Elvis Presley – Lost In The Mail | Ragdoll CD

Carbondale, Illinois – October 27, 1976
Elvis Presley – Lost In The Mail is a collector’s CD from the Ragdoll label featuring Elvis’ Evening Show of October 27, 1976, recorded at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois.
The concert comes from a live audience recording rated very good for this type of source. Recorded during Elvis’ October 1976 tour, the performance captures him in good spirits, interacting with the audience while presenting an interesting mixture of familiar concert favourites and less predictable selections.
An enjoyable October 1976 concert
Following an incomplete Also Sprach Zarathustra, Elvis opens with C.C. Rider and I Got A Woman / Amen. The first part of the show continues with Love Me, Fairytale, You Gave Me A Mountain, Jailhouse Rock and Help Me.
Familiar favourites including All Shook Up, Teddy Bear / Don’t Be Cruel, And I Love You So and Fever follow.
One of the notable performances is America (The Beautiful), followed by the energetic Polk Salad Annie.
After the band introductions and instrumental solos, Elvis returns with Love Letters and part of School Day. Another highlight is Hurt, including its reprise.
Following Hound Dog, Elvis announces vocal features by Sherrill Nielsen and Kathy Westmoreland. Unfortunately, these performances are missing from the tape used for this release.
The final portion contains some particularly interesting material: an excerpt of Heartbreak Hotel leads into Blue Christmas, followed by a welcome performance of That’s All Right. Can’t Help Falling In Love brings the concert to its traditional conclusion.
Track Listing
1. Also Sprach Zarathustra (incomplete) – 00:55
2. C.C. Rider – 04:37
3. I Got A Woman / Amen – 06:47
4. Love Me – 02:36
5. Fairytale – 02:26
6. You Gave Me A Mountain – 03:10
7. Jailhouse Rock – 01:38
8. Help Me – 02:34
9. All Shook Up (first part missing) – 00:52
10. Teddy Bear / Don’t Be Cruel – 01:58
11. And I Love You So – 03:05
12. Fever – 03:12
13. America (The Beautiful) – 02:08
14. Polk Salad Annie – 03:45
15. Band Introductions – 02:19
16. Early Morning Rain – 00:59
17. What’d I Say – 00:48
18. Johnny B. Goode – 00:52
19. Drum Solo (Ronnie Tutt) – 01:31
20. Bass Solo (Jerry Scheff) – 01:35
21. Piano Solo (Tony Brown) – 01:06
22. Electric Piano Solo (David Briggs) – 01:30
23. Love Letters – 02:53
24. School Day (incomplete) – 00:38
25. Hurt (with reprise) – 02:37
26. Hound Dog / Announcement – 02:40
27. Heartbreak Hotel (excerpt) / Blue Christmas – 02:20
28. That’s All Right – 02:33
29. Can’t Help Falling In Love – 01:35
30. Closing Vamp (incomplete) – 00:29
Note: Elvis announces Danny Boy and Walk With Me by Sherrill Nielsen and My Heavenly Father Watches Over Me by Kathy Westmoreland. These performances are missing from the tape.
Product Details
Artist: Elvis Presley
Title: Lost In The Mail
Label: Ragdoll
Catalogue Number: RD 2017-02
Release Year: 2017
Recording Date: October 27, 1976
Performance: Evening Show
Venue: Southern Illinois University
Location: Carbondale, Illinois
Recording Type: Live Audience Recording
Sound: Very Good
Format: CD / Collector’s Release
For collectors, Lost In The Mail offers an enjoyable document of Elvis on tour in late 1976. The combination of Help Me, America (The Beautiful), Hurt, Blue Christmas and That’s All Right, together with Elvis’ good-humoured interaction with the audience, gives this concert its own distinctive character.
Available from your Elvis specialist Bennies Fifties and the online Fifties Store.