Elvis Presley - I Just Can't Help Believing - The 24 July 1970 Rehearsal Versions

There is an urban myth that suggests that Elvis disliked B.J. Thomas' "I Just Can't help Believing" which is ironic considering that the live rendition from his 11 August 1970 dinner show https://youtu.be/iRuv7_Co_Nw ranks among one of the best live vocal performances by an artist. This myth was perpetuated by Elvis' off the cuff and tongue in cheek remarks prior to said 11 August performance and as it was also caught by MGM's cameras and included in That's The Way It Is, is is often cited as a matter of fact rather than taken in the jest that it was intended.

If any proof is required as to Elvis' true feelings in the song then this can be found in three parts. Firstly, if Elvis actually disliked the song then he would not have performed it as often as he did, at virtually every show throughout that August 1970 engagement. Secondly, he usually introduced the song by telling the audience that "it is a beautiful song" and this was said even on the odd occasion where Elvis used a variation of the original "I don't really like it" joke. Lastly, one listen to any of Elvis rehearsal versions of the song you can hear him sing in a way that is only possible to achieve in a song that you really believe in and on a couple of occasions he can be heard to remark "that's nice" at the song's conclusion.

On 24 July 1970 in RCA's Hollywood studios, Elvis performed three fine rehearsal versions, and they give a decent indication of what a studio version of the song may have sounded like, given that Elvis never actually recorded a studio master of the song. Although the first two versions were performed one immediately after the other, Elvis ran through another four songs before returning to the song to a third rehearsal.

As with all of these videos, to get the most out of the re-edited audio, I highly recommend you use ear /headphones and turn the volume up as much as you dare!

Видео Elvis Presley - I Just Can't Help Believing - The 24 July 1970 Rehearsal Versions канала The Ultimate Elvis Channel by Leon