Fit for a King
Count your pennies, readers: Legacy is set to announce a box set that will be one heck of a collector’s item. You might want to sit down for these, especially if you’re a fan of…The King.
Elvis Presley: The Complete Masters. It’s happening. Thirty(!) discs of 711 tracks. It’s everything you could imagine for Elvis – listed as “every song Elvis recorded for release during his lifetime in a single collection” plus “103 additional tracks, rarities and a 240-page hardbound book featuring an annotated discography, album artwork, rare and classic photos, a complete song index and an essay by Elvis scholar Peter Guralnick.”
Now here’s the crazy part. This set is going to be limited to 1000 numbered copies. Call me crazy, but if soundtrack labels can print more than 1000 copies for their big-ticket releases, surely this set can sell more than just that much.
Time will tell when the set goes up for pre-order; it’ll be available here starting July 27. A final release date and track list have not been released (Legacy says September TBD), but of course we’ll let you know.
The Second Disc 
Hmmm…at the very least, this looks like a big improvement over the Franklin Mint’s similarly-titled Elvis: The Complete Masters Collection, which retails for about $400 and has the same 711 tracks (all remastered by Vic Anesini) over 36 non-chronological, themed discs and contains a measly 24-page booklet! But 1000 copies? Something’s definitely fishy there. Let’s hope a non-limited (perhaps less lavish?) version is on the way, too. Methinks there will be plenty of Elvis fans lining up for this baby. The 240-page book alone is enticement enough for me…
Joe Marchese
May 20, 2010 at 15:36
I’m in. Damn the price. Last September, my birthday gift to myself was the Beatles. This one will be Elvis.
RoyalScam
May 20, 2010 at 15:40
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May 22, 2010 at 13:48
Anybody know where Mike Duquette got this information from. I’ve checked Sony Legacy’s website but have come up with nothing. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not doubting Mike’s story. In fact, this is something that has been rumored about in the Elvis fandom for several years now. The Franklin Mint set is awesome to listen to (it includes only the 711 tracks). I also think that Mike got the website address wrong where he says to click here. It probably should be http://www.elvisthemusic.com as this is Sony / Legacy’s website for Elvis music releases. I think Mike has a hyphen in his link which leads to nowhere. Does Mike have any idea what the additional 103 tracks will include.
Daryl
May 23, 2010 at 04:09
I got it straight from Legacy’s media relations department. They put out a whole list of titles and that was understandably one of the biggest. I’m surprised the bigger media outlets haven’t filed stories on it; right now it’s just me and Matt Rowe at MusicTAP that have mentioned it. I’d wager the bigger outlets are arranging some kind of fancier coverage, but getting the info to you guys faster is what matters to me.
Believe me, I don’t post any release info until it’s as locked down as can be. (Trust me, there are some pretty neat things happening at many of the catalogue labels, and I can’t wait for some of them to get officially announced.)
Mike Duquette
May 23, 2010 at 08:59
I should also point out that the hyphen was in Legacy’s link. My fault for not checking that.
Mike Duquette
May 23, 2010 at 09:00
Hi Mike,
Thanks for the heads up. Do you know of any other Elvis titles Sony / Legacy has planned in the near future? I’ve heard that they are planning a Legacy version of Elvis’ first LP titled “Elvis Presley”. Is this true? Also do you know if Sony / Legacy has any plans for future installments of DVDs from “The Johnny Cash Show” television program. The 2 DVD set released a few years back was killer. I would love to see more of this released by Legacy.
Daryl
May 24, 2010 at 00:55
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June 14, 2010 at 13:27
Any new information regarding this set?
Daryl
July 14, 2010 at 07:23
I’ve heard nothing new so far. On my part, I’ve been combing through every known Elvis discography so when this set is announced – and it still looks to be July 27 – we’ll be able to determine how complete it is.
Mike Duquette
July 14, 2010 at 11:34
Well Mike, even the Franklin Mint set had some mistake besides the mastering error (She’s Not You) on Disc 6 (which was corrected). For example, all the tracks on the Franklin Mint set were to have been released during Elvis’ lifetime. However several of the bonus tracks from the “Aloha From Hawaii” concert were not released on record until after Elvis died. The only one to be released during his lifetime was “Blue Hawaii” on volume 2 of “A Legendary Performer” in 1976. The remaining bonus tracks (“Early Morning Rain”, “Ku-U-I-Po”, “Hawaiian Wedding Song”, “No More”) were later released on 1978’s budget LP “Mahalo From Elvis.” Also there were a number of tracks featured on the first two volumes of “A Legendary Performer (1974 and 1976) such as (“Trying To Get To You”, “Blue Suede Shoes”, “Love Me”, “Baby What You Want Me To Do”) taken from Elvis’ 1968 television special that were not featured on the Franklin Mint set. Granted these songs can be found elsewhere on the Franklin Mint set, but not these specific performances. The Franklin Mint set while excellent, is not perfect. In addition to these omissions, there was also the omission of the Elvis Sails extended play, the “Having Fun On Stage With Elvis” LP (talking only), and the interview excerpts found on the aforementioned first two volumes of “A Legendary Performer.” There also is a live performance of “I Can’t Stop Loving You” taken from the Afternoon show at Madison Square Garden featured on 1977’s “Welcome To My World” LP as the 1972 Madison Square Garden LP featured the evening show. T
Daryl
July 15, 2010 at 03:42
I just wanted to also mention that the bonus songs for the “Aloha From Hawaii” concert were to originally have been released on the 1973 LP “Elvis (Fool)” along with a few tracks from the Afternoon Madison Square Garden show. This originally was Joan Deary (a RCA producer who co-produced the MSG LP, produced the Aloha LP in Felton Jarvis’ absence due to illness and created the “Legendary Performer” series.” She originally was planning the “Fool” LP before Felton Jarvis stepped back in and eliminated the “Aloha” songs as well as “Reconsider Baby” (aka “A Blues Jam”) from the Afternoon MSG show.
Daryl
July 15, 2010 at 04:02
Any news leaked out yet? This is the week of the pre-order announcement (on Tuesday, July 27, 2010). How much will it cost? How many sets will be made? Tracklisting?
Daryl
July 25, 2010 at 16:20
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July 26, 2010 at 11:39
Here’s the latest……………
http://www.elvisnews.com/news.aspx/sony-the-complete-elvis-presley-masters/12788
Mook
July 27, 2010 at 17:49
Any leaks yet? Price? Tracklisting? Photos of the set? Contents of the book? Details on the mastering of the CDs (16 bit, 24 bit, etc)? Release date?
Daryl
August 1, 2010 at 22:50