Elvis - Tennessee Waltz 1966 restored demo

Описание: For promotional purposes only. I couldn't have been more wrong when I thought I knew each informal recording Elvis ever made when I came across this one. I feel particularly foolish in hindsight because I had owned this incomplete demo (recorded in G) for, well, two decades (Platinum: A Life in Music, 1997). Needless to say, it reminded me of that other unfinished demo of Tennessee Waltz, the one on Home Recordings (1999). Wait a minute... there were two demos! So the wheels started turning again: How in the world could I combine the both of them into a completed song? There had to be a way.

But there wasn't, because I soon realized Elvis had recorded these demos in different keys. Now, if there's one thing I will never do is transpose Elvis's voice. That would be borderline sacrilege and a definite no-go area. So I opted for starting out with the recording in G instead, simply because it sounds better and would make for a more satisfactory final track.

To make a long story short, it took me about 40 hours to put this version together.

In a nutshell:
1. I put together a rhythm guitar track based on a recording by Munson Covers. This was tedious work because I refuse to use a plug-in to help me chop up and synchronize acoustic instruments. I don't want an Elvis recording to sound like a lifeless midi track. Call me old-fashioned.
2. I put together a guitar track based on a recording by Wil Fly. Doing so was pretty much like performing surgery on a track because I had to chop it up manually, rearrange it, leave out the bits I couldn't use, put together new sections as well as synchronize the whole thing with the rhythm track, which is almost undoable. I must have made 500 cuts... at least.
3. I added Elvis's voice and piano to the mix without touching the pitch.
4. I decided to use a very slow recording by Patti Page to complete the lyrics. Not only was her recording well-known, she also knew Elvis through her husband and Elvis loved her rendition of the song (see Platinum: A Life in Music, 1997). I had to adjust her key to Elvis's and do a whole lot of cutting and pasting, not to mention the number of fade-ins and fade-outs that were needed.
5. I added two violin solos to the mix, both performed by Adam DeGraff. The first one I had to put together myself because of the big differences in speed. DeGraff also played some notes that didn't suit the recording. The second one required a lot of tweaking but is basically how the solo was performed.
6. I added background violins and cellos.
7. The mix-down was clipping hell, so forgive me if it's not perfect.
8. I couldn't resist the urge to add some of the dialogue from the other demo Elvis recorded.

Well, all that remains to be said is... I sincerely hope you like it. I won't be able to listen to it for quite some time :)