Disc Five (1953-1958)

In 1992, RCA issued a five CD box set of Elvis Presley's 1950s masters. Since there are over a hundred songs on those CDs, it's too much to cover in one review. I am writing a separate review for each of the CDs.

Discs One through Four have all the 1950s masters. Disc Five has other Elvis recordings from the era. These are demos, acetates, live recordings, and alternate takes.

'That's When Your Heartaches Begin' is not the 1957 hit, but the 'B' side of Elvis' first demo with Sun records. It's a straight ballad, like 'My Happiness' (on CD #1) on the 'A' side. The ending is abrupt, because Elvis had run out of his allotted three minutes.

'Fool, Fool, Fool' was a demo recorded in early 1955, when Elvis was under RCA contract. It shows how much Elvis had already learned from Sam Phillips, who assumedly had nothing to do with it. Scotty Moore has a very nice guitar fill. 'Shake, Rattle, and Roll' is the B-side. Both are virtually perfect.

'Tweedle Dee' and 'Maybelline' are early live performances. Both are R&B songs, but Elvis interprets them with strong country influence. 'Tweedle Dee' has somewhat mediocre sound quality. Maybelline has an amateurish guitar solo: was that Moore?

'Blue Moon of Kentucky' is an early Sun recording, in a different tempo than the master. That's Sam Phillips at the end, congratulating Elvis for turning the country standard into a 'pop song'.

'Blue Moon' is very similar to the master on CD #1. This is the 'soda pop' version, as you can hear the vending machine dumping a cold one near the song's end. Elvis again has a spooky vocal trill, almost a yodel.

'I'm Left, You're Right, She's Gone' is much different from the Sun master on CD #1. It's still great, but the tempo is slower and more clumsy.

'Reconsider Baby' is from the legendary 'Million Dollar Band' jam with Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis. Elvis unfortunately sings off mike. Mostly you hear drumming and guitar jangling.

'Lawdy Miss Clawdy' is a slight improvement over the very similar master.

'Shake, Rattle, and Roll' lacks the extraneous background vocals of the master. Another slight improvement.

'I Want You, I Need You, I Love You' is similar but more clumsy that the master. It must have been a tough session, as this was the only song recorded. At one point, Elvis gets the title wrong: 'I Need You, I Want You, I Love You' he sings.

'Heartbreak Hotel', 'Long Tall Sally', 'Blue Suede Shoes' and 'Money Honey' are all recorded live in Las Vegas. The sound quality is excellent, without the shrieking teenage girls and bad sound found on most 1950s Elvis live shows. Elvis was third billed behind a stand up comic and an orchestra. The four songs are his final set.

Elvis' two week Vegas stand in 1956 was a bust. The middle-aged gamblers probably regarded him as if he was a space alien. But the performances are fantastic. Elvis' crowd patter has some lame jokes, though. Elvis mocks his own hit, calling it 'Heartburn Motel'. It's slower and more bluesy than the hit version. This version of 'Long Tall Sally' may be the only time that he improves upon Little Richard.

I don't know if any four live performances exist by any artist that can match these four songs. They are that close to perfect.

'We're Gonna Move' is indistinguishable from the master on CD #1. Same goes for 'Old Shep'.

'I Beg of You' is a noisy, uncoordinated alternate take, clearly inferior to the more controlled master. Elvis sings in the wrong key.

'Loving You' is very similar to the master. Someone plays the harmonica, which was wisely missing from the hit single version.

A second 'Loving You' alternate take is an extremely silly version. Elvis probably never intended this to see release. He's just having some fun, but it's great anyway. He was very talented, you know.

'Young and Beautiful' is just Elvis, as he sings and plays the guitar. It's a lovely version that improves on the jazzier master.

'I Want to be Free' is another alternate take from 'Jailhouse Rock'. It's a little better than the master, which was faster and sung in a different key.

'King Creole' is an alternate take, and quite a bit better than the master. It rocks, unlike most songs from that session.

'As Long as I Have You' is only Elvis. He sings and plays the piano. It is much better than the master. Clearly, Elvis could have improved greatly upon the 'King Creole' soundtrack had he been responsible for the production of the recording session.

'Ain't That Lovin' You Baby' is a ridiculously fast version of the R&B classic. The original version is quite slow, but here Elvis and his drummer are off to the races.

As a whole, the fifth CD is a goldmine of rare Elvis songs, many of which are fantastic.

Here's the breakdown by song:

93 That's When Your Heartaches Begin
99 Fool Fool Fool
85 Tweedle Dee
94 Maybelline
99 Shake, Rattle and Roll
100 Blue Moon of Kentucky
100 (net 80**) Blue Moon
99 You're Right, I'm Left, She's Gone
66 Reconsider Baby
95 (net 75**) Lawdy, Miss Clawdy
95 Shake, Rattle and Roll
98 I Want You, I Need You, I Love You
100 Heartbreak Hotel
99 Long Tall Sally
100 Blue Suede Shoes
100 Money Honey
99 (net 79**) We're Gonna Move
89 (net 69**) Old Shep
86 I Beg of You
99 (net 79**) Loving You
99 Loving You
95 Young and Beautiful
94 King Creole
94 As Long as I Have You
86 Ain't That Loving You Baby

** Alternate take is very similar to the already-present master, making this version redundant

Overall: 88/100, or high A-