Elvis Presley Biography ("The King Of Rock 'n Roll")

Elvis Presley Biography:

Elvis   Aaron Presley         (January 8,  1935  – August 16,  1977) – an      American  singer, musician and actor.

Elvis    Presley            became           one          of      the      most influential cultural icons of  a   generation. He is   commonly     referred   to as  the “The King  of Rock  ‘n  Roll” and   epitomises  the post-war pop generation.

Elvis   was   born   in            Tupelo,  Mississippi. When he             was                  13,      his   family       moved         to Memphis, Tennessee. Elvis was relatively shy and  as a youngster   was not  keen on performing         in         public.      However,                 he received   a guitar  as a present and learnt to  play and         sing;   he   gained        no formal musical    training,            but           had    an      innate natural       talent     and could easily      pick  up music.               As               a          teenager,               he        was uninterested   in       school   –   but          become absorbed  in      music,  listening to     a     huge range of contemporary American   music. He also started to sport a distinctive look with                 sideburns     and   styled     hair.   This image   would        later               become      an ‘Elvis trademark.

In1953, he   went to   Sun recording studio –  to      record    a     song   for     his        mother,    but also    with  the    hope  he    may    get  noticed and  offered a recording deal. However,  it didnt   come   to anything;  he                  was    also turned                   down     for      auditions to        other groups. In April 1954, he      took   a job  as a truck driver.

However,later           on  in        the         year,      the       Sun      boss Sam Phillips    invited  Elvis  to   come in  for    a        recording           session.          Initially,                 the recording  session   was unpromising,  but towards the end of the allotted time, Elvis started   to play a song  he had composed himself.               Phillips               was          immediately impressed   by the verve,  enthusiasm and dynamism  of  Elviss                         music.      Phillips believed that Elvis had a unique voice and talent which could capture the interest of Americans.

For     his                      first        studio           recording,               Elvis performed the 1946 blues number, Arthur Crudups    “Thats    All      Right”;  it  was         well received on local radio stations.

Thisinitial  success     launched       Presley  into  a lucrative pop music career.

In January  1956,   Presley       was       signed     by RCA                             Records.                        His      first    single, “Heartbreak   Hotel“,      was         released             in January  and  became a best-selling hit   – staying    at  number  one  for seven weeks, and selling over one million copies.

His  performances            were      a                             fusion       of country,        gospel,      pop     and   rhythm      and blues.   His unique gravelly  voice gave the impression Presley combined both ‘black and ‘white sounds, something which was an   issue        during an  era         of    tense        civil rights     campaigns.              Elviss        on             stage routines          were         also criticised     for their flamboyance      and    provocativeness;        he was    criticised     for    the   idea     that rock  ‘n ‘roll   music   was   having a negative  effect on       American   teenagers,      making    them more rebellious.   As  the  leading figure  of pop  music,  Presley  was  often   the target of         these                        criticisms. However,               he defended his music saying:

“No,I      havent,      I     dont            feel         like         Im    doing anything wrong.          … I  dont    see   how   any type                of          music       would  have    any  bad influence  on people  when its only music. …    I   mean, how    would  rock ‘n   roll   music make              anyone  rebel          against                      their parents?”

Elvis_PresleyHowever,     if         Presley            was            considered             a                         controversial       and    a rebellious  figure,  it  just     made                 him   more    popular       with                young                listeners.                    His catapult        to  stardom                was          helped       by            a      rivalry  between      TV  presenters,    such   as  Steve  Allen   and  Ed  Sullivan. Elvis proved a star attraction   on      tv       talk              shows,    and the competition    between   presenters  helped to  make  Elvis a    national celebrity. It also helped           bring    rock             ‘n    roll               into       the mainstream.       John                     Lennon,          of    the Beatles,    described    the      effect  that  Elvis had                                                                      on                      his                     musical development.

“Nothing     really  affected     me      until   Elvis.  Before        Elvis     there     was     nothing. When       I         first  heard        “Heartbreak                 Hotel,”            I        could hardly  make   out what was  being   said. It was just the  experience of hearing it  and having  my  hair  stand  on end. Wed  never heard    American         voices singing                    like that.”

Ironically, Elvis           was         never           keen   to       meet     the     Beatles and  when  they did  meet     on one  occasion –  27   August   1965   –     it   was   a mutual       disappointment.         But,          Lennon always maintained     without    Elvis,       there would have been no Beatles.

At live concerts,   his         crowds        increasingly became   overly exuberant.    When Presley began  playing     hits    like    “You aint  nothin but      a   Hound Dog”    the  crowd     would  go wild.   This      led          Presley    to  take  a   break from live performances.

“I  didnt     know  what        I  wanted      to do   as   a kid.      But     I used      to     pray  to     God     that Id amount to something      some  day.  I never dreamed  that  something  like this     would happen.”

–Elvis Presley

In  1958-60,      Presley      was            called            up  for national  service   in     the     American   army. He was stationed in Germany and served in the regular army,  and was    keen  to     be seen     as   an     ordinary  soldier          doing  his duty. He could have signed up for Special Services,   which would have  enabled him to perform live music, but he preferred to stay in  the regular    army. During his    stay in     Freiburg,      Germany   he    met       Priscilla Beaulieu, who   he    would      marry         after  a seven-year    courtship.           They  married   in 1967 and,  in  1968, Priscilla gave   birth  to Elviss             only                                          child               –                          Lisa Marie.

330px-ElvisPresleyAfter   the   stint  in       the army, he began to focus more on  movies. Presley       made     several    movies                  in          the  1960s.      These      were       generally           received      with        low     critical  acclaim,          though            they      were                    quite   popular             and                                                              commercially successful.            By   the  end   of       the  1960s, Presleys career      was  in   decline.  He   had become  known        for   formulaic films  and uninspiring            soundtracks.                    He           was increasingly    unhappy with       the direction of  his    career.    In     1967,  Presley   made    a comeback  as a  singer, but his  first   eight singles      were     mostly  flops and failed   to make    an impression   on the  pop   charts. The  exception    was  the  1969  single “If      I Can Dream”, which helped to reinvigorate Presleys  musical  creativity.     In    1970,   he released         “The  Wonder   of You”             which topped  the charts     in the   UK    and US. He also began a   new music tour, which sold out to record-breaking crowds.

However,  from    1973,                                            Presley      began            to increasingly suffer       health     problems        – related             to         his              obesity         and             drug dependency. He     continued          to       try    and maintain   a    hectic touring    schedule,   but his         performances                       were      negatively affected by  his obvious health problems. In       1976,          aged  only      42,   he   died      from multiple causes; fourteen different drugs were found in his bloodstream.

His        early       death            only                       cemented                his legendary  status,   and     Elvis  Presley   has become          deeply    ingrained        in         popular culture.

Presleyshome                Graceland   was       opened     to the public in the 1980s  and attracts   over half a      million           visitors              annually.               It  was declared a National Historic Landmark in 2006.