Title: Adios, The Final Performance

Label: Mystery Train / AJ Records

Date: June 26, 1977

Sound Quality: * * * - - / * * * * * +

Concert Rating: * * * * / * * * * * +

Tracks: 1.2001 Theme 2.C.C. Rider 3.I Got A Woman / Amen 4.Love Me 5.Fairytale 6.You Gave Me A Mountain 7.Jailhouse Rock 8.It's Now Or Never 9.Little Sister 10.Teddy Bear 11.Don't Be Cruel 12.Please Release Me 13.I Can't Stop Loving You 14.Bridge Over Troubled Water / Band Introductions 15.Early Mornin' Rain 16.What'd I Say 17.Johnny B. Goode 18.Larrie's Beat 19.Jerry's Blues 20.Tony's Boogie 21.I Really Don't Want To Know 22.James [sic] Licks 23.Guercio's Theme 24.Hurt 25.Hound Dog 26.Can't Help Falling In Love 27.Closing Theme

Package: Not the best one, with three photos inside, one of them a color shot of Elvis with his guitar. However, it's not the package what makes this release essential.

Elvis: Strangely enough he is much better than a week before in Omaha and even better than 5 days before in Rapid City (the two concerts filmed for the CBS TV Special). He delivers some songs so good that it's hard to believe that this is his last concert.

Highlights: The three songs before the band introductions are the very best ones and are real highlights.

Review: I've got a lot of different feelings regarding this release. It is a very important historic document and it's very hard to write an objective review. First about the sound quality - it is a stereo (!!!) audience recording, very well mixed, the only minus is that the people that recorded this concert were obviously sitting far from the stage, but still the sound is very impressive.

The thundering 2001 theme begins to the delight of the present crowd. They go crazy when the lights go down, and even more shouts are heard when the fantastic Zarathustra is being played. Here comes the final chord and Larry Londin (replacing Ronnie Tutt) begins the opening vamp as Elvis gets onstage to the adoring audience. The response is very warm and probably Elvis has to calm himself down before beginning See See Rider, which gets even more shouts from the audience. Elvis sounds a bit weak, but this is not hard to understand knowing his state of health at this point. Listening closely you hear that James plays his solo in the middle of the song differently from what we are used to. "Thank you very much! Ah... I, ah.. We, ah... Well..." Elvis says and goes into the "Well, well..." routine. I Got A Woman is next and is sounds differently because of Larry. The audience is clapping in the rhythm of the song during the first part of the song, then you just hear how they go crazy when Elvis (probably) shakes his legs or sings louder. Amen is sung by the whole auditorium as soon as Elvis wakes the audience by asking to sing it with him. Elvis is not satisfied with J.D. Sumner's low note at the end of Amen and he asks J.D. to sing it for the second and the guy really does it better. After the song Elvis greets the audience saying "We're going to do a lotta songs - old ones, new ones and some that you never heard, you know, foolish folk songs..." And then he goes into Love Me, which is a yet another standard version, however, very well greeted by the audience. Next is Fairytale. Not the best of Elvis' songs and not the greatest performance, with Elvis hitting some wrong notes during the high part. Following is a great performance of You Gave Me A Mountain which was one the most emotionally performed songs in his later years. Next is Jailhouse Rock, which has a false start, after which Elvis asks the audience to support him, so the present people begin clapping in the rhythm of this old number. Not the best rendition, but very well received. Next is It's Now Or Never, and it seems that Elvis' fantastic voice just goes into every section of the enormous Market Square arena. It is accurately low during the couplets and goes way up during the refrain. A Fantastic job by a Fantastic performer. Next is Little Sister, nothing special here, like in the case of the following Teddy Bear / Don't Be Cruel medley, though it's a bit revived by a different drum work from Larry Londin."Ah... Let me see.. Please, Release Me, Let Me Go. What key we did it in, James?" Elvis says and goes into the first surprise of tonight's concert - a rare performance of this great country song. "Thank you very much. Totally unrehearsed." Next is an even more rare rendition of I Can't Stop Loving You. It is harder for Elvis to perform this song than the previous one, however, he does it very well. "Ah, let's do Bridge Over Troubled Water" Elvis says and goes into a stunning version of the song, with only one joke by Elvis in the beginning of the song when he sings "When tears are in your eyes I will give you a scarf". Next are the band introductions, which are followed an OK version of Hurt (Elvis obviously is already tired at this time), however the middle of the song is just fantastic. After the throwaway version of Hound Dog Elvis thanks everybody on and off the stage, his relatives and friends, as if saying farewell. Ironically, Elvis says at the end of his speech: "If you want us back, we'll come back" and Can't Help Falling In Love ends the show.

Any true Elvis fan should have this release in his collection. This is a very important historic document in a very good audience recording quality.

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