[.ca] Elvis Presley Great.V.3

From Amazon.com:
Elvis Presley's first year (March '56 to January '57) on TV is spotlighted on "From the Waist Up," the third of three Elvis: The Great Performances DVDs. And what a time it was, as his appearances on the Dorsey Brothers, Milton Berle, Steve Allen, and especially Ed Sullivan shows electrified an ever-growing national audience with tunes ranging from the lascivious "Baby, Let's Play House" to the reverent "Peace in the Valley." Written by Presley biographer Peter Guralnick (Last Train to Memphis) and narrated by U2's Bono, volume 3 is the most documentary-like of the three discs; some basic history is provided (the Sun Records years, the arrival of Col. Tom Parker, etc.), most of which will be old hat to Presley aficionados. Unfortunately, it's also the only disc that truncates some of the King's performances, but the three straight complete songs from the '57 Sullivan show that end the program help make up for that. --Sam Graham

The worst of the series:
Looking at the boxed set as a whole, it is very good, and spans Elvis' career from 1956 to 1977. Looking at this disc, however, there are many repeat performances, most incomplete and unimpressive. As it happens this disc is narrated not by George Klein, but by Bono of U2. In my opinion he needs to learn when to shut up. Get the boxed set instead of this individual disc. Or if you're cheap and only want one disc, get volume 2. It features songs from Aloha From Hawaii, the Dorsey Shows, and more. I reccomend buying the boxed set though because it gives a better look at Elvis as an entertainer. But don't expect much out of this disc except chopped up performances and extensive narration. What a waste.

Can I please gve this 3 1/2 stars?:
Volume 3: From the Waist up shows Elvis Presley only from the waist up on tv shows like Milton Berle and The Dorsey Brothers, Stage Show. But the one problem with volume 3 is (and I have even mentioned it in my review of Elvis The Great Performances) that there is a son not perfromed by Elvis Presley. And it's called "Bo Diddley" and for some reason the song is in Volume 3. and it also repeats Love Me Tender. And also Blue Suede Shoes is repeated on this one too. So this the one that of all three volumes that derseves *** 1/2. Don't Be Cruel is also repeated on here as well. And also volume 3 fouses on songs performed on Ed Sullivan's show. And this one has no songs (at all) for any of his movies. I think Bo Diddley, Love Me Tender, Don't Be Cruel should have been cut from Volume 3. Let this be a warning if you have never seen any of these volumes before.

surprisingly good:
Despite other reviews, I thought this video third in the series was actually very good. I had already purchased the first and second in the series and enjoyed both very much. The reviews on the third keep me from purchasing it sooner. I am so glad I bought it. First of all, it contains performances from all three Ed Sullivan shows, including songs not heard on the first two videos. I really enjoyed seeing Elvis sing "Love Me" and how he really worked the audience. Other songs include "Peace in the Valley" and "Love me Tender" which he does not do on the first two. Also it has Elvis speaking to the audience after the songs which I hadn't seen before. In the beginning it does repeat some of the same footage from the first two and the segment on "Bo Didly" was to me not necessary. Bono from U2 was ok as the narriator. All in all I think this video is a must to complete the series.

Could've been much better:
The 3 stars are no reflection whatsoever on Elvis' performances, which are outstanding as ever. However, for some unknown reason, the producers of this DVD have chosen to repeat a number of the performances that appear in Volume 1 of the series. (All three volumes are available as a box set). The sound and picture quality, considering the age of the footage, is fanstastic. Certainly if the review was based purely on this aspect, it would be given 5 stars. Bono (of U2) narrates, but puts no passion into it. I know he's an Elvis fan, but for some reason he comes across as if he's bored by the whole thing. Unfortunately, this detracts from some of the performances. Overall, a good DVD to own, but one that could've been much better had more thought gone into it. If you don't happen to own Volumes 1 and 2, you'd be better off purchasing the box set, rather than buying this individual DVD.