Rock N Roll Musical Star: The Life and Times of Elvis Presley

Rock N Roll Musical Star: The Life and Times of Elvis Presley is a new musical that chronicles the life and career of the legendary entertainer. The show features some of Elvis’ most iconic hits, including “Heartbreak Hotel,” “Hound Dog,” and “Suspicious Minds.”

Early life and musical influences

Elvis Aaron Presley was born on January 8, 1935, in Tupelo, Mississippi. He and his twin brother, Jesse Garon Presley, were born prematurely to Gladys Love Presley (née Smith) in a two-room shotgun house that was built by their father, Vernon Elvis Presley, using lumber from the mill where he worked. Vernon moved his family to Memphis, Tennessee when Elvis was 13 years old.

Elvis’s 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 he frequently attended, and the black R&B he absorbed on historic Beale Street as a teenager. Blues artist Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup and country stars Hank Snow, Ernest Tubb, and Jimmie Rodgers were particularly influential to Elvis.

First recordings and initial success

In July 1954, Elvis Presley, a teenager from Tupelo, Mississippi, went into the Sun Records studio in Memphis and cut two songs as a gift for his mother’s birthday: “My Happiness” and “That’s When Your Heartaches Begin”. The owner of Sun, Sam Phillips, was so impressed with Elvis Presley’s raw talent that he decided to record him.

Phillips sent a demo of “That’s All Right” to a local DJ, who played it on the air. The response was overwhelming, and people started calling the station to find out who the singer was. Phillips put Elvis Presley on the radio to promote the song, and it quickly became a hit.

Elvis Presley’s first recordings were raw and fresh, and his sound was unlike anything that had been heard before. He quickly became a sensation, and his initial success laid the foundation for an phenomenal career.

Military service and return to the music scene

In March 1958, Presley was drafted into military service. He was assigned to the Second Armored Division in Friedberg, West Germany, as a truck driver. Private Presley was often ridiculed by his fellow soldiers, and he grew tired of their taunts. He also began using amphetamines to help him stay awake during his long hours of guard duty.

After his discharge from the military in March 1960, Presley returned to the music scene with a new look and sound. His hair was shorter, and he was sporting a beard. He also began experimenting with drugs, including marijuana and LSD.

Presley’s return to the music scene coincided with the rise of the Beatles and other British Invasion bands. While many of his contemporaries were embracing the new sound of rock n’ roll, Presley continued to sing in a style that was more rooted in country and gospel music. This shift in musical taste led to a decline in Presley’s popularity throughout the 1960s.

The “Elvis Presley” phenomenon

Elvis Presley was one of the most popular entertainers of his time, and his influence on rock ‘n’ roll musical star is still evident today. Born in Tupelo, Mississippi, in 1935, Elvis was raised in a poor but loving family. He began his musical career in 1954, when he recorded a song called “That’s All Right.” His unique style of blending country music with rhythm and blues made him an instant sensation, and he went on to become one of the most successful recording artists of all time. Elvis also starred in a number of popular films, such as “Love Me Tender” and “Jailhouse Rock.”

Although he passed away in 1977, Elvis Presley’s legacy continues to live on. His music is still popular today, and he is considered one of the most important figures in rock ‘n’ roll history.

Acting career

Elvis Presley’s acting career began in 1956 with the release of Love Me Tender. Throughout his career, Elvis starred in 33 successful films. Most of his movies were musicals, and Elvis is considered one of the best musical performers of all time. He is also one of the most popular cultural icons of the 20th century.

Later years and legacy

After his return from the army in 1960, Presley’s recording career languished. He had only one top-ten hit in the next five years, “Stuck on You” (1960). In 1963 Presley starred in the television special “Aloha from Hawaii”. A live concert that was beamed via satellite to countries around the world, it was seen by an estimated one billion people—more people than had watched any previous program in history. The double album of the soundtrack became a huge hit and Presley’s first number one album in five years. Despite this success, his career continued to decline in the 1960s. Some observers blame poor material and bad career moves; others suggest that his teeth, which had been damaged by poor dental work he received as a child, may have given him trouble pronouncing words clearly on stage and screen. Still others believe that his substance abuse problems—he was addicted to both prescription drugs and illegal narcotics for much of his adult life—may have led to slurred speech and a general decline in energy and motivation. His declining health was also a factor: he suffered from high blood pressure, an enlarged colon, and glaucoma, among other conditions.

In 1968 Presley staged a comeback with a television special that aired on NBC. Titled ” Elvis “, the special featured him singing both new songs (“If I Can Dream”) and old favorites (“Heartbreak Hotel”). The success of the special led to a successful string of live concert performances, as well as a return to film acting with 1969’s Change of Habit . That same year saw the release of what would become one of Presley’s most iconic recordings, ” Suspicious Minds “.

During the 1970s Presley’s live performances were severely limited by his failing health; he made his last concert appearance in 1977. In August 1977 he entered Baptist Memorial Hospital in Memphis for what was supposed to be a short stay for drug detoxification and treatment for an injured hip; however, he became gravely ill with what was later revealed to be gastrointestinal bleeding caused by drug abuse . He died on August 16 at the age of 42.

Personal life

Elvis Presley was born on January 8, 1935 in Tupelo, Mississippi, to Gladys Love Presley (née Smith; 1912–1958) in the two-room shotgun house built by his father, Vernon Elvis Presley (1916–1979), in preparation for the birth. Jesse Garon Presley, his identical twin brother, was delivered 35 minutes before him, stillborn. As an only child, Presley became close to both parents and formed an unusually close bond with his mother. The family attended an Assembly of God church, where he found his initial musical inspiration.

On his mother’s side Elvis’ ancestry was primarily a Western European mix of Scots-Irish and English with some German and Swiss heritage thrown in while on his father’s side he had primarily English ancestry with some German, Scots-Irish, and Welsh heritage. Through a great-grandmother,[10] he was also of Dutch heritage. Elvis’ great-great granduncles were born in Platton Wilkes County Georgia (near Augusta), and later moved to Mississippi.[11]

Growing up in poverty in Tupelo Mississippi during the Great Depression, Elvis Presley would later say that those years shaped him into the man he became: “I think my determination came from growing up without anything … all I wanted out of life was to be able to sing and make people happy.”[12] He first started singing at church with his family;[13] at age eleven he sang “Old Shep” at a school talent show. When he was thirteen years old, Presley reportedly made $5 per performance (equivalent to about $100 as of 2019[update]) for local talent contest wins.[14]

Death

On August 16, 1977, Elvis Presley was discovered dead in his Graceland bathroom. The cause of death was ruled as cardiac arrhythmia, brought on by years of drug abuse. He was 42 years old.

The King of Rock and Roll’s sudden death sent shockwaves around the world. His funeral was held at Graceland on August 18, and he was buried next to his mother in Meditation Garden at Graceland. More than 80,000 fans paid their respects as the procession made its way from Graceland to the cemetery.

Elvis in popular culture

Elvis Presley has been referenced in a wide range of popular culture since his death in 1977.

Music
In 1978, the year after Elvis Presley’s death, John Lennon was asked in an interview with Playboy what he thought popular music would be like in the year 2000. He replied, “There will be a lot more Elvis Presleys and a lot less Beatles in the future.”

In his song “The Wanderer”, Dion DiMucci pays tribute to Elvis Presley as “the greatest rock ‘n’ roll star of all time”.

The Beach Boys gave credit to Presley for inspiring them to write their 1963 hit “Fun, Fun, Fun”. In their 1995 album Stars and Stripes Vol. 1, country music supergroup The Highwaymen also paid tribute to Presley with the song “Little Bit of Hank… Little Bit of Elvis”.

In popular fiction
Elvis has been portrayed in numerous works of fiction including books, films, comics and video games. One of the most notable examples is Ernest Cline’s science fiction novel Ready Player One (2011), in which the protagonist wagers his life on finding an Easter egg hidden inside a game by the book’s protagonist James Halliday, who was obsessed with 1980s culture including that of Elvis.

tributes and memorials

When Elvis Presley passed away on August 16, 1977, the world lost one of its most iconic and influential figures. In the days and weeks that followed, tributes and memorials poured in from all corners of the globe. Here are just a few of the ways that Elvis was remembered.

Elvis Presley Boulevard in Memphis, Tennessee was renamed in his honor just hours after he died. Today, it is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the city, lined with Elvis-themed shops and museums.

A memorial service was held at Graceland, Presley’s home, on August 18, 1977. More than 60,000 fans came to pay their respects, many of them leaving flowers, notes and other mementos at the gates.

The Elvis Presley Memorial Chapel was built in 1978 in his hometown of Tupelo, Mississippi. It is a non-denominational chapel that is open to the public and regularly hosts weddings and other events.

In 1982, the United States Postal Service issued a commemorative postage stamp honoring Elvis Presley. It featured a portrait of him based on a 1957 photograph by Wendell Mitchell Baker Jr. and became one of the most popular stamps in American history.