A single-disc distillation of Sony Legacy's massive box set celebrating the 50th anniversary of
Elvis Presley's '68 Comeback Special, this 2019 compilation covers ground that has been covered many times before. Back in 1968, RCA put out a soundtrack album to the special, and once the show entered in the realm of legend, it was repackaged on its anniversary three times over. All of this is a roundabout way of saying that
The Best of the '68 Comeback contains a bunch of easily available material, yet none of the previous compilations assembled these tracks in precisely the same way (nor did they contain a new version of "If I Can Dream" plucked from NBC's anniversary special, a version distinguished by the presence of
Shawn Mendes,
Darius Rucker,
Blake Shelton,
Carrie Underwood, and
Post Malone…not precisely a dream lineup for an
Elvis fan). While other comps may be a bit better overall experience -- it's hard to beat the original '68 LP if you're just wanting a taste of this music -- 18 of the 19 tracks here are wonderful and they're a pleasure to hear in whatever context you choose. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine