Elvis Presley (08.01.1935 - 16.08.1977) - American singer.
Elvis Aaron Presley was an American singer, musician and actor. He is a cultural icon, often known simply as Elvis; also "The King of Rock "n" Roll", or simply "The King".
Presley began his career as one of the first performers of rockabilly, an uptempo fusion of country and rhythm and blues with a strong back beat. His novel versions of existing songs, mixing "black" and "white" sounds, made him popular - and controversial - as did his uninhibited stage and television performances. He recorded songs in the rock and roll genre, with tracks like "Hound Dog" and "Jailhouse Rock" later embodying the style. Presley had a versatile voice and had unusually wide success encompassing other genres, including gospel, blues, ballads and pop. To date, he is the only performer to have been inducted into four separate music halls of fame.
In the sixties, Presley made the majority of his thirty-three movies - mainly poorly reviewed musicals. 1968 saw a critically-acclaimed return to live music, followed by performances in Las Vegas and across the U.S. Throughout his career, he set records for concert attendance, television ratings and recordings sales. He is one of the best-selling and most influential artists in the history of popular music. Though known to have health problems later in life, his death - aged 42 - shocked his fans worldwide.
Presley was born in a two-room house, built by his father, in Tupelo, Mississippi. He was the second of identical twins - his brother was stillborn and given the name Jesse Garon. He grew up as an only child and "was, everyone agreed, unusually close to his mother". The family lived just above the poverty line in East Tupelo and attended the Assembly of God church. Vernon Presley has been described as "taciturn to the point of sullenness"and as "a weakling, a malingerer, always averse to work and responsibility". In 1938 he was convicted and jailed for an eight-dollar check forgery. He was released after serving eight months, but this event deeply influenced the life of the young family. During her husband"s absence, Gladys, a wife who was "voluble, lively, full of spunk." lost the family home.Priscilla Presley describes her as "a surreptitious drinker and alcoholic."
At school, Presley was teased by his fellow classmates; they threw "things at him - rotten fruit and stuff - because he was different, because he was quiet and he stuttered and he was a mama"s boy".
Aged ten, he made his first public performance in a singing contest at the Mississippi-Alabama Fair and Dairy Show. Dressed as a cowboy, the young Presley had to stand on a chair to reach the microphone and sang Red Foley"s "Old Shep". He won second prize.
In 1946, Presley"s mother took Elvis to Tupelo Hardware to get him a birthday present. Although he wanted a rifle, he left the store with a $7.90 guitar. November 1948 saw the Presleys move to Memphis, allegedly because Vernon - as well as needing work - had to escape the law for transporting "bootlegger" liquor. In 1949, they lived at Lauderdale Courts - a public housing development - in one of Memphis, Tennessee"s poorer sections. Presley practiced guitar playing in the basement laundry room and also played in a five-piece band with other tenants. Another resident, Johnny Burnette, recalled: "Wherever Elvis went he"d have his guitar slung across his back... He used to go down to the fire station and sing to the boys there... [H]e"d go in to one of the cafes or bars... Then some folks would say: "Let"s hear you sing, boy.""
Presley attended L. C. Humes High school and occasionally worked evenings to boost the family income. He began to grow his sideburns longer and dress in the wild, flashy clothes of Lansky Brothers on Beale Street. Presley stood out, especially in the conservative Deep South of the 1950s and he was mocked and bullied for it. He enrolled in the school"s ROTC and Christmas, 1952 saw Presley perform in the "Annual Minstrel Show" sponsored by the Humes High Band. Presley received most applause - he sang "Cold Cold Icy Fingers" and gave an encore of "Till I Waltz Again With You"
After graduation, Presley was still a rather shy person, a "kid who had spent scarcely a night away from home". His third job was driving a truck for the Crown Electric Company. He began wearing his hair longer with a "ducktail" - the style of truck drivers at that time.
On July 18, 1953, Presley went to the Memphis Recording Service at the Sun Record Company (now commonly known as Sun Studios). He paid $3.98 to record the first of two double-sided "demo" acetates - "My Happiness" and "That"s When Your Heartaches Begin". Presley reportedly gave the acetate to his mother as a much-belated extra birthday present, though the Presleys didn"t own a record player at the time. Returning to Sun Studios on January 4, 1954, he recorded a second acetate, "I"ll Never Stand in Your Way"/"It Wouldn"t Be the Same Without You".
Sun Records founder Sam Phillips had already cut the first records by blues artists such as Howlin" Wolf and Junior Parker. He thought a combination of black blues and boogie-woogie music might become very popular among white people - if presented in the right way. In the spring, Presley auditioned for an amateur gospel quartet, The Songfellows, and a professional band. Both groups turned him down.
Phillips had acquired a demo record - "Without Love (There Is Nothing)". Unable to identify the demo"s vocalist, his assistant Marion Keisker reminded him about the young truck driver and she called him on June 26, 1954. Presley was not able to do justice to the song (though he would record it years later). Phillips did ask the young singer to perform some of the many other songs he knew and he invited local Western swing musicians Winfield "Scotty" Moore (electric guitar) and Bill Black (slap bass) to check Presley out. Scotty and Bill auditioned Presley on Sunday, July 4, 1954, at Moore"s house. Neither musician was overly impressed with the young singer, but they agreed a studio session would be useful to see what they had. During a break at the studios on July 5, Presley began "acting the fool" with Arthur Crudup"s "That"s All Right (Mama)", a blues song. When the other two musicians joined in, Phillips got them to restart and began recording. This was the bright, upbeat sound he had been looking out for. Black remarked, "Damn. Get that on the radio and they"ll run us out of town." The group recorded four songs during that session, including Bill Monroe"s Blue Moon of Kentucky, a bluegrass waltz. After an early take, Phillips can be heard on tape saying: "Fine, man. Hell, that"s different - that"s a pop song now, just about."
To gauge professional and public reaction, Phillips took several acetates of the session to DJ Dewey Phillips (no relation) at Memphis radio station WHBQ (The Red, Hot And Blue show). "That"s All Right" subsequently received its first play on July 8, 1954. A week later, Sun had received some 6,000 advanced orders for "That"s All Right"/"Blue Moon of Kentucky", which was released on July 19, 1954. From August 18 through December 8, "Blue Moon of Kentucky" was consistently higher in the charts, then both sides began to chart across the South, from Virginia to Texas.
Moore and Black left their band, The Starlight Wranglers, to work full-time with Presley. They began regular live performances in Memphis by promoting Presley"s first Sun single. They played at the Bon Air, a club used by hard-drinking lovers of hillbilly music. Johnny Cash later recalled Presley playing during breaks at the Eagle’s Nest club.
At the Overton Park Shell (July 30, 1954), Presley, Moore, and Black were billed as The Blue Moon Boys, with Slim Whitman headlining. Presley is said to have been so nervous during this show that his legs shook uncontrollably. His wide-legged pants emphasized his leg movements, apparently causing the young women in the audience to go "crazy". Though initially uncertain about what caused the fans to scream, Presley consciously incorporated similar movements into future shows. DJ and promoter Bob Neal, who had been approached by Sam Phillips to get Presley on the Overton Park bill, was now the trio"s manager (taking over from Scotty Moore).
Presley appeared at the Grand Ole Opry, Nashville, on October 2; Hank Snow introduced Presley on stage. He performed "Blue Moon of Kentucky" but received only a polite response. Afterwards, the singer was allegedly told: "Boy, you’d better keep driving that truck."
Country music promoter and manager Tillman Franks booked Presley"s first appearance on Louisiana Hayride (October 16, 1954). Before making the booking, Franks - never having seen Presley - referred to him as "that new black singer with the funny name". During the first set, the reaction was muted, but the second show had a younger audience and Franks advised Presley to "Let it all go!" House drummer D.J. Fontana, who had worked in strip clubs, was able to use beats to accentuate Presley"s movements and - along with Bill Black"s usual enthusiastic stage antics - the crowd was more responsive.
According to one source, "Audiences had never before heard music like Presley played, and they had never before seen anyone who performed like Presley either. The shy, polite, mumbling boy gained self-confidence with every appearance, which soon led to a transformation on stage. People watching the show were astounded and shocked, both by the ferocity of his performance, and the crowd’s reaction to it... Roy Orbison saw Presley for the first time in Odessa, Texas: "His energy was incredible, his instinct was just amazing... I just didn’t know what to make of it. There was just no reference point in the culture to compare it." "He’s the new rage," said a Louisiana radio executive... "Sings hillbilly in R&B time. Can you figure that out. He wears pink pants and a black coat."" Sam Phillips said Presley "put every ounce of emotion ... into every song, almost as if he was incapable of holding back". When he collapsed after a concert in Florida, a doctor warned him to slow down because he worked as hard in twenty minutes as the average laborer did in eight hours.
Presley"s sound was proving hard to categorize - he had been billed or labeled in the media as "The King of Western Bop", "The Hillbilly Cat", and "The Memphis Flash".
On August 15, 1955, he was signed to a one-year contract with "Hank Snow Attractions", a company owned by Hank Snow and "Colonel" Tom Parker. Parker became Presley"s manager thereafter. By August 1955, Sun Studios had released ten sides credited to "Elvis Presley, Scotty and Bill", all typical of the developing Presley style.
Several major record labels had shown interest in signing Presley. On November 21, 1955, Parker and Phillips negotiated a deal with RCA Victor Records to acquire Presley"s Sun contract for an unprecedented $35,000.
To increase the singer"s exposure, Parker finally brought Presley to television (In March 1955, Presley had failed a TV audition for Arthur Godfrey"s Talent Scouts). He had the singer booked for six of the Dorsey Brothers" Stage Show (CBS), beginning January 28, 1956, when he was introduced by Cleveland DJ Bill Randle. Parker also obtained a lucrative deal with Milton Berle (NBC) for two appearances.
On January 27, Presley"s first RCA single, "Heartbreak Hotel", was released. By April it reached number one in the U.S. and would sell a million copies. On March 23, RCA released the first Presley album: Elvis Presley. As with the Sun recordings, the majority of the tracks were songs by or from country artists.
From April 23, he had a two-week booking at the Venus Room of the New Frontier Hotel, Las Vegas - billed this time as "the Atomic Powered Singer". His performances were badly received, by critics and guests (it was an older, more conservative audience). However, Presley, Scotty and Bill saw Freddie Bell and the Bellboys live in Vegas, and liked their version of Leiber and Stoller"s "Hound Dog". By May 16, Presley had added the song to his own act.
Soon after an April 3 appearance for The Milton Berle Show, shot onboard an aircraft carrier in San Diego, Presley, Moore and Black took a chartered flight to Nashville for a recording session. The pilot got lost and further mishaps along the way left all three badly shaken. After more hectic touring, Presley returned to The Milton Berle Show on June 5 and performed "Hound Dog" (without his guitar). After singing it uptempo, he then began a slower version. His exaggerated, straight-legged shuffle around the microphone stand stirred the audience - as did his vigorous leg shaking and hip thrusts in time to the beat.
Presley"s "gyrations" created a storm of controversy - even eclipsing the "communist threat" head-lines prevalent at the time. The next day"s press used such words as "vulgar" and "obscene" because of the strong sexual content perceived in his act. Presley was obliged to explain himself on the local New York City TV show Hy Gardner Calling: "Rock and roll music, if you like it, and you feel it, you can"t help but move to it. That"s what happens to me. I have to move around. I can"t stand still. I"ve tried it, and I can"t do it".
The Milton Berle Show appearances drew such huge ratings that Steve Allen (NBC), not a fan of rock and roll, booked him for one appearance, in New York. Allen announced: "... We want to do a show the whole family can watch and enjoy. And that’s what we always do." After Allen introduced "the new Elvis" (in white bow tie and black tails), he remarked: "You are certainly being a good sport about the whole thing." Presley then sang "Hound Dog" to a top hat and bow tie-wearing Basset Hound sat on a pedestal (the performance lasted less than one minute). According to author Jake Austen, "the way Steve Allen treated Elvis Presley was his federal crime. Allen thought Presley was talentless and absurd... set things up so that Presley would show his contrition..." The day after (July 2), Presley, Scotty, and Bill recorded the single "Hound Dog", making thirty takes before Elvis was satisfied. Scotty Moore later said they were "all angry about their treatment the previous night". (Presley often referred to the Allen show as the most ridiculous performance of his career.) A few days later, Presley made a "triumphant" outdoor appearance in Memphis at which he announced: "You know, those people in New York are not gone change me none. I"m gonna show you what the real Elvis is like tonight."
Though Presley had been unhappy with the Steve Allen appearance, Allen"s show had, for the first time, beaten The Ed Sullivan Show in the Sunday night ratings, prompting a previously critical Sullivan (CBS) to book Presley for three appearances for an unprecedented $50,000.
Country vocalists The Jordanaires accompanied Presley on The Steve Allen Show and their first recording session with him was July 2, for the recording of "Any Way You Want Me". The Jordanaires would work with the singer through the 1960s.
Presley"s first Ed Sullivan appearance (September 9, 1956) was seen by an estimated 55-60 million viewers. During the second, Presley only had to shake his legs to get screams from the audience, which a bemused Sullivan didn"t notice him doing when stood next to the singer. On the third show, the family-minded Sullivan censored Presley"s "gyrations": he was shown only above the waist. According to the show"s director, Marlo Lewis, Sullivan told him that Presley was "hangin" some kind of device in the crotch of his pants" and that it was "waving back and forth" when the singer moved. Sullivan said: "We can"t have that on a Sunday night. That"s a church night". Although Lewis ordered camera two to film only Presley"s chest and head, he never believed the "device" was there at all. Despite his misgivings, Sullivan still declared at the end of the show: "This is a real decent, fine boy. We"ve never had a pleasanter experience on our show with a big name than we"ve had with you... you"re thoroughly all right."
On November 16, Presley"s first movie Love Me Tender was released. It was panned by the critics, but did well at the box office.
Presley"s decline continued. A journalist recalled: "Elvis Presley had become a grotesque caricature of his sleek, energetic former self... he was barely able to pull himself through his abbreviated concerts." In Alexandria, Louisiana, a journalist complained that the singer was on stage for less than an hour and "was impossible to understand". In Baton Rouge, Presley didn’t go on stage at all. He was unable to get out of his hotel bed and the rest of the tour was cancelled.
Fans, too, Guralnick relates, "were becoming increasingly voluble about their disappointment, but it all seemed to go right past Elvis, whose world was now confined almost entirely to his room and his books". In Knoxville, Tennessee (May 20), "there was no longer any pretense of keeping up appearances... The idea was simply to get Elvis out onstage and keep him upright for the hour he was scheduled to perform". Thereafter, Presley struggled through every show. Despite his obvious problems, appearances in Omaha, Nebraska and Rapid City, South Dakota were recorded for an upcoming album and a CBS-TV special: Elvis In Concert.
Rick Stanley (a step-brother) recalls that Presley was almost bedridden during his last year. "We"d fly into a city and he"d go right into bed as soon as we got there. We"d have to get him up to do the show." In Rapid City, "he was so nervous on stage that he could hardly talk... He was undoubtedly painfully aware of how he looked, and he knew that in his condition, he could not perform any significant movement. He looked, moved, and gestured like an overweight old man with crippling arthritis". A cousin, Billy Smith, recalled how Presley would sit in his room and chat, recounting things like his favourite Monty Python sketches and past japes, but "mostly there was a grim obsessiveness... a paranoia about people, germs... future events, that put Billy in mind on more than one occasion of Howard Hughes".
A book was published - the first expose to detail Presley"s years of drug misuse. Written with input from three of Presley"s "Memphis Mafia", the book was the authors" revenge for them being sacked and a plea to get Presley to face up to reality. The singer "was devastated by the book. Here were his close friends who had written serious stuff that would affect his life. He felt betrayed".
Presley"s final performance was in Indianapolis at the Market Square Arena, (June 26).
August 17, 1977, was to be the start of another tour. However, at "Graceland" the day before, Presley was found on the floor of his bathroom by his fiancee, Ginger Alden. According to the medical investigator, Presley had "stumbled or crawled several feet before he died". He was officially pronounced dead at 3:30 p.m. at the Baptist Memorial Hospital.
His funeral was a national media event. Hundreds of thousands of fans, the press and celebrities lined the streets hoping to see the open casket in "Graceland" or to witness the funeral. Amongst the mourners were Ann-Margret (who had remained close to Presley) and his ex-wife. U.S. President Jimmy Carter issued a statement.
Presley was buried at Forest Hill Cemetery, Memphis, next to his mother. After an attempt to steal the body, his - and his mother"s - remains were reburied at "Graceland" in the Meditation Gardens.
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.
In 1953, 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 didn’t 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 Elvis’s 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 Crudup’s “That’s All Right”; it was well received on local radio stations.
This initial 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. Elvis’s 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 haven’t, I don’t feel like I’m doing anything wrong. … I don’t see how any type of music would have any bad influence on people when it’s only music. … I mean, how would rock ‘n’ roll music make anyone rebel against their parents?”
However, 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. , 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. We’d 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 ain’t nothin’ but a Hound Dog” the crowd would go wild. This led Presley to take a break from live performances.
“I didn’t know what I wanted to do as a kid. But I used to pray to God that I’d 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 Elvis’s only child – Lisa Marie.
After 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, Presley’s 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 Presley’s 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.
Presley’s home 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.
Citation: Pettinger, Tejvan . “Biography of Elvis Presley”, Oxford, UK.
АМЕРИКА И АМЕРИКАНЦЫ
ELVIS PRESLEY
Elvis Presley was born in 1935, in East Tupelo, Mississippi. His family was poor. They moved to Memphis, Tennessee in search of better opportunities.
What influenced Elvis and his music? First there was his mother Gladys. For his eleventh birthday, Elvis wanted a rifle. Gladys convinced him to get a guitar. Then there were the revivals, or religious meetings, he went to. These revivals were highly emotional, with singing as well as preaching and prayer. Elvis was influenced by the gospel music sung and by the way the preachers stirred up the crowds emotions. Finally there was Memphis. Memphis was a centre for blues and had a radio station that played gospel, blues and rhythm-and-blues. Elvis often listened to this station.
Elvis became a truck driver. One day in 1954, he stopped in at the Memphis Recording Studio and just for fun, recorded a song. Sam Phillips, the studio head, heard the song and immediately recognized Elvis"s potential. He called Elvis back for a real recording session.
The session was nearly a disaster. Elvis sang a sentimental country ballad. Phillips was not at all impressed. Then, during the break, he heard Elvis and the band fooling around with a blues song called «that"s all right, Mama». Before long, Elvis"s first record was made.
Elvis was an instant hit on the radio and soon he went on tour. Again, success came more from spontaneity than from deliberate plans.
Teenagers loved Elvis and rock and roll. The music critics of the time however were unimpressed. Elvis and rock and roll were blamed for the nation"s problems. The music was called «atheistic», «criminal» and «a threat to democracy». Yet his popularity only grew.
Elvis"s career was interrupted in the late 1950"s, when he went into the army. In 1968 he returned to live performances. But to many people, these performances were like a bad imitation of his former self. Elvis also had problems in his personal life (divorced his wife him), as well as problems with his weight and with drugs.
Elvis died in 1977, at age 42. The Beatles replaced Elvis in the early 1960s as the most important figures in rock.
Elvis"s mistique lives on. Each year thousands of fans visit Graceland, his mansion in Memphis. Elvis look-alike contests are still popular.
QUESTIONS
1. When was Elvis Presley born?
2. What influenced Elvis and his music?
3. When did he his record first song?
4. Did everybody like Elvis"s music?
5. What interrupted Elvis"s career?
6. Is Elvis"s music popular nowadays?
VOCABULARY
to influence - влиять
to convince - убеждать
revival - возрождение
immediately - сразу же
deliberate - обдуманный
to blame - обвинять
ЭЛВИС ПРЕСЛИ
Элвис Пресли родился в 1935 г. в Восточном Тупело, Миссисипи. Его семья была бедной. Они переехали в Мемфис, Теннесси, в поисках лучших возможностей.
Что повлияло на Элвиса и его музыку? Во-первых, его мама Глэдис. На свое одиннадцатилетие Элвис хотел ружье, но мама уговорила купить гитару. Далее Элвис посещал религиозные собрания. Они были очень эмоциональными, люди пели песни и молились. Церковная музыка очень повлияла на Элвиса, ему было интересно, как священники могли управлять эмоциями толпы. Наконец, немалую роль сыграл Мемфис. Это был центр блюзовой музыки, там была радиостанция, транслировавшая церковную музыку, блюзы, ритм-энд-блюзы. Элвис часто слушал это радио.
Позже Элвис стал водителем грузовика. Однажды в 1954 г. он остановился возле студии звукозаписи в Мемфисе и просто ради забавы записал одну песню. Сэм Филлипс, директор студии, услышал его и сразу же почувствовал потенциал Элвиса. Он подозвал его и предложил записаться серьезно.
Эта попытка была ужасной. Элвис спел сентиментальную балладу в стиле кантри, что не вдохновило Филлипса. Но во время перерыва он услышал, как Элвис с группой дурачились, выполняя блюзовую песню «Все в порядке, мама». Вскоре был сделан первый запись Элвиса.
Элвис мгновенно стал популярным на радио, и вскоре он уехал в турне. Успех был вызван скорее спонтанной, чем хорошо обдуманным планом.
Подросткам нравился Элвис и рок-н-ролл, но музыкальные критики были не в восторге. Элвис и рок-н-ролл были обвинены во всех национальных проблемах. Его музыку называли «атеистической», «уголовной» и даже «угрозой для демократии». Но его популярность росла.
Карьера Элвиса была прервана в 1950-х pp ., когда он ушел в армию. В 1968 г. он вернулся в живых концертов. Но для многих это уже было не то, это было жалким подобием того, что Элвис делал раньше. Проблемы в личной жизни (жена развелась с ним), проблемы с весом и наркотиками сделали свое дело.
Элвис умер в 1977 г. в возрасте 42 лет. В 1960-х pp . Элвиса заменили «Битлз» как важнейшие фигуры рок-музыки.
Загадка Элвиса продолжает жить. Ежегодно сотни фанатов приезжают в Грейсленд, в доме Элвиса в Мемфисе. А соревнования двойников Элвиса все еще популярны.
Elvis Aron Presley (January 8, 1935 - August 16, 1977), also known as The King of Rock and Roll or The King, was an American singer and actor. Early in his career he was referred to as The Hillbilly Cat. Later, his friends referred to him as "E".
Rolling Stone magazine said "Elvis Presley is rock "n" roll" and called his body of work "acres of perfect material". During an active recording career that lasted more than two decades, Presley set and broke many sales records with over 100 top 40 hit singles including 18 number ones.
Elvis Presley is widely credited with bringing rock and roll into mainstream culture. According to Rolling Stone magazine "it was Elvis who made rock "n" roll the international language of pop". A PBS documentary once described Presley as "an American music giant of the 20th century who singlehandedly changed the course of music and culture in the mid-1950s". His recordings, dance moves, attitude and clothing came to be seen as embodiments of rock and roll. Presley sang both hard driving rockabilly and rock and roll dance songs and ballads, laying a commercial foundation upon which other rock and roll musicians would build. African-American performers like Little Richard and Chuck Berry came to national prominence after Presley"s acceptance among mass audiences of white teenagers. Singers like Jerry Lee Lewis, the Everly Brothers, Buddy Holly, Roy Orbison and others immediately followed in his wake, leading John Lennon to later observe, "Before Elvis, there was nothing".
Teenagers came to Presley"s concerts in unprecedented numbers. When he performed at the Mississippi-Alabama Fair in 1956 a hundred National Guardsmen surrounded the stage to control crowds of excited fans. When municipal politicians began denying permits for Presley appearances teens piled into cars and traveled elsewhere to see him perform. It seemed as if the more adults tried to stop it, the more teenagers across North America insisted on having what they wanted. When adult programmers announced they would not play Presley"s music on their radio stations (some because God told them it was sexually suggestive Devil music, others saying it was southern "nigger" music) the economic power of that generation became evident when they tuned in any radio station playing Elvis records. In an industry already shifting to all-music formats in reaction to television, profit-conscious radio station owners learned hard lessons when sponsors bought advertising time on new rock and roll stations reaching enormous markets at night with clear channel signals from AM broadcasts.
During the 1950s post-WWII economic boom in the United States, many parents were able to give their teenaged children much higher weekly allowances, signalling a shift in the buying power and purchasing habits of teens. During the 1940s bobby soxers had idolized Frank Sinatra but the buyers of his records were mostly between the ages of eighteen and twenty-two. Presley triggered a juggernaut of demand for his records by near-teens and early teens aged ten, twelve, thirteen and up.
Presley"s overwhelming appeal was to girls. Many boys adapted his look to attract them. Along with Elvis" ducktail haircut, the demand for black slacks and loose, open-necked shirts resulted in new lines of clothing for teenaged boys. In 1956 America, birthday and Christmas gifts were often music or even Elvis related. A girl might get a pink portable 45 rpm record player for her bedroom. Meanwhile American teenagers began buying newly available portable transistor radios and listened to rock "n" roll on them (helping to propel that fledgling industry from an estimated 100,000 units sold in 1955 to 5,000,000 units by the end of 1958). Teens were asserting more independence and Elvis Presley became a national symbol of their parents" consternation.
Presley"s impact on the American youth consumer market was noted on the front page of The Wall Street Journal on December 31, 1956 when future Pulitzer Prize-winning business journalist Louis M. Kohlmeier wrote, "Elvis Presley today is a business" and reported on the singer"s record and merchandise sales (this may have been the first time a journalist described an entertainer as a business). Half a century later, historian Ian Brailsford (University of Auckland, New Zealand) commented, "The phenomenal success of Elvis Presley in 1956 convinced many doubters of the financial opportunities existing in the youth market".
Birth & Childhood.
Elvis Aaron Presley was born in a two-room house in East Tupelo, Mississippi to Vernon Elvis Presley and Gladys Love Smith Presley. He was raised both in East Tupelo (which merged with Tupelo in 1948) and later in Memphis, Tennessee, where his family moved when he was 13. Elvis had a twin brother (Jesse Garon Presley) who died at birth. In 1949 the family moved to Lauderdale Courts public housing development which was near musical and cultural influences like Beale Street, Ellis Auditorium and the Poplar Tunes record store along with the Sun Studio about a mile away.
In her book, Elvis and Gladys author Elaine Dundy wrote that those close to Elvis as a boy say he was a fan of comic book superhero Captain Marvel, Jr. and would later model his trademark hairstyle and some of his stage costumes on the comic book character.
Elvis took up the guitar at 11 and practiced in the basement laundry room at Lauderdale Courts. He played gigs in the malls and courtyards of the Courts with other musicians who lived there. After high school he worked at Precision Tool Company, then drove a truck for the Crown Electric Company.
The Sun recordings.
In the summer of 1953 Presley paid $4 to record the first of two double-sided demo acetates at Sun Studios, "My Happiness" and "That"s When Your Heartaches Begin" which were popular ballads at the time. While Presley claimed to have recorded the demo as a birthday present for his mother this is sometimes disputed since Gladys Presley"s birthday was in April and he recorded the acetate in July. Sun Records founder Sam Phillips and assistant Marion Keisker heard the discs and called him in June 1954 to fill in for a missing ballad singer. Although that session was not productive, Sam Phillips put Elvis together with local musicians Scotty Moore and Bill Black to see what might develop. During a rehearsal break on July 5, 1954 Elvis began singing a blues song written by Arthur Crudup called "That"s All Right". Philips liked the resulting record and released it as a 78RPM single backed with Elvis" hopped-up version of Bill Monroe"s bluegrass song "Blue Moon Of Kentucky". Memphis radio station WHBQ began airing it two days later, the record became a local hit and Elvis began a regular touring schedule which expanded his fame beyond Tennessee.
Presley was booked on Nashville"s Grand Ole Opry but in a bitter disappointment his performance was not well received. He continued to tour the U.S. South and on October 16, 1954 he made his first appearance on Louisiana Hayride, a radio broadcast of live country music in Shreveport, Louisiana and was a hit with a large audience accustomed to mostly pure country music sounds. Following this Presley was signed to a one-year contract for a weekly performance and he was soon introduced to Colonel Tom Parker.
The influence of Colonel Tom Parker.
Parker took over Presley"s career by contract on August 18, 1955. The colonel established two recording companies for Presley and demanded that composers share their royalties with the singer. He wasted no time in marketing his new product to the hilt, pushing Elvis buttons and trinkets, and even lipstick and cookware. According to Marty Lacker, a member of the Memphis Mafia, Elvis had no business savvy or skills and he relied on his manager Parker for anything to do with contracts and deals. Lacker says he thought of Parker as a "hustler and scam artist" who abused Elvis"s reliance on him".If Parker ever thought Elvis was going to be around somebody who would (influence) him, Parker did his utmost to end that relationship". At Parker"s urging Presley also shifted his focus from music to Hollywood. For instance, under his manager"s influence Elvis was forced to take the chief part in some low-budget standard musical comedies (see "Movies" section below). With money seemingly being at the forefront of all decisions made by the Colonel, his management contract with Elvis was even renegotiated to an even 50/50 split between the two.
On August 15, 1955 Elvis Presley was signed by Hank Snow Attractions, a management company jointly owned by singer Hank Snow and Colonel Parker, who negotitated Presley"s signing with RCA Records on November 21, 1955. On January 27, 1956 Elvis" sixth single and his first on RCA, "Heartbreak Hotel" / "I Was the One", was released and made the pop charts (it reached #1 in April). The next day Presley"s national television debut on The Dorsey Brothers Stage Show marked the beginning of his transition into a teen idol. On June 5, 1956 Presley scandalized the audience of the The Milton Berle Show with suggestive hip movements while performing his second RCA single "Hound Dog". Television critics across the country slammed the performance for its "appalling lack of musicality" "vulgarity" and "animalism". The reaction was so severe, Presley was obliged to explain himself on a local New York City TV show (Hy Gardner Calling). Shortly thereafter he appeared on The Steve Allen Show dressed in a tuxedo, billed as "the new Elvis Presley" and singing "Hound Dog" to a basset hound, an experience Presley later said he found humiliating.
After a string of other TV appearances Presley made his first performance on the top-rated Ed Sullivan Show on September 9, earning the broadcast a record 52 - 60 million viewers (82.6% of the viewership that night). By the time of his second Sullivan appearance on October 28 Presley had dyed his sandy blond hair jet black. Opposition gathered against him and even more so against his gyrations on stage. The December 1956 issue of Cosmopolitan Magazine described Presley as behaving like "a sex maniac in public". On his third and final Sullivan appearance (January 6, 1957) Sullivan bowed to pressure from "moralists" and ordered that Presley be televised from the waist up to avoid showing his controversial hip movements. Meanwhile the press had taken to calling him Elvis the Pelvis, a nickname he is said to have thoroughly disliked.
"Don"t Be Cruel" and "Hound Dog" topped the pop, black and country charts in 1956 and many more hit records followed. Over the next twenty-one years (until his death in 1977) Elvis had 146 Hot 100 hits, 112 top 40 hits, 72 top 20 hits and 40 top 10 hits, an achievement that has never been matched by any solo artist.
Ironically, for all the controversy surrounding his early career, Elvis Presley"s roots in religious music ran deep. In Tupelo, Mississippi Vernon and Gladys Presley were what was disparagingly referred to as poor white trash from the "wrong side of the tracks" at the east end of town. Their Depression-era home (where Elvis was born in 1935) was a two-room shack on one of several dirt tracks forming a small community off Old Saltillo Road. They belonged to a local Assembly of God Pentecostal church which played an important role in their lives. For Elvis Presley it provided an environment from which he would instinctively adopt the music, sound and accompanying body movements in his later rock and roll singing performances. The African American form of music that became known as Rhythm & Blues (which also evolved from gospel songs) was also a part of Presley"s childhood world and he probably heard it on a regular basis in the black section of Tupelo known as "Shakerag" (which was between Tupelo and East Tupelo, and was demolished in the 1960s as part of an urban renewal project). The church is said to have brought the Presleys, along with the rest of its desperately poor congregation, a message of hope wrapped around "Hell, fire, and brimstone" sermons. For nearly a quarter century the Pentecostal movement was interracial and during the 1930s and 1940s many of these poor churches did not adopt the growing policy of racial segregation.
Although Vernon Presley"s family was Pentecostal and his sister Nash Presley became a minister, his wife Gladys was Elvis"s devoutly religious parent. Her uncle Gains Mansell was also a Pentecostal preacher in East Tupelo whose interracial church services began with revival meetings held in a tent. Pentecostal church services started, centered and ended with music and everyone was encouraged to "make a joyous noise unto the Lord". According to Presley biographer Peter Guralnick, Gladys Presley said that by the age of two her son was already trying to sing along in the church. A Pentecostal preacher would typically lead the congregation in prayer and both singing and prayer were accompanied by the waving of hands, the swaying of bodies and dancing about in the Holy Spirit. As it almost always did in those settings, "when the Spirit strikes" the body would jerk as though hit by a bolt of lightning and frequently the worshipper would fall to the floor, rolling around and praying aloud (this is why outsiders referred to church members as "Holy Rollers" and their services as a "religious frenzy"). For instrumentation, these church services used a guitar, a tambourine or two and if they could afford one, a well-worn piano and perhaps a used piano accordion. Church services lasting three hours and held several times a week were filled with music as Pentecostals gyrated their hips, shook their legs, clapped and waved their arms while belting out pounding, rhythmic songs such as Down By the Riverside, When The Saints Go Marching In and Standing On The Promises. There were also more serene songs sung with great emotion like Old Rugged Cross and Softly and Tenderly (Jesus is calling).
In 1948 the Presley family left Tupelo, moving 110 miles northwest to Memphis, Tennessee. Here too, thirteen-year-old Elvis lived in the city"s slums and attended a Pentecostal church where he could not have escaped the influence of the Memphis blues.
While Elvis Presley was a teen cataclysm with millions of American girls screaming at the sight of him, his own church viewed Presley"s gyrations on stage as an affront, labelling it the Devil"s work and a mocking of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. Presley records were condemned as wicked and Pentecostal preachers thumped their pulpits with Bibles, warning congregations to keep heathen rock and roll music out of their homes and away from their children"s ears (especially the music of "that backslidden Pentecostal pup, Elvis Presley"). People who decades later would be considered part of the religious right spoke out vigorously against Presley including Cardinal Spellman. In its weekly periodical, the Roman Catholic Church added to the criticism in an article titled "Beware Elvis Presley".
In August, 1956 in Jacksonville, Florida a local Juvenile Court judge called Presley a "savage" and threatened to arrest him if he shook his body while performing at Jacksonville"s Florida Theatre, justifying the restrictions by saying his music was undermining the youth of America. Throughout the performance Presley stood still as ordered but poked fun at the judge by wiggling a finger. Similar attempts to stop his "sinful gyrations" continued for more than a year and included his often noted January 6, 1957 appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show when he was seen only from the waist up.
His Hand In Mine (1960) was the title of Elvis" first gospel album. During his "68 Comeback Special Elvis said his music came from gospel. Despite his church"s attitude, gospel music was a prominent part of Presley"s repertoire throughout his life. From 1971 to his death in 1977 Presley employed the Stamps Quartet, a gospel group, for his backup vocals. He recorded several gospel albums, earning three Grammy Awards for his gospel music. In his later years Presley"s live stage performances almost always included a rendition of "How Great Thou Art" the 19th century gospel song made famous by George Beverly Shea. More than forty-five years later (and twenty-four years after his death) the Gospel Music Association finally inducted him into their Gospel Music Hall of Fame (2001).
Military service.
On December 20, 1957, Presley received his draft notice for the then compulsory 2-year service with the United States Army. On March 24, 1958, he was inducted into the Army at the Memphis Draft Board. He received no special treatment and was widely praised for not doing what many wealthy and influential people did to avoid service or to serve part time in easy domestic positions such as the Special Services where he could have sung and continued to maintain a public profile. His military service received massive media coverage with much speculation whether or not two years out of the limelight at the height of his popularity would do irreparable damage to his career. Presley sailed to Europe on the USS General George M. Randall, and served in Germany as an ordinary soldier.
Elvis Presley returned to the United States on March 2, 1960, and was honorably discharged on March 5th. While in the army, he received a black belt in Kempo and attained the rank of Sergeant.
The musical Bye Bye Birdie satirizes the events of the draft of Elvis Presley, placing fictional superstar Conrad Birdie in the position of Elvis.
Many observers (including John Lennon) later claimed that following Presley"s return from military service the quality of his recorded output dropped, although others thought he was still capable of creating records equal to his best (and did so on the infrequent occasions where he was presented with "decent" material at his movie recording sessions). Presley himself became deeply dissatisfied with the direction his career would take over the ensuing seven years, notably the film contract with a demanding schedule that eliminated creative recording and giving public concerts. In 1960 the album Elvis is Back was recorded. This, like his first two albums, Elvis Presley and Elvis, are considered by many of his fans to be his best work. With this drop-off, and in the face of the social upheaval of the 1960s and the British Invasion spearheaded by The Beatles, Presley"s star faded slightly before a triumphant televised performance later dubbed the Comeback Special. Aired on the NBC network on December 3, 1968, the show saw him return to his rock and roll roots. His 1969 return to live performances, first in Las Vegas and then across the country, was noted for the constant stream of sold-out shows, with many setting attendance records in the venues where he performed.
Death and burial.
Elvis died at his home Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee on August 16, 1977. He was found on the floor of his bedroom"s bathroom ensuite by girlfriend Ginger Alden who had been asleep in his bed. He was transported to Baptist Memorial Hospital where doctors pronounced him dead at 3.30pm. He was 42 years old.
(1935-1977)
Элвис появился на свет 8 января 1935 года в Тьюпелло, штат Миссисипи (США). Его родители были выходцами из Ирландии, они очень любили и оберегали своего сына, поскольку брат-близнец Элвиса Пресли умер при рождении.
С детства Элвис Арон Пресли очень любил петь, поэтому неудивительно, что родители отдали его в детский хор. Чуть позже юный Пресли начал принимать участие в различных конкурсах. В 1945 г. он даже получил приз за чудесное исполнение песни "Old Shep", которую исполнил на конкурсе, проходившем в Миссисипи. За это достижение родители Элвиса Пресли подарили ему акустическую гитару. Элвис настолько был увлечен музыкой, что самостоятельно смог выучить основные аккорды. Когда Элвису Пресли исполнилось 14 лет, его семья переехала в Мемфис (штат Теннеси).
Окончив школу, Элвис сразу же пошел работать. Робота его, прямо говоря, была ахти - водитель грузовика, с зарплатой в 1,25 долларов в час. Слава Богу, что онне забросил свое увлечение. В 1953г . Элвис Пресли сделал свою первую, правда любительскую, запись. Это произошло на студии звукозаписи “Sun”. Многие считают, что первая песня была посвящена Дню рождению матери Элвиса Пресли, но на самом деле это не так. На самом деле, Глэдис Пресли появилась на свет 25 апреля 1912г ., а песня была записана в июле, так что, как видим, никакой связи нет.
Свою следующую пластинку Элвис Арон Пресли смог записать лишь в 1954 г., в январе. В этом ему помог случай. Владелец “Sun”, Сэм Филипс, получил запись одного неизвестного певца, которая ему очень понравилась, но, к счастью для Элвиса, он не смог узнать фамилию автора той пластинки. Поэтому Филипс решил найти другого исполнителя этой песни (которая называлась “Without You”), им оказался Элвис Пресли. Но у будущего короля рок-н-ролла не получилось спеть эту песню так, как этого хотел Сэм Филипс. Запись отложили. Побаиваясь, что его просто-напросто выгонят со студии Элвис Пресли начал наигрывать отрывки с различных песен различного жанра. Манера игры понравилась Филипсу и он решил помочь Элвису. Сэм Филипс нашел напарника для Пресли - гитариста Скотти Мурома. Есть предположение, что под влиянием именно этого человека сформировался легендарный стиль Элвиса Пресли.
Через некоторое время Элвис и Скот начали работать в студии. Так длилось несколько месяцев. Элвис Пресли даже пытался выступать вместе с группой Скотти Мурома в одном из клубов, но это не имело особой пользы для Элвиса. Как справедливо заметил Сэм Филипс, Элвису мешал сопровождающий ансамбль. И тем не менее, Филипс тогда сказал, что время сейшена пришло…
5 июля 1954г . пришел в студию “Sun” уже в качестве профессионального певца, хотя он и продолжал работать водителем грузовика. 9 июля было уже записано четыре песни: “I Love You Because”, “Thats All Right”, “Blue Moon Оf Кentucky” и "”Blue Moon”.
В августе 1954г . студия “Sun” выпустила первый сингл Элвиса Пресли “Thats All Right”/”Blue Moon Of Кentucky”. Композиция “Thats All Right” была написана артистом Артуром Крадупом, автором второй песни был популярный певец Вил Монро Вill Monroe). Нужно отметить, что за всю свою последующую карьеру Элвис Пресли не споет ни одной своей песни, он будет песни, которые либо были сочинены для нго, либо перепевать произведения других артистов.
Второй сейшн состоялся в сентябре 1954г . На этом сейшене были записаны произведения “Dont Care If The Sun Doesnt Shine” и “Good Rockin Tonight”. В октябре этого же года вышел синг, но он не поднялся выше 3-его места в местном хит-параде.
В декабре 1954г . состоялся очередной сейшн, в результате которого появились песни “Milkcow Blues Boogie” и “You are A Heartbreaker”. Эти песни были спеты Элвисом Пресли в новом для него стиле: сначала идет блюз, а потом резко начинает играть рок-н-ролл. Несмотря на это новшество, диск не имел особого успеха.
В мае 1955г . вышла новая пластинка с песнями “Baby Lets Play House” и “I am Left, You are Right, She is Gone”, которые исполнялись "икающим" вокалом Элвиса. Благодаря этому вторая песня достигал восьмого места в хит-параде Мемфиса. Естественно, что популярность Элвиса Пресли начала расти, он даже принял участие в сборном концерте певцов стиля кантри.
Летом 1955 года Элвис Пресли записал еще один сейшн, особенностью которого было то, что в нем появились ударные инструменты. Странно, но отсутствие этого в предыдущих синглах Элвиса вообще не заметно.
В августе 1955 года вышел последний сингл, который Пресли записал на студии “Sun”. Он оказался самым успешным, поскольку остиг вершины национального хит-парада и целых сорок недель продержался в различных чартах. Такой успех пластинки привлек огромное внимание крупных компаний к фигуре Элвиса Пресли. Итогом этого повышенного внимания стало то, что компания “RCA Victor” предложила 35 тысяч долларов за контракт с Элвисом. Понятное дело, что он согласился. Это событие состоялось в ноябре 1955г .
Первый же сингл записанный на “RCA Victor” поднялся на первое место в национальном хит-параде и занял второе место в хит-параде Англии, это был известный “Heartbreak Hotel”. Сделав еще пару сейшенов, компания решила выпустить диск Элвиса, который назвала “Элвис Пресли”. Диск сразу же взлетел на первое место хит-парада и “застрял” там на девять недель.
Летом 1956 г. Элвис начинает работать с вокальным квартетом “JORDANAIRES”. Вместе с ними он создает “Hound Dog”, ”Dont Be Cruel”, “Any Way You Want Me”, ”Love Me Tender”. К сожалению, в январе 1967г . их пути расходятся.
В 1957г . Элвис Пресли переходит на новую работу- водителя грузовика джипа в Третьей Вооруженной Дивизии. Именно там он встречает свою “вторую половинку” Присциллу Бьюли, которой всего было 14 лет. Через некоторое время она становится женой короля рок-н-ролла и рождает дочь Лайзу Мари. После этого события Элвис Пресли покидает на некоторое время сцену и пробует себя в кинематографе.
Хотя его популярность необычайно высока, Элвиса Пресли потихоньку начинают “притеснять” ни менее легендарные “Beatles”.
В 1972г . Элвис Пресли выпускает альбом “ Burning Love ”, последний который попал в десятку хитов. Через год Элвис разошелся со своей женой. Его самочувствие сразу же ухудшилось: он начал вести ночной образ жизни, боятся всех вокруг, употреблять наркотики. Все зашло на столько далеко, что Элвис перестал даже появляться на студии. В 1976г ., в феврале, компания “RCA Victor” из-за отсутствия Элвиса Пресли решила устроить студию у него дома. На дому у Элвиса за неделю удалось записать 12 песен и это притом, что Пресли “капризничал” чуть ли ни каждый час. Подобный ход компании пришлось сделать и в октябре этого же года, но на этот раз записали лишь 4 песни.
Как бы там ни было, но Элвис Пресли продолжал выступать и давать концерты, так в 1977 году, он дал пятьдесят четыре концерта, последний из которых состоялся 26 июня.
16 августа 1977г . Элвис Пресли, король рок-н-ролла, умер. Песни Элвиса образца 50-60 годов стали шедеврами поп- и рок-музыки.
Дискография Элвиса Пресли :
“Elvis Presley ” (1956г .)
“Elvis Presley” (1956г .)
“Elvis” (1956г )
“Loving You” (1957г .)
“Jailhouse Rock” (1957г .)
“Christmas Album“ (1957г .)
“King Creole“ (1958г .)
“For LP Fans Only“ (1959г .)
“A Date with Elvis“ (1959г .)
“Elvis Is Back! “ (1960г .)
“G.I. Blues“ (1960г .)
“His Hand in Mine“ (1960г .)
“Something for Everybody“ (1961г .)
“Blue Hawaii“ (1961г .)
“Pot Luck with Elvis“ (1962г .)
“It Happened at the Worlds Fair“ (1963г .)
“Fun in Acapulco“ (1963г .)
“Girls! Girls! Girls! “ (1963г .)
“Kissin Cousins“ (1964г .)
“Roustabout“ (1964г .)
“Girl Happy“ (1965г .)
“Elvis for Everyone“ (1965г .)
“Harum Scarum“ (1965г .)
“Frankie & Johnny“ (1966г .)
“Paradise, Hawaiian Style“ (1966г .)
“Spinout“ (1966г .)
“Anyway You Want Me“ (1966г .)
“How Great Thou Art“ (1967г .)
“Double Trouble“ (1967г .)
“Clambake“ (1967г .)
“Special Christmas Programming“ (1967г .)
“Speedway“ (1968г .)
“From Elvis in Memphis“ (1969г .)
“From Memphis to Vegas/From Vegas to Memphis“ (1969г .)
“Elvis in Person (At the International Hotel,... ) “ (1970г .)
“On Stage: February1970 “ (1970г .) “
“Almost in Love“ (1970г .)
“Elvis Back in Memphis“ (1970г .)
“Elvis: Thats the Way It Is “ (1970г .)
“Elvis Country (I am10,000 Years Old) “ (1971г .)
“You wll Never Walk Alone“ (1971г .)
“Love Letters from Elvis“ (1971г .)
“Elvis Sings "The Wonderful World of... “ (1971г .)
“Elvis Now“ (1972г .)
“He Touched Me“ (1972г .)
“Elvis as Recorded at Madison Square Garden “ (1972г .)
“Aloha from Hawaii Via Satellite “ (1973г .)
“Elvis “ (1973г .)
“Raised on Rock/For Ol Times Sake“ (1973г .)
“Good Times“ (1974г .)
“Elvis Recorded Live on Stage in Memphis“ (1974г .)
“Having Fun with Elvis on Stage “ (1974г .)
“U.S. Male“ (1974г .)
“Promised Land“ (1975г .)
“Today“ (1975г .)
“From Elvis Presley Boulevard,Memphis,... “ (1976г .)
“Welcome to My World“ (1977г .)
“Moody Blue“ (1977г .)
“Elvis in Concert “ (1977г .)
“Elvis Sings for Children and Grownups Too! “ (1978г .)
“Mahalo from Elvis“ (1978г .)
“Madison Square Garden“ (1992г .)
“Elvis! Elvis! Elvis! “ (1995г .)
“Live in 55“ (1998г .)
“Private Elvis“ (1999г .)
“Elvis “ (1999г .)
“Thats the Way It Is “ (1999г .)
“Its Christmas Time“ (1999г .)
“Elvis Presley: Live1955 the Hayride Shows“ (2000г .)