Elvis Presley - It's A Matter Of Time - the 1972 Alternate Orchestral Version

Elvis' March 1972 studio session in RCA's Studio C in Hollywood produced seven studio masters over three days between 27 and 29 March. Of these songs only two, "Fool" and "Where Do I Go From Here" were ever released on a regular studio album, "Elvis" early the following year although the album would soon become to be known as "Elvis (including Fool)" after the bracketed words below the albums main title.

Apart from "For The Good Times" which would not see an official release in Elvis' lifetime, the remaining four "Always On My Mind", "Burning Love", "It's A Matter Of Time" and "Separate Ways" would be released on albums through RCA's budget label Camden usually mixed amongst sixties studio or movie tracks.

Four of the seven tracks recorded at this March 72 session had strings added a couple of months later and then subsequently removed before release and the final RCA master recordings are bereft of the string overdubs.

As discussed in previous posts on the alternate orchestral versions of "Always On My Mind" and "Separate ways" they are not without merit particularly "Always On My Mind" and in either case it may not be immediately apparent why the strings were removed.

In the case of "It's A Matter Of Time", an obscure Elvis studio track almost completely unknown outside the Elvis community, the reason for their removal is perhaps more obvious. The introduction sounds as if it would be more at home in Madrid or Guadalajara! Even after this fussy beginning the strings seem to drown the song and therefore serve no discernible purpose.

This version is not to my taste, I prefer the undubbed master, but others may disagree!!

Although Elvis took five takes to record the final mater version only take four is a complete run through with takes 1 through 3 being either false starts or aborted takes. Take 5 with the overdubs removed would become the master take and would be released in late 1972 on "Burning Love and Hits From His Movies".

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