|
Popular music in the 20th century wouldn't have been what it is today without Elvis Presley. He is often touted as the most influential performer in all American music. His death in 1977 did not diminish his popularity, and his label RCA, continues to make a steady income from reissuing his recordings.
Elvis Aaron Presley was born in the heart of Mississippi, smack in the middle of the depression, he moved to the city of Memphis while in his teens. Blues, country, gospel and bluegrass all thrived there, and these influences would manifest themselves in much of his singing career.
His first recordings were made between 1953 - 54, for the Sun label in Memphis. His first five singles successfully blended elements from the local music, and he is often credited with fusing country and blues music into the style known as 'rockabilly'. By 1955, his singles were selling very well, and along with guitarist Scotty Moore and bassist Bill Black, Elvis hit the road.
His live performances were the stuff of legend and his swivelling hips created the kind of controversy that makes superstars. His songs and stage presence were defining the still-nascent rock n' roll genre. Colonel Tom Parker was soon his manager, and the small Sun label had sold his contract to RCA for $35,000 - an enormous sum at the time.
Much of his work with the RCA label has been criticized as being watered down and overly slick, lacking in the raw, fiery energy that dominated his early recordings. In no way a purist, Elvis simply wanted to be the most popular singer around, and his first material with RCA was still great stuff. With sophisticated production and enough pop flavour to blaze their way up the charts, his albums and EPs topped charts around the world.
The downslide began soon after. He was becoming more and more stereotypical, and after his return from service in the army, he churned out mostly schmaltzy ballads before giving up performing altogether - in favour of acting in a series of forgettable, Hollywood films that had little in the way of story, acting, or anything. They were just vehicles to sell his records rake in the moolah as quickly as possible.
It was not until 1967 that Elvis reinvented himself a little, and his Elvis In Memphis album was the first to feature some up-to-date pop-rock. His expressive singing was still superlative, and he was soon at the top of the charts again.
His work in the seventies was eclectic to say the least, but his increasingly erratic lifestyle and isolation from the real world proved too much - his marriage soon broke up, and he became dependent on large amounts of prescription drugs. He was found dead in his Graceland mansion on August 16, 1977.
His legend is still of sufficient magnitude to attract millions of tourists who pay homage at his Graceland home every year. Reissues appear constantly, and if you look just a little bit harder, you'll find some truly great stuff that was probably the daddy of modern rock n' roll.
|
|
|
