Elvis Aaron Presley 1935 - 1977
Elvis
Aaron Presley, in the humblest of circumstances was born to Vernon
and Glady's Presley in a two-room house in Tupelo, Mississippi on
January 8, 1935. His twin brother, Jessie Garon, was born
stillborn, leaving Elvis to grow up an only child. He and his
parents moved to Memphis, Tennessee in 1948 and Elvis graduated from
Humes High School there in 1953.
Elvis' musical influences were the pop and country music of the
time, the gospel music he heard in church and at the all-night
gospel sings that he frequently attended and the black R & B he
absorbed on the historic Beale Street as a Memphis teenager. In
1954 he began his singing career with the legendary Sun Records
label in Memphis. In late 1955, his recording contract was sold to
RCA Victor. By 1956 he was an international sensation. With a
sound and style that uniquely combined his diverse musical
influences and blurred and challenged the social and racial barriers
of the time, he ushered in a whole new era of American music and
popular culture.
Elvis starred in 33 films, made history with his
television appearances and specials, and knew great acclaim through
his many, often record-breaking, live concert performances on tour
and in Las Vegas. Globally, he has sold over one billion records,
more than any other artist. His American sales have earned him
gold, platinum or multi-platinum awards for 131 different albums and
singles, far more than any other artist. Among his many awards and
accolades were 14 Grammy nominations (3 wins) from the National
Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Grammy Lifetime
Achievement Award which he received at the age of 36, and his being
named One of the Ten Outstanding Young Men of the Nation for 1970 by
the United States Jaycees. Without any of the special privileges
his celebrity status might have afforded him, he honorably served
his country in the U.S. Army.
His talent, good looks, sensuality, charisma, and
good humor endeared him to millions, as did the humility and human
kindness he demonstrated throughout his life. Known the world over
by his first name, he is regarded as one of the most important
figures of the twentieth century popular culture. Elvis passed away
untimely at his Memphis home, Graceland, on August 16, 1977 --
leaving behind for his fans the world around a legacy that we all
will not too soon forget.
Elvis Presley was an explorer of vast new
landscapes of dream and illusion. He was a man who refused to be
told that the best of his dreams would not come true, who refused to
be defined by anyone else's conceptions. This is the goal of
democracy, the journey on which every prospective American hero sets
out. That Elvis made so much of the journey on his own is reason
enough to remember him with the honor and love we reserve for the
bravest among us. Such men made the only maps we can trust.
-Dave Marsh
From his book, Elvis.
Rolling Stone Press, 1982.