Unheard Elvis & JD Sumner Rehearsal Cassette Tape Recording

[JSmith]

I have a recording of Elvis, J.D. Sumner and possibly the Sweet Inspirations and probably at least some of the TCB Band on cassette recording, made with one of the first generation portable cassette recorders. It sounds like a rehearsal. My father and I acquired it through my great grandmother who used to book acts in the Mid-Ohio Valley in the early to mid-70s. She was given the tape by her friend, Velma Boyd who lived in Mid-Ohio Valley also. Somehow, she (Velma) managed to get invited and recorded the event. Unforuntately, both my great grandmother and Velma have passed away. We're trying to piece together how this recording took place.





There is material on both the front and back of the tape. One of the songs is the 1974 hit "If You Love Me (Let Me Know)" by John Rostill and Olivia Newton John, placing the time of the event sometime after April, 1974. J.D. Sumner's bass voice can also be heard on the tape, as he sings ultra-low bass notes for long periods of time, sounding like a plane taking off in one spot. In addition to the musical content, you can hear Elvis direct the event at times (such as repeating sections of songs, etc). Its quite a unique piece of history.





We've had the tape for sometime. Upon initial investigations, back in 2005 or so, we thought the bass singer might be Richard Sterban of the Oakridge Boys but we met with him personally and he confirmed that he wasn't the singer there, leading to J.D. Sumner. We tried to reach some of the remaining Sweet Inspirations as there are female backup singers on the recording as well, but our trail ended there; we were unable to reach any of them. We haven't tried to reach anyone in the TCB band at the time. We pretty much stopped there years ago but decided to revisit the mystery, try and contact others in the TCB Band, etc and find corroboration.





Grandma wanted us to keep it and sell it one day, so that's what we'd now like to do. I just have no idea how much something like this is worth. I see records and other things that sell for huge prices on ebay. What do you suppose its worth? Its not quite filled on both sides, but there is 30 mins of audio on it or so. I suppose if we could get one of the TCB Band members or someone else who definitely played with Elvis to remember the event, that would increase its worth.





I'll be putting up a website with sound clips soon and probably some sort of ebay auction. Any comments, advice or questions are welcome!





Thank you,


William Smith


Jeremiah Smith


email: [e-mail]

[tonytrout]

William,

What you most likely have in your possession is the August 16, 1974 TCB band rehearsal at the Las Vegas Hilton hotel. That tape has already been bootlegged and I also own a copy.