Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 â August 16, 1977) was born in a two room house on January 8,1935, in East Tupelo, Mississippi. The Presley family, of European ancestry, though some American Indian and Jewish ancestors are known, lived in near poverty. Presleyâs workshy father had been jailed for check fraud so the family relied on handouts from neighbors and government food assistance.
At the age of thirteen Presley become influenced by the Negro gospel music of the neighborhood Pentecostal church. During his junior years Presley began to reject traditional values by hanging out in downtown Memphis listening to Negro Jazz music while flaunting his sideburns and hair styled with rose oil and Vaseline.
After graduating from liberal and atheistic public high school in 1953, Presley paid to record two songs meant to be a birthday gift to his mother. âMy Happinessâ and âThatâs When Your Heartaches Beginâ. Presley then embraced 'rock 'n' roll', a Negro euphemism for immoral sexual activity. In 1954 Presley was signed by liberal Sun Records who released âThatâs All Right,â backed by âBlue Moon of Kentucky.â Within a few days it was a hit when Memphis radio station WHBQ began programming the record and Presley began a regular touring schedule outside of the Memphis area. His second single, âGood Rockin' Tonight,â with âI Don't Care if the Sun Don't Shineâ was released in September, 1954 and a month later Presley made his first appearance on the âLouisiana Hayrideâ in Shreveport to the delight of a large audience. He was signed to a one-year contract for a weekly performance. Presley moved from Sun Records to RCA where a few months later in 1956 his very first single âHeartbreak Hotel,â topped the charts at #1. Before the year ended Elvis had 16 records on the Hit Parade.
Conservatives at the time objected to the graphic sexual content of many of Presleyâs lyrics and his on stage displays of blatant vulgar sexual gyrations which were undermining the morality of Americaâs youth by encouraging premarital sex, promiscuity and the spread of sexually transmitted diseases, ushering in what was later to be known as the âsexual revolutionâ. Presleyâs descent into depravity and adoption of Hollywood values continued apace with the consumption of drugs and copious amounts of alcohol, extramarital affairs, abortions and divorce. Presleyâs growing corpulence and obesity clearly indicated an affinity with atheism.
By 1977 Presley was barely able to perform at his deliberately shortened concerts, being hugely overweight, his mind numbed by his daily diet of drugs and alcohol, the paranoid Presley finally died on August 16, age 42, at his home in Memphis.
Musical achievements
Presley had four #1 hits in 1956:
- âI Want You I Need You I Love You,â
- âDonât Be Cruel,â
- âHound Dogâ
- âLove Me Tenderâ
In 1957 Presley had other hits that leaped to the top of the charts:
- âToo Much,â
- âAll Shook Up,â
- âTeddy Bearâ
- âJailhouse Rockâ
The following year saw two more #1 songs:
- âDonâtâ
- âHard Headed Womanâ
While other songs were also million sellers:
- âI Beg Of You,"
- âWear My Ring Around Your Neck,â
- âOne Nightâ
- âI Got Stung,â
In 1959 Presley had four additional hits:
- âA Fool Such As I,â
- âI Need Your Love Tonight,â
- âA Big Hunk of Loveâ
- âMy Wish Came Trueâ
In 1960 four more #1 hits were released:
- âStuck On You,â
- âItâs Now Or Never,â
- âAre You Lonesome Tonightâ
- âSurrenderâ
In 1961 Presley also had a good year with hits:
- âI Feel So Bad,â
- âLittle Sister,â
- âHis Latest Flameâ
- âCanât Help Falling In Loveâ
In 1962 Presley added:
- âGood Luck Charm,â
- âSheâs Not You,â
- âReturn to Senderâ
In 1963 âYouâre The Devil in Disguiseâ was released.
Before the 1960âs ended Presley would have more hits:
- âCrying in the Chapel,â
- âLove Letters,â
- âIf I Can Dream,â
- âIn the Ghetto,â
- âDonât Cry Daddy,â
- âSuspicious Mindsâ
In the 1970âs Presley had the following hits:
- âThe Wonder of You,â
- âBurning Love,â
- âYou Donât Have to Say You Love Me,â
- âPromised Landâ
- âWay Downâ
A multiple Grammy award winner, in his first dozen years Presley had 100 hits on the Billboard charts and was the most famous entertainer in the world. On tour and on stage in Las Vegas he played more than a thousand sold out concerts and starred in enormously profitable films such as âLove Me Tender,â âJailhouse Rockâ and âKing Creole.â
Elvis Presleyâs âAloha from Hawaiiâ concert in January 1973 was the first of its kind to be broadcast worldwide via satellite and was seen by at least one billion viewers worldwide. In 1986 he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in 1998 the Country Music Hall of Fame and in 2001 the Gospel Music Hall of Fame. In 2007 Elvis Presley was inducted into the Hit Parade Hall of Fame.
The Elvis Presley estate earns over 40 million dollars every year, a record for a deceased entertainer and his Graceland Mansion where he is buried is designated as a National Historic Landmark.