In 1974 Elvis had performed at the Houston Astrodome twice and had been seen by 88,149 people. For his return in 1975 the king opted for two concerts at the much smaller Hofheinz Pavillion instead of a single show at the Astrodome. With 12,000 seats the Pavillion wasn't anything but a cosy location, but at least the people could hear well enough and could see what was going on on stage. We have to remember, that back in those days jumbotrons had not been invented yet and the sound engineers were far away from being able to fill huge arenas with hi-fi sound. Of course both concerts- Elvis performed on June 4th and 5th at 8:30 pm- were sold out. Combined they may have generated an amount of a little over 200,000 USD. On June 4th the king wore the "Indian Chief Suit", on the following day he selected the "White Phoenix Suit".

The instrumental introduction "Also Sprach Zarathustra", the opening song "See See Rider", major parts of the "I Got A Woman" / "Amen" medley as well as the closer "Can't Help Falling In Love" were not recorded.

The recording starts when Elvis demonstrates his moves from the 1950s. JD Sumner shows off his bass voce and after a repreise of "I Got A Woman" the man from Memphis throws his guitar to Charlie Hodge, his assistant. Then Elvis welcomes the crowd, assures them that the flashlights don't bother him and jokingly adds, that he's blind as a bat and cannot see anything.

Once again the ballad is used to throw some scafs in the audience and Elvis has his harmony singers holding the final note until they turn blue. Compared to the concert in Mobile/Alabama he sounds more energetic.

This also manifests itself through a lively and joyful presentation of "If You Love Me (Let Me Know)". Afterwards the king talks about the movie "That's The Way It Is", which was shown on television a few hours earlier. He tells the fans, that he has the same people with him, except JD Sumner & The Stamps and Kathy Westmoreland, who joined the group later. Maybe the airing of the film is another reason for giving a bit more. Elvis must be aware of the fact, that he's not as fit and trim as half a decade ago when the movie was made. So maybe, if only subconsciously, he wants to prove that he hasn't lost "it" yet.

At least the female part of his fans obviously doesn't care about health reports, pounds and years. They are still eager to get a scarf or even a kiss. Elvis himselvis enjoys the procedure and has fun.

The hit record "All Shook Up" is presented within 60 seconds, but works well as a quick nod to the good ole' days.

The same applies to the medley of "Teddy Bear" and "Don't Be Cruel". The latter one is opened with the line "You know I can't be found laid here on the ground!". Elvis also sings "Please let's forget the past before I kick your a$$".  In-between he throws some more scarfs into the audience.

Now the king fools around with the intro. Of course he knows, that the words "you ain't" are enough to make the ladies scream. His performance starts as energetic as in "That's The Way It Is", but soon looses most of the power and Elvis just mumbles through the lines. However, he makes up for it by shaking his body to the brass sounds of the orchestra. Well, the oldie block of the show is some kind of circus and no celebration of music. The fans obviously are happy with it.

With "The Wonder Of You" Elvis returns to more recent material, albeit not as recent as he thinks. It wasn't released two or three years ago, but five. However, when some ladies start to scream after the king mentioned the title, he quips "Wait a minute, we have not done it yet". The vocals are not as tight and accurate as back in 1970, but still good enough to please. Elvis also jokes a bit in mid-song, when he pretends to sing "you give me hope and constipation" instead of "hope and consolation".

The power ballad is followed with a rockin' rendition of "Burning Love", his top3 hit from 1972. Mr. Presley rocks and rolls just like in his glory days and moves surprisingly fast during the last part of the song.

Before he's able to introduce the band, Elvis has to deal with an overzealous lady. After he provided her with a scarf and a kiss, he tells the crowd about the ladies and gentlemen on stage, some of them even play a solo. Throughout the procedure the king is joking a lot and also teases his long-time emplyees. But even though it's quite entertaining, I like the short version of the "Introductions" better.

After the audience got to know the ones they are watching the group presents "T-R-O-U-B-L-E". Just like "Burning Love" this is a fine, modern rocker and is performed very well.

Spontaneously the king picks up a request for "Trying To Get To You". Being caught off-guard the orchestra isn't able to provide the brass sounds right from the start, but when the first chorus comes around they got the sheet music out and everything's working perfectly. Once again Elvis really delivers and sings in a zesty, rocking way.

Now the singer announces the gospel hymn "How Great Thou Art". Since it's performed on a more regular basis everyone is prepared right from the start. Compared to his Grammy winning rendition on his latest live album he sings a tad sloppy at times, but of course he still sounds mighty impressive when he belts out the chorus in grand style. He obviously feels at home, is full of joy and even offers a reprise. The standing ovation certainly is justified.

With "Let Me Be There" Elvis sings another song from Olivia Newton-John. He toys a bit with the melody and once again one cannot help to hear how much the man is enjoying his job.

Once again Elvis strays from his prepared setlist and announces "Lord This Time You Gave Me A Mountain". The band is fast on their toes and immediately starts to play, but of course the orchestra cannot have the notes for each and evey song available and so it takes the musicians a minute to get the sheet music out and join in. It's always amazing to see how spontaneous and versatile Presley's people have to be and how great they are in handling these situations.

Returning to the planned procedure Elvis sings "An American Trilogy". He's full of power, belts out the lines in impressive style and so obviously enjoys what he does. Nevertheless the accurateness of the performances in the movie "Elvis On Tour" or the television concert "Aloha From Hawaii Via Satellite" is missing here.

The 1950s parody "Little Darlin'" is played for laughs. The singer has as much fun as the people in the audience.

Elvis stays in his glory days and continues with a medley of "Mystery Train" and "Tiger Man". Both songs are performed with vigor and during the second number the former rock'n'roll king even moves in true "That's The Way It Is"-style!

Now Mr. Presley asks for the house lights to be turned on, so he can have a look at the audience. Then he segues into the country ballad "Funny, How Time Slips Away". After the end of the tune the recording fades out, so we have to do without the usual closer "Can't Help Falling In Love".