Customer Reviews

Aloha From Hawaii - Via Satellite

5 star:		(50)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I absolutely love this album. After checking a copy of it out from the library, I went out and bought my own. Each of the songs capture the essence of the power and soul Elvis put into his music. I can't even imagine the sheer exuberance of being at one of his concerts! I only wish that I would have been living during his time to experience Elvis Presley live in concert. This CD is the next best thing.

But the tracklisting here says that there are 24 tracks, when there are really 29 and they aren't the right songs. The tracklisting for "Aloha From Hawaii - Via Satellite" [Extra Tracks] [Live] is as follows: 1) Introduction: Also Sprach Zarathustra 2) See See Rider 3) Burning Love 4) Something 5) You Gave Me A Mountain 6) Steamroller Blues 7) My Way 8) Love Me 9) Johnny B. Goode 10) It's Over 11) Blue Suede Shoes 12) I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry 13) I Can't Stop Loving You 14) Hound Dog 15) What Now My Love 16) Fever 17) Welcome To My World 18) Suspicious Minds 19) Introductions by Elvis 20) I'll Remember You 21) Long Tall Sally/Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On 22) An American Trilogy 23) A Big Hunk O' Love 24) Can't Help Falling In Love 25) Blue Hawaii 26) Ku-U-I-Po 27) No More 28) Hawaiian Wedding Song 29) Early Morning Rain

This is a must have live CD for any Elvis fan and even for the new fans, just starting a collection. Highly, highly recommended!

Simply put, ALOHA never sounded better. This new version leaves the original in the dark ages. The mix is much better overall, and much fuller and spacious. You can actually hear everyone involved on the stage now...clearly. Also gone are the stupid fade outs and edits between songs as on the first disc. The part on this new disc where Elvis tells the crowd (after the band intros) that Jack Lord is in the house, and then he says-"Hawaii Five-O man!" is priceless. All the cover art and liner notes are better, and more fitting and classy. I do think that the guitars could have been brought out slightly more, on the rockers especially. But that's just my opinion, and overall I guess it's just nitpicking. The songs and performances are great.Especially..STEAMROLLER BLUES, BURNING LOVE, MY WAY, AMERICAN TRILOGY, SUSPICIOUS MINDS, SEE SEE RIDER, and YOU GAVE ME A MOUNTAIN. My only peeve here is the same as for most all of his 70's concerts. The way that Elvis just seemed to lose interest in most of his older songs, and the way he just tossed off throwaway versions of them a minute or so long with no real passion, as if he just wanted to get them out of the way. Then he would give everything he had to the newer stuff. Compare his performances of HOUND DOG or BLUE SUEDE SHOES here to the 1968-69 live versions. Nuff said! It just irks me when I hear these later tossoffs, and this applies here as well. Otherwise the whole event and this new and very much improved cd of it overall is FABULOUS, and the KING once again shows the world (literally) why he is the KING. John

This is the soundtrack for the greatest concert in the history of the free world. Done in Honalulu, Hawaii in January of 1973, "Elvis, Aloha From Hawaii" was broadcast all over the world. (Though tape delayed in North America) This 25th anniversary edition is the one to buy because of the extra tracks that were included in the North American delay broadcast. These songs, include "Early Morning Rain", "No More", "Ku-U-I-Po", "Hawaiian Wedding Song" and "Blue Hawaii", the latter four from the "Blue Hawaii soundtrack. This is got to be the greatest concert ever.....enough said!

GOD BLESS YOU ALL!

As far as I am concerned this is THE event in music history. Never before or since has an entertainer captured the world as Elvis did in this concert. Elvis wanted to tour the world and see his fans all over and as it happens this was Colonel Parker's answer to Elvis' desire. Even though it was second rate to what Elvis wanted it turned out first class for the fans. It was a multi media event of historic proportion. Elvis Presley was the first and only entertainer to have enough draw to be televised live via satellite. There have been other events via satellite but it has always been multi-celebrity. Elvis was in top form physically and vocally. Surrounded by a full orchestra, a five piece band, a soprano singer and two successful backup groups Elvis once again proved he was King of the music world and better than anyone before or after him.

Someone once said that the "fire always burns brighter, before it goes out." and regarding Elvis's career, and the "Aloha From Hawaii" concert, that certainly seems true.

This concert was recorded in January of 1973, and is historic because it was the first live event to be broadcast live via satellite to such a large number of people. The number is legendary, approximately 1.5 billion people viewed this concert, and those that watched the concert will remember how good Elvis looked and sounded.

Elvis dieted hard for this telecast, dropping approximately 15 lbs. he was also deeply tanned by the Hawaiian sun, like a championship fighter getting ready for his last title defense, Elvis (knowing how historic this event was) "trained" hard for the event and it showed.

His voice was simply awesome that evening...what he may have lost in energy and vitality was easily compensated for, by raw power and sheer presence. Highlights of that show were "Steamroller Blues" "I'll Remember You", and a version of "An American Trilogy" which will literally cause goosebumps.

This concert is also historic, because it chronicles entertainment's biggest star, on the eve of the twilight of his career. Although other great moments would be added to this storied career for the next 4 1/2 years, they would become less, and less as the years passed on. This concert was able to cement the foundation for a musical legacy that will never be matched.

Highly recommended

Five stars because it is Elvis! I am rediscovering Elvis and enjoying the journey. I have had the greatest hits package for many years (on album first, then on cd) and felt that that was all I needed to cover Elvis in my collection. Wrong! I wanted some live Elvis and did not know where to start. I finally settled on On Stage 1970 and what a great purchase. Then, I ordered Aloha and hoped it would be as good as On Stage. It is!
This is classic Elvis reaching inspirational levels with 'Something', 'You gave me a Mountain', 'My way', 'I'm so lonesome I could cry', 'Welcome to my world','An American Trilogy', and rocking heights with 'See see rider','Burning love', shorter versions of hits 'Johnny B. Goode', Blue Suede shoes', and 'Hound Dog', and 'Long tall Sally/Whole Lotta shakin goin on'. And a version of 'Steamroller Blues' by James Taylor that is wonderful. The sound on these remastered versions are very good for live material (don't get caught up in the reviewers that get picky about sound quality to the extent of if you can't hear a pin drop-then the sound is terrible).
Rediscover Elvis and realize all over again why he is the King. Next stop for me is Elvis in Memphis.

Very little talking between songs on this one. After all, the guy was singing to an estimated audience of over a billion folks worldwide. Lots of "thankyouverymuch" however. Absolutely stunning performance of You Gave Me a Mountain, My Way, and I'm so Lonesome I Could Cry. This guy could sing ballads like no other performer I'm aware of. An American Trilogy is also quite chilling. Elvis does a great job with his early hits on this recording. In many other live recordings, he sorta gave songs like Hound Dog and Blue Suede Shoes a half effort. Not so with this show. He gave these songs (which he HAD to be tired of singing by this time) as much effort as he gave the newer songs like Harrison's Something, for example.

The five studio songs at the end of the CD are the icing on the cake. With this disk you get an awesome live show and a quarter of another album. What a deal, eh?

One small complaint however. The horn section really messed up See See Rider on this recording. It sounds like the soundtrack of a gameshow or something. Sheesh. I always skip that song on this CD. Other versions of See See Rider are not this way (Live in Las Vegas for example).

I have always believed that the reason Elvis Presley attained the title of The King was because he was always at his very best when faced with a challenge that forced him to give of himself everything he had, if not more. ALOHA FROM HAWAII VIA SATELLITE is a prime example of this.

Broadcast around the world on January 14, 1973, though not seen in America until April of that year, ALOHA FROM HAWAII VIA SATELLITE really captures this towering figure of 20th century American pop culture at a pivotal time. He had rescued a career that was in danger of becoming extinct in 1968 with the Comeback Special; he repositioned himself on record with his 1969 Memphis and Nashville recordings; and his 1972 Madison Square Garden concerts were screamingly spectacular. And then came this.

Setting aside the bombast of the stage show itself (a product of his Las Vegas routine), the sheer magnitude of Elvis' talent by itself is a wonder to behold even today. He throws in not only the great stuff that had already made him a legend ("Hound Dog"; "Love Me"; "Blue Suede Shoes", etc.), but far newer material such as James Taylor's "Steamroller Blues" (which soon became one of the King's 106 Top 40 hits). He also touches on gospel material such as "You Gave Me A Mountain", and country classics such as "I Can't Stop Loving You" and "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry"--all of these things being integral to that uniquely American musical animal called rock and roll. It doesn't hurt either that his band includes fine people like guitar master James Burton, one of the giants.

But for me, the high point of this album is one of the King's biggest latter-day showstoppers, namely "An American Trilogy", Mickey Newbury's adaptation of two Civil War anthems ("Dixie"; "Battle Hymn Of The Republic") and an African-American spiritual ("All My Trials"). He had already done it on his Madison Square Garden album of 1972 with great results, but here the effect is even more stirring and deeply heartfelt. This is a great example of American patriotism from the deep soil of our nation that will be remembered long after the post-9/11 bromides of Toby Keith and Darryl Worley are mercifully forgotten, and it is only fitting that it is Elvis who should be the one to carry it off. As would be part-and-parcel of many of his shows from here on out, the King concludes with that classic song from BLUE HAWAII, "Can't Help Falling In Love."

ALOHA FROM HAWAII VIA SATELLITE would go on to be among the King's biggest-selling albums ever, reaching #1 on the Billboard Top 200 Album Chart in May 1973 and selling over one million copies. Unfortunately, it would also be the last time that Elvis would ever really be able to get a challenge of this magnitude. Without opportunities like this, though he didn't stop making great songs, the burning passion the world knew him for was replaced by a life of extreme excess that ended painfully and tragically with his untimely demise at the age of 42 on August 16, 1977 at his Graceland mansion.

But when one thinks of what the man was able to achieve during his lifetime, it is easier to put those excesses into a perspective that helps to destroy the image propagated by the tabloids. Elvis was the King, but in many important ways, he was a lot like us--flawed but human. And that comes shining through on this album, one of his greatest albums ever.

This is a great collection of Elvis live tracks. I'm a recent fan of the King's and must say that this is an awesome performance that just keeps you interested the whole way through. I love the fact that he just does his biggest hits, which could have worked so easily. Included on "Aloha" are many great covers including the Beatles "Something", Peggy Lee's "Fever" and other greats. His hits like "Long Tall Sally/Whole Lotta Shakin' Going On", "Suspicious Minds" and "Hound Dog" are short but great. The at time newer songs "See See Rider" and "Burning Love" are my favorites on the disc.

I must admit this is my first Elvis album, and I know that there are many more to buy, but I know that the fans will love the impression that Elvis' voice and just personality create on this recording. It's really something that will never be caught again. Elvis is indeed the King of Rock and Roll.

Back in January of 1973, Elvis performed a concert in Hawaii that was broadcast live on television around the world (although, ironically, it wasn't aired live in America). The concert was a big success by all standards. Elvis was in great shape, and great voice. The material mainly consisted of material he had regularly been featuring in his concerts, with the addition of "I Can't Stop Loving You", "Welcome to My World" and "I'm So Lonesome I Can Cry". Elvis recorded five additional songs for the American broadcast of the concert. These were taped after the audience went home. These are a welcome addition to the CD; "Early Morning Rain" is fantastic. This is a must get CD for Elvis fans.