Title: Send Me The Light...I Need it Bad

Label: Groti Records

Date: May 29th, 1977,Baltimore Civic Center, Baltimore, Maryland, 8:30 P.M. show.

Sound Quality (Concert): * * - / * * * * * +

Concerts Rating: * * / * * * * * +

Tracks: 1.2001 A Space Odyssey 2.See See Rider 3.I Got A Woman - Amen 4.That's All Right 5.Are You Lonesome Tonight 6.Blue Christmas 7.Heartbreak Hotel 8.Love Me 9.Jailhouse Rock 10.You Gave Me A Mountain 11.Danny Boy (By Sherrill Nielsen) 12.Walk With Me (By Sherrill Nielsen) 13.Teddy Bear / Don't Be Cruel 14.Elvis leaves the stage 15.Walk That Lonesome Road (By J. D. Sumner and The Stamps Quartet) 16.My Heavenly Father Watches Over Me (By Kathy Westmoreland ) 17.Band Introductions by Charlie Hodge 18.Early Morning Rain (Sung by John Wilkinson) 19.What'd I Say (Instrumental) 20.Johnny B. Goode (Instrumental) 21.Instrumental Solos 22.School Days (Midway this song Elvis returns on stage) 23.Hurt 24.Hound Dog 25.Help Me 26.Unchained Melody 27.Blue Suede Shoes 28.The Wonder Of You (Part only) 29.One Night 30.O Sole Mio (By Sherrill Nielsen) / It's Now Or Never 31.Can't Help Falling In Love 32.Closing Vamp

Review: Elvis fourth concert tour in 1977 was surely one of his most heavier ever, because of his undermined state of health excess luggage, face swollen more than before, visible fatigue, forgetting of words, it all was pretty apparent now. Four last concerts were rearranged from the end of his March 1977 tour. He had them cancelled because of being unable to perform due to illness. In May / June, he still managed a few quite good shows like in Jacksonville 30th May or two Binghamton performances, on 26th & 27th May, he also included few unusual songs like I Really Don't Want To Know ( on 30.5.77 for the first time), An American Trilogy (Mobile 2.6.77) after more than a year's brake, great renditions of Bridge Over Troubled Water, Help Me and Unchained Melody. These songs were really message songs now, he needed all the help that he could get. Press reviews varied in ratings of concerts, some very bad, few surprisingly good.

If you know the book called If I Can Dream, written by Elvis hairdresser and spiritual guru Larry Geller, you can understand how it goes. According to Larry, Elvis was very afraid before the opening show in Knoxville, Tennessee, on 20th May and few hours before his next gig, in Louisville, Kentucky, he was found in dead faint in his hotel room and Dr. Nick desperately tried to help him when it all was seen by Colonel Parker, who said that the only important thing was to make him ready for the show believe it or not!

On May 29-th Elvis performed in Baltimore Civic Center and this show was released as Send Me The Light CD. The sound quality is the main problem here, because it is poor, below average for an audience recordings. All the vocals are a bit distant and the crowd's screaming is more apparent and in overall sound is too much sharp. It is worth for collectors only, because it is really an unusual show.

Elvis was really in poor health for this particular show, on the photos he looks swollen and so much tired. I think that he should have cancelled it. Its fair to say, that this show isn't so bad as one can expect, because his voice is remarkable. He got few bad reviews, here are some excerpts:

"A physically and artistically subpar Elvis Presley walked out on a strange concert performance for half an hour here Sunday night (29), but eventually returned. A Civic Center spokesman attributed the vet rock and roll singers murmuring, swearing and unscheduled haitus to the reported intestinal problems that had kayoed Presley from an earlier portion of this tour. After the break Presley came on like gangbusters as he politely and apologetically tried to recoup his losses. He succeeded to the extent that only a handful asked for refunds but at the finale there was no ovation, and patrons exited shaking their heads and speculating what was wrong with him", By Marty Bennet, Variety, May 1977

and

"None of the 13,000 persons in that Civic Center audience May 29 realized just how sick the singer was when he took his unscheduled break, and the sources said, "Do you have any idea how ill he is? He's real ill." A critic's report was, "The king is slightly paunchy now in his white spangled suit. But the main ingredients of the image are intact--the boyish, almost feminine face; the sexual pelvic movements and the country voice that croons the rhythms of white rock welded onto black soul", By Robert A. Erlandson, SUN STAFF, August 17-th, 1977.

He played three songs on his acoustic guitar, joking: "I know only three chords," pause, "Two!". Jailhouse Rock and Teddy Bear & Don't Be Cruel are sung in a really rapid tempo, You Gave Me A Mountain is quite good. Elvis soon gives the space to tenor singer Sherrill Nielsen for his two usual songs, and after Don't Be Cruel Elvis leaves the stage for about 25 minutes that he spends this time backstage with Dr. Nick, who tries to revive him for the rest of the show.

Charlie Hodge introduces J.D. Sumner and The Stamps and Kathy Westmoreland for their songs, and John Wilkinson sings Early Morning Rain (it is unusual, you can find it on Live At Lakeside 1.5.76 D/S CD too).

When the orchestra plays Hail Hail Rock And Roll, Elvis returns and you can hear terrific applause when he sings it with the orchestra, after this he apologizes, he says that he had to leave the stage because of a twisted ankle and to answer the nature calls and continues with an okay version of Hurt. Help Me is a highlight, really nice version, and then he asks the audience: "What you wanna hear? Unchained Melody?" and the crowd yells "Yeeees!!!" Elvis takes their request and gives a stunning, long performance, interrupted with great ovations, it is the best song from the whole show. Elvis takes another request, The Wonder Of You, but he doesn't know it well "when everything I do is wrong, I need your heaven understanding, no, no, no, no" and goes into a fair One Night instead. Before the last song he apologizes for himself one more time: "There's nothing wrong with my health and If you want us back let us know and we'll come back"

In any case, this CD couldn't be recommended to casual listener because of the poor sound, however it is an interesting recording. Its only for collectors and it can give you good imagination, in how bad physical state Elvis was near yo his end. This show, far from his best ones, isn't so bad as it could be, because Elvis tried give the best of what he could to the people this evening.

Reviewed by Oto Meszaros, Czech Republic

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