Hear Elvis Presley Cover Buffy Sainte-Marie on New Nashville Sessions Box Set

Buffy Sainte-Marie, the Indigenous folk singer known for the story-of-life hit “The Circle Game,” wrote “Until It’s Time for You to Go” back in 1965. It’s a heartbreaker of a song about loving someone before you part ways forever, and it caught the ear of Elvis Presley, who released his own version in 1972. A rare alternate version of Presley’s “Until It’s Time for You to Go” premieres Friday, a highlight of the upcoming box set Elvis: Back in Nashville.

“I’m not a king, just a man, take my hand,” Presley sings in a self-referential lyric that pokes at the vocalist’s royal nickname.

Elvis: Back in Nashville is the follow-up to last year’s box set From Elvis in Nashville, which chronicled his night-to-morning sessions at RCA Studio A in 1970. Unlike those sessions, the 1971 recordings made heavy use of backup singers — Elvis: Back in Nashville includes many of those performances.

Along with Presley’s version of Sainte-Marie’s “Until It’s Time for You to Go,” Back in Nashville includes his interpretations of songs by Bob Dylan, Kris Kristofferson, and Gordon Lightfoot. Due November 12th, the box will be released as a four-CD collection, digitally, and as a two-LP vinyl set. Elvis: Back in Nashville was overseen by mixing engineer Matt Ross-Spang, known for his work with Margo Price and Jason Isbell.