'Aloha from Hawaii via Satellite' by Elvis Presley
Nowadays, it’s nothing special, but in 1973, the very idea of a concert being broadcast across the world was breathtaking. Elvis Presley’s Aloha from Hawaii via Satellite was beamed live across Asia and the Pacific. To avoid competing with the Superbowl, the recording was broadcast weeks later in the U.S., and with only three networks, only hardened Presleyphobes managed to avoid it.
Within a few short years of that Jan. 14, 1973 concert, Presley became a spotty performer, his talent sapped by too many prescription meds, and by 1977 he was dead. But as shown by the new 50th anniversary Aloha box set, he was in good form when ’73 began. The Hawaiian concert was pretty much the show he gave wherever he performed in those years, clad in white jump suit and backed by an ace band. The set included rock and roll (“Hound Dog”), songs by newcomers (The Beatles’ “Something”) and renditions of his own recent hits (“Burning Love,” “Suspicious Minds”). He sang in a relaxed, confident baritone, and his repertoire was singular in scope, encompassing rock, pop, blues, country and gospel. It was a herculean effort to shoulder the weight of American music on his shoulders and he wore it without straining.
Audiophiles will marvel over the crystal bright sound and completists will want to hear the disc of bonus songs, including multiple rehearsal takes. The rest of us will be pleased with the entirety of his Hawaiian concert in one package, complete with a booklet of photos and essays that put Aloha in context. “He was pretty nervous at this particular point in time; he knew a great deal of the world would be looking in at the show,” said drummer Ronnie Tutt. He pulled it off in what critic Randy Lewis, writing for the booklet, calls Presley’s “final appearance as an undeniable superstar.”
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