Nothing says “The Holidays” quite like a box set with four discs of “career-spanning” classic rock-and-roll designed to appeal to an entire generation, and -- hopefully -- especially your weird Uncle Frank, whose name you drew in the family gift swap again and who doesn’t really seem to do anything beyond dozing in a corner at Christmas and making uncomfortable jokes that everyone tries to pretend they didn’t hear. But that’s selling the eminently marketable Mr. Elvis Presley -- the subject of said box set -- short. The point is that everybody loves Elvis, including people who are impossible to shop for. Well, that was trying to be the point.
Legacy Recordings is releasing Elvis 75: Good Rockin' Tonight on December 8, in anticipation of Elvis’ 75th birthday in January. The 100 songs included in the box set include one of Presley’s very first recordings, “My Happiness,” which he paid almost $4 to make one year before signing with Sun Records. The collection closes with the 2002 Junkie XL remix of “A Little Less Conversation” that was a #1 track in 20 countries. It’s got ballads! It’s got gospel! It’s got an 80-page booklet with rare photos and an essay by journalist Billy Altman! If you’re looking for something a little more compact, the single-disc version of Elvis 75 hits stores January 3.