Introduction:
Elvis Presley’s electrifying live performance career reached a global scale with the landmark concert Aloha from Hawaii Via Satellite. Broadcast live in January 1973 from Honolulu, the event showcased Presley to a record-breaking audience estimated at over one billion viewers across Asia and the Pacific. This historic concert not only solidified Presley’s status as a global icon but also delivered powerful renditions of his classics, including a poignant performance of the ballad “It’s Over”.
While the original studio recording of “It’s Over” remains unreleased, Presley’s passionate delivery during the Aloha from Hawaii concert ensured the song’s place in his live repertoire. The genre-bending “It’s Over” falls under the umbrella of blue-eyed soul, a subgenre of soul music taken up by white American singers in the 1960s. Presley’s soulful vocals intertwine with melancholic piano chords, creating a heartfelt ballad about the acceptance of a failing relationship.
The exact origin and authorship of “It’s Over” remain unclear. Elvis Presley biographer Peter Guralnick suggests the song may have originated during Presley’s army service in Germany in the late 1950s. While Presley himself never recorded a studio version, country singer Claude Gray released a version in 1970, crediting songwriting to Presley and his associates Felton Jarvis and Red West. Regardless of the song’s origins, Presley’s live performance at Aloha from Hawaii transformed “It’s Over” into a signature moment in the concert.
Presley’s Aloha from Hawaii concert was produced by Bob Neal, who had previously collaborated with Presley on television specials. The concert itself was a logistical marvel, utilizing satellite technology to broadcast the live performance across vast distances. The concert also marked a turning point in Presley’s career. While his health had begun to decline in the early 1970s, the Aloha from Hawaii broadcast showcased Presley’s enduring charisma and musical prowess to a worldwide audience.
Elvis Presley’s live performance of “It’s Over” during Aloha from Hawaii Via Satellite stands as a testament to his captivating stage presence and his ability to connect with audiences through his music. The song, though not a commercial release, has endured as a fan favorite and a powerful illustration of Presley’s emotional depth as a performer.
Video:
Lyrics:
“It’s Over”
If time were not a moving thing
And I could make it stay
This hour of love we share
Would always be
There’d be no coming day
To shine a morning light
And make us realize our night is overWhen you walk away from me
There is no place to put my hand
Except to shade my eyes against the sun
That rises over the land
I watch you walk away
Somehow I have to let you go
Cause it’s overIf you knew just how I really feel
You might return and yet
There are so many times
That people have to love and then forget
Oh there might have been a way somehow
I have to force myself to say
It’s overSo I turn my back,
Turn my collar to the wind
Move along in silence
Trying not to think at all
I set my feet before me
Walk the silent street before me
Now it’s overIf time were not a moving thing
And I could make you stay
This hour of love we share
Would always be
There’d be no coming day
To shine a morning light
And make us realize our night is overIt’s over