordings from June 7 and 8 and September 22, 1970.



The press release: �Elvis Presley � You Know, It Doesnt Have To Be Strictly Country � Volume 1 and 2 are 70% unreleased and 100% better sounding 45 amazing tracks collected from private collections of which many for the first time in this shape on CD.

These are the acetates which Elvis took home to play-back and agreed to be released! All tracks have been digitally restored and re-mastered. These acetates often sound better & different than what we know and made it to a LP or nowadays on CD.

Some tracks which appear to be known are now for the first time in their complete form. So in a way it�s released and unreleased� This includes studio talk, count in, left and right channels, longer fade outs or even different lyrics or simply differently sung. Most will be stereo.

As happened in the past some releases only used one channel (This was a easy way to reduce the distortion but so much got lost!) The audio difference between tracks is purely the source and the transfer.

Some have been transferred on to DAT others on to regular cassette tapes in the past. Keep in mind that the original acetates are various in playability.

Original acetates can only be played a few times (after that the quality gets less.) We chose for maximum sound quality per track instead of making them similar to each other! In this way you always get the best sound out of very recording.

The synopsis for these two cd's: The masters without dubbing and without repairs in their complete form. Unfortunately we don�t have every master on acetate of the June and September sessions. So we added some first takes to cover all songs. Also a few tracks of work in progress, a rare chance to hear, a song still being built up to a complete dubbed final master. Guide-strings, -horns, -backing vocals, the talking, it�s all there!

Something which will strike everybody is that Elvis�s voice remains impressive on each track.

Background information: It�s a public known fact that Elvis regularly disagreed with the released version of the songs. Unluckily he hardly made his point towards the ones responsible, knowing there were times he was wrong and the song became a hit (In the Ghetto, Suspicious Minds, Burning Love and others) These two cd�s contain the versions how Elvis liked it!

All together a really new kind of release which will make many Elvis fan�s happy to hear these rare acetates available in their best possible form. The purist will be happy since no effects have been used to enhance the sound.

There are no further copies of acetates available in better sound, only a very few copies were made of each song and most are gone or badly damaged. The acetate lacquer wears out very fast so every track is unique.

Disc 1 - Volume 1 - June 4 - 5 - 6, 1970.

June 4

01. Twenty Days And Twenty Nights (Take 9 � Master , Undubbed �Unedited) Acetate

02. I�ve Lost You (Take 7 � Master , Undubbed �Unedited) Acetate

03. I Was Born About 10.000 Years Ago (Take 1 � Master , Undubbed �Unedited)

04. The Sound Of Your Cry (Take 11 � Master , Undubbed �Unedited) Acetate

05. The Fool (Take 1 � Try Out)

06. Little Cabin On The Hill (Take 2) � Master, Undubbed

07. Cindy ,Cindy (Take 1) Unedited

June 5

08. Bridge Over Troubled Water (Take 8 � Master , Undubbed �Unedited, Unrepaired)

09. Got My Mojo Working /Keep Your Hands Off It (Take 1 � Master , Dubbed Brass & Horns �Unedited)

10. How The Web Was Woven (Take 3 � Master, Back-Up Vocals, No Additional Overdubbing ) (Previous Unreleased)

11. It�s Your Baby, You Rock It (Take 5 � Master , Undubbed �Unedited) Acetate

12. Stranger In The Crowd (Take 9 - Master, Guide Strings & Backing Vocals ) (Previously Unreleased)

13. I�ll Never Know (Take 7 � Master, Undubbed �Unedited) Acetate

14. Mary In The Morning (Take 5 � Master, Undubbed, Unedited) Acetate

June 6

15. Ain�t No Big Thing (Take 9) (Dubbed Strings) (Previously Unreleased)

16. You Don�t Have To Say You Love Me (Take 3� Alternate Master, Dubbed Strings � No Backing Vocals) (Previously Unreleased)

17. Just Pretend (Take 3 � Master , Undubbed �Unedited) Acetate

18. This Is Our Dance (Take 11 � Master , Undubbed �Unedited) Acetate

19. Life (Take 20 � Master , Undubbed �Unedited) Acetate

20. Heart Of Rome (Take 3 � Used For Composite Master , Undubbed �Unedited) Stereo (Previously Unreleased)

Bonus Tracks

21. Bridge Over Troubled Water - V.O July 2 3 (Acetate) Stereo (Previously Unreleased)

22. There Goes My Everything (Take 3 � Master , Undubbed �Unedited) Acetate

23. The Next Step Is Love - June 22 (Backup Vocal Overdubs )Acetate

Total Running Time 78.38

Disc 2 - Volume 2 - June 7, 8 and September 22, 1970.

June 7

01. When I M Over You (Take 1 � Master , Undubbed �Unedited) Acetate

02. I Really Don�t Want To Know (Take 4 � Master, Undubbed) Acetate

03. Faded Love (Take 1 � Master, Undubbed � Unedited) Acetate

04. Tomorrow Never Comes (Take 13 � Master, Undubbed) Acetate

05. The Next Step Is Love (Take 11 � Master, Undubbed) Acetate

06. Make The World Go Away (Take 3 Master, Undubbed Spliced With Work Part Take 1 (Ending)Acetate

07. Funny How Times Slips Away (Take 1 � Master , Undubbed , Unedited) Acetate

08. I Washed My Hands In Muddy Water (Take 1 � Master, Unedited, Undubbed)

09. Love Letters (Take 5 � Master, Unedited, Undubbed) Acetate

June 8

10. There S Goes My Everything (Take 1) Complete

11. If I Were You (Take 9 � Master, Undubbed ,Unedited) Acetate

12. Only Believe (Take 4 � Master , Unedited, Undubbed) Acetate (Previously Unreleased)

13. Sylvia (Take 8 � Master , Undubbed ,Unedited)) Acetate (Previously Unreleased)

14. Patch It Up (Take 8 � Master , Undubbed ,Unedited) Acetate

September 22

15. Snowbird (Take 6 � Master, Undubbed, Unedited) Acetate (Previously Unreleased)

16. Where Did They Go Lord? (Take 6 � Master, Undubbed , Unedited) Acetate

17. Whole Lotta Shakin� Goin� On (Take 2 � Master, Undubbed, Unedited)

18. Rags To Riches (Take 4 - Unrepaired Master, Undubbed, Unedited)

Bonus Tracks July 18

19. I�ve Lost You (Take 7 � Master, Back Up Vocal Overdubs) (Previously Unreleased)

20. Bridge Over Troubled Water (Take 8 � Master, Brass & String Overdubs Mix Down) (Previously Unreleased)

21. The Next Step Is Love (Take 11 � Master, Mix Down) (Previously Unreleased)

22. I�ll Never Know (Take 7 � Master, No Backing Vocals, Mix Down) (Previously Unreleased)

Source: EPgold
 

Posted:  17th. November 2007