Customer Reviews

Tomorrow Is a Long Time

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Non-soundtrack recordings made between 66 and 68, these sides show that Elvis' 68 Comeback was inevitable. Jerry Reed gives Elvis 2 of his best songs "Guitar Man" and "U.S. Male" and the King knocks 'em out of the park. His cover of the Clovers "Down In The Alley" from 1966 is tough R&B. Also, check out his version of Bob Dylan's "Tomorrow Is A Long Time". A great performance. Yes, the man could do it all. So, while he was still making bad movies, these Nashville sides are proof that the King was on the verge of Rock and Roll's greatest comeback. His voice sounds great, the songs on this CD are generally good (a few too many remakes of other artist's hits), and you can just feel him committed to making great music again. Which he would.

"Tomorrow Is a Long Time" represents the beginning of Elvis Presley's artistic resurrection. The majority of Presley's studio work from 1966 to 1968 ranks among his best recordings. "Down in the Alley," "Love Letters," "Guitar Man," "Hi-Heel Sneakers," "Big Boss Man," "U.S. Male" and the title track (a superb Bob Dylan cover) display the eclecticism and high energy of this unique artist. If you don't have the "From Nashville to Memphis" box set, then this CD is a must-own - it's a valuable document of the King reclaiming his crown.

A little bit of country, pop and rock 'n' roll. One of the best compilations of Elvis ever! And I mean it! This is not just a cd for diehard fans or rockabillies. Every rocker must have it! "Too Much Monkey Business" is an old Chuck Berry song, "Guitar Man" and "US Male" are Jerry Reed originals, "Tomorrow Is A Long Time" is Bob Dylans country, "Big Boss Man" is Willie Dixon's blues, "Stay Away" and "Going Home" are Wild West songs, "Love Letters" is Kelly Lester's, "Fools Fall In Love" is another Jerry Leiber/Mike Stoller's song originaly recorded by The Drifters, but his is faster, "High Heel Sneakers" is another rock 'n' roll classic, and so on and on... This is really worth having. Rock On!

This CD shows just how great Elvis was even during the time he was making movies and soundtracks that most people dismiss as fluff. Had Elvis been given support and encouragement by his record label and management he could have put out great records throughout the 60s. Instead the manager chose to breakup these great recording sessions into bonus takes on soundtracks and low price albums and the general public still doesnt know just how great Elvis was through out his whole career.This is a CD well worth owning.

Due to the damage all those lame movies and soundtracks did to Elvis' musical image and reputation, these tracks were not paid much attention to when first released. Which brings about the point that not only were these songs very much underrated, but instead of them being released in the manner in which they are here, and should have been from the start, they were scattered about haphazardly on lame soundtrack and budget albums, therefore being buried with a bunch of garbage, and never given a real chance of being appreciated. This set corrects that problem, 30 years too late, but better then never! At least from here on they can be heard and appreciated in the way they should be. This set is most of the non-movie secular work Elvis laid down between 1966-68, and there are many gems! "GUITAR MAN, BIG BOSS MAN, U.S.MALE, HI HEEL SNEAKERS, DOWN IN THE ALLEY, TOO MUCH MONKEY BUSINESS" are all great..great! Country/Blues/Rock performances that deserved a lot more attention at the time than they got. "I'LL REMEMBER YOU, LOVE LETTERS, YOU DON'T KNOW ME,and INDESCRIBABLY BLUE" are all gorgeous! You can feel the emotion in Elvis' voice on these..again very overlooked and great ballads. Also "FOOLS FALL IN LOVE" is a fun little romp, the title track shows that Elvis wasn't as out of touch with the newer music as some suggested, giving a great laid back 60's style rendition of Bob Dylan's composition-In fact Dylan has said this is his favorite cover of one of his songs...Nuff said! For myself, there is another personal little treat, I've always liked "STAY AWAY" and had a hard time finding it on CD until now, again it was buried on a movie album, and I didn't want to buy a movie disc for one or two songs so it's a little added bonus for myself. Anyway it's a nice little fast paced country ballad which sounds like it was set to the tune of "GREENSLEEVES". Any true Elvis fan will love this very underappricated body of work if they don't already, and they all sound great! JOHN from L.A. CA

Among Elvis best original albums, you could find FROM ELVIS IN MEMPHIS, ELVIS IS BACK, or ELVIS COUNTRY. But should this album, TOMORROW IS A LONG TIME, be released in 1968 (when it was recorded), it would have been an instant classic.
Elvis would not be back to the top of charts before another year again but in September 1967, when he recorded BIG BOSS MAN, GUITAR MAN and HIGH HEEL SNEAKERS, he was already on the right path.
Here, you can find all these songs recorded over a period of two years between may 1966 and january 1968. They represent Elvis's first step toward his comeback that would happen live on T.V. in December 1968.
It's a mixture of country music, MOR, pop, gospel and rhythm and blues. Everything Elvis truly loved. That was the music he first chose to record when he was able to do so after two long years of only soundtrack material.
In these Nashville sessions, Elvis only recorded the music he loved and didn't even consider to record a hit single. In the end GUITAR MAN reached 43, BIG BOSS MAN reached 37 and US MALE reached 27 but if it was a success, that was because you could really hear Elvis enjoying himself with these songs.
Elvis would record hit singles after his '68 comeback but this album represents the music he wanted to record in a period when he was at his lowest in the charts. It was almost like he had nothing to lose then and he threw himself in these recording sessions as if it was the last time he could enjoy this. In my opinion, the January 68 Nashville session is the last one (with the June 70 Nashville session) where Elvis really enjoyed being in the studio. Once he got back in his place as the King, he lost interest in the recording process.
Once you have listened to HITSTORY or any Greatest Hits compilation by Elvis, TOMORROW IS A LONG TIME is the first album you need to listen to if you want to get to know the real Elvis, not the king but the truck driver from Memphis, TN.

I bought this CD the other day because I was wanting to hear US Male. I have it on vinyl. but needed the CD. WOW, the song selection was great, many different moods from the man who could sing from anyplace in his heart. This is a must own CD. the voice and the feelings he shares, it'll bring back wonderful memories or it'll create wonderful memories if you've never had the pleasure. Give this CD a spin, you'll be glad you did.

Elvis, who burst upon the scene when singles were king, made few albums that receive critical aclaim. Albums such as "Elvis", "Elvis Presley", "Elvis Is Back!" and even "From Elvis In Memphis" did not include most of the singles from the same time period, and though those are not often given the "classic" status they deserve, they are usually respected. As mentioned before, the songs on "Tomorrow Is A Long Time" were not even given the dignity of being released together without the singles, instead used as filler on movie soundtracks and budget albums.
Although I own all of the songs from this album on the 60's box set and soundtracks, this album was a revelation as the track selection and flow present clear proof that Elvis' comeback was in the works BEFORE the television special.
The first ten songs would have been an incredible original album, think of the remainders as very good bonus tracks.
"Singing Tree" is the weakest song on the album, but even that has merit as it is interesting to hear Elvis harmonize with himself.

This CD compiles non-religious, non-soundtrack songs that Elvis recorded between 1966 and 1968. This was a low point in Presley's career. He was stuck recording mostly lousy soundtracks, which sold less copies each time out. His singles weren't selling that well, either. His last Top Ten hit had been "Crying in the Chapel" in 1965 (which was a song left over from 1960). But Elvis still managed to make some great music during this time, when he wasn't recording crappy soundtracks. It seems like whenever Elvis recorded something that wasn't for a soundtrack, he just sang whatever songs tickled his fancy. He recorded all kinds of great songs during this time period. Like Jerry Reed's country-blues songs "Guitar Man" and "U.S. Male". And Chuck Berry's rock and roll song "Too Much Monkey Business". And Bob Dylan's folk song "Tomorrow is a Long Time". And ballads like "Love Letters" and "Indescribably Blue". And blues songs like "Down in the Alley" and "Big Boss Man". These are great songs, but more importantly, Elvis is committed to the songs and seems to be having fun. Not that all the songs are great. There are a few mediocre songs like "Mine" and "Singing Tree". They aren't bad, they just pale in comparison to some of the great songs on this album. Anyway, it's great to finally have these songs together on one CD where they belong.

The first half of this collection is as raw and as powerful as any early Elvis recording. The acoustic/gut string guitar work on songs like Too Much Monkey Business and Guitar Man is stunning, and the vocals have incredible energy. The second half of the CD is much tamer, and the ballads are simply not as good as some of the legendary ballads Elvis has done in the past.However,the rockabilly numbers like Big Boss Man, and Hi-Heel Sneakers more than justify adding this CD to your collection.