Elvis Presley - The King: 18 Of The Greatest Singles Ever / The King

The King is dead, long live commercial anniversaries!

By the time you read this, it’ll have been 30 years since Elvis died, and just as many years that SonyBMG have danced on his grave with the umpteenth Elvis compilation. They did it with a difference two years ago, releasing each of his UK No 1s on CD and 10” week-after-week in a lovely box set. It had collectors queuing outside their Virgins and HMVs to ensure they got that week’s release before the 16 allocated to that store sold out. It didn’t make him No 1 for 18 weeks running, but at least it got the blood running again after all the themed – or not, even – compilations.

We’re in the madhouse again with an Elvis: The King box set. There’s no theme now, just the anniversary and “18 of the greatest singles ever”. The set-up’s the same: one single each week, mopping up 2005’s conspicuous absences (Heartbreak Hotel, Suspicious Minds…) It’s a lovely set, and you’ll want it against your better judgement.

For the fairweather, there’s another thoughtless compilation, no doubt pushed to the hilt in stores, with all 18 of the box set A-sides. Have a guess at what else. We don’t have enough room to list what you already know.

SonyBMG | various cat nos / 7118042

Reviewed by Jason Draper
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