Elvis - The Alternate Aloha (1988)

On January 14, 1973, Elvis Presley performed a concert at the Honolulu International Center Arena that was broadcast live on television in Europe and the Far East and taped for American broadcast on April 4. It produced a double-LP live album, Aloha from Hawaii Via Satellite, which topped the charts and sold two million copies. As a backup against potential technical problems, Presley had performed a full-dress rehearsal on January 12 that was filmed and recorded for backup. This album presents a 24-track, 64-minute version of that show. It has a running order similar to the earlier album, except that "Johnny B. Goode," "I Can't Stop Loving You," and a medley of "Long Tall Sally" and "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" have been omitted and three previously released Hawaiian-themed songs, "Blue Hawaii," "Hawaiian Wedding Song," and "K-U-U-I-P-O," actually performed on the 14th in a post-concert session and part of the U.S. TV broadcast, but not released on the earlier album, have been added. The dress rehearsal has a less frantic, more relaxed feel than the broadcast performance, but also has the unmistakable air of a run-through. Still, it presents Presley at the peak of his 1970s live work and, if redundant by definition, on its own presents a worthwhile concert performance.~The Alternate Aloha Review by William Ruhlmann