Before Elvis
Before Elvis

Author: Larry Birnbaum

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2013

Total Pages: 475

ISBN-13: 0810886383

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An essential work for rock fans and scholars, Before Elvis: The Prehistory of Rock 'n' Roll surveys the origins of rock 'n' roll from the minstrel era to the emergence of Bill Haley and Elvis Presley. Unlike other histories of rock, Before Elvis offers a far broader and deeper analysis of the influences on rock music. Dispelling common misconceptions, it examines rock's origins in hokum songs and big-band boogies as well as Delta blues, detailing the embrace by white artists of African-American styles long before rock 'n' roll appeared. This unique study ranges far and wide, highlighting not only the contributions of obscure but key precursors like Hardrock Gunter and Sam Theard but also the influence of celebrity performers like Gene Autry and Ella Fitzgerald. Too often, rock historians treat the genesis of rock 'n' roll as a bolt from the blue, an overnight revolution provoked by the bland pop music that immediately preceded it and created through the white appropriation of music till then played only by and for black audiences. In Before Elvis, Birnbaum daringly argues a more complicated history of rock's evolution from a heady mix of ragtime, boogie-woogie, swing, country music, mainstream pop, and rhythm-and-blues--a melange that influenced one another along the way, from the absorption of blues and boogies into jazz and pop to the integration of country and Caribbean music into rhythm-and-blues. Written in an easy style, Before Elvis presents a bold argument about rock's origins and required reading for fans and scholars of rock 'n' roll history.

Elvis and Ginger
Elvis and Ginger

Author: Ginger Alden

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2015-08-04

Total Pages: 401

ISBN-13: 0425266346

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THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Elvis Presley’s fiancée and last love tells her story and sets the record straight in this deeply personal memoir that reveals what really happened in the final years of the King of Rock n' Roll. Elvis Presley and Graceland were fixtures in Ginger Alden’s life; after all, she was born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee. But she had no idea that she would play a part in that enduring legacy. For more than three decades Ginger has held the truth of their relationship close to her heart. Now she shares her unique story… In her own words, Ginger details their whirlwind romance—from first kiss to his stunning proposal of marriage. And for the very first time, she talks about the devastating end of it all and the fifty thousand mourners and reporters who descended on Graceland in 1977, exposing Ginger to the reality of living in the spotlight of a short yet immortal life. Above it all, Ginger rescues Elvis from the hearsay, rumors, and tabloid speculations of his final year by shedding a frank yet personal light on a very public legend. From a unique and intimate perspective, she reveals the man—complicated, romantic, fallible, and human—behind the myth, a superstar worshipped by millions and loved by Ginger Alden. INCLUDES PHOTOS

Before Elvis There was Nothing
Before Elvis There was Nothing

Author: Laurie Foos

Publisher:

Published: 2005

Total Pages: 214

ISBN-13:

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With joyful and satirical irreverence, Laurie Foos navigates the wild terrain of our beauty-obsessed culture.

Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley

Author: Joel Williamson

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2015

Total Pages: 409

ISBN-13: 0199863172

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One of the most admired Southern historians of our time paints an intimate portrait of Elvis Presley, set against the rich backdrop of Southern society, that illuminates the zenith of his career, showing how Elvis himself changed—and didn't—and providing a deeper understanding of the man and his times.

Elvis and Me
Elvis and Me

Author: Priscilla Presley

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2023-08-01

Total Pages: 353

ISBN-13: 0593639561

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The #1 New York Times bestselling memoir that reveals the intimate story of Elvis Presley and Priscilla Presley, told by the woman who lived it. THE INSPIRATION FOR THE MAJOR MOTION PICTURE PRISCILLA, DIRECTED BY SOFIA COPPOLA Decades after his death, millions of fans continue to worship Elvis the legend. But very few knew him as Elvis the man. Here in her own words, Priscilla Presley tells the story of their love, revealing the details of their first meeting, their marriage, their affairs, their divorce, and the unbreakable bond that has remained long after his tragic death. A tribute to both the man and the legend, Elvis and Me gives Elvis fans the world over an unprecedented look at the true life of the King of Rock 'N' Roll and the woman who loved him.

Elvis: My Best Man
Elvis: My Best Man

Author: George Klein

Publisher: Crown

Published: 2011-01-04

Total Pages: 322

ISBN-13: 0307452751

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The touching story of thirty years of friendship between George Klein and the King that “offers an insider’s view of Presley the man as opposed to Presley the singer, actor, and icon” (Associated Press). “You capture the essence of Elvis not only in dialogue, but also in giving the reader a sense of his personality, humor, and his spirit of play.”—Priscilla Presley When George Klein was an eighth grader at Humes High, he couldn’t have known how important the new kid with the guitar—the boy named Elvis—would later become in his life. But from the first time GK (as he was nicknamed by Elvis) heard this kid sing, he knew that Elvis Presley was someone extraordinary. During Elvis’s rise to fame and throughout the wild swirl of his remarkable life, Klein was a steady presence and one of Elvis’s closest and most loyal friends until his untimely death in 1977. In Elvis: My Best Man, a heartfelt, entertaining, and long-awaited contribution to our understanding of Elvis Presley and the early days of rock ’n’ roll, George Klein writes with great affection for the friend he knew about who the King of Rock ’n’ Roll really was and how he acted when the stage lights were off. This fascinating chronicle of boundary-breaking and music-making through one of the most intriguing and dynamic stretches of American history overflows with insights and anecdotes from someone who was in the middle of it all. From the good times at Graceland to hanging out with Hollywood stars to butting heads with Elvis’s iron-handed manager, Colonel Tom Parker, to making sure that Elvis’s legacy is fittingly honored, GK was a true friend of the King and a trailblazer in the music industry in his own right.

Who Did It First?
Who Did It First?

Author: Bob Leszczak

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2014-07-10

Total Pages: 333

ISBN-13: 1442233222

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“Everybody has to start somewhere. Businessmen start on the ground floor and try to work their way up the corporate ladder. Baseball players bide their time in the minor leagues wishing for an opportunity to move up and play in the majors. Musical compositions aren’t very different – some songs just don’t climb the charts the first time they’re recorded. However, with perseverance, the ideal singer, the right chemistry, impeccable timing, vigorous promotion, and a little luck, these songs can become very famous.” So writes Bob Leszczak in the opening pages of Who Did It First?: Great Rock and Roll Cover Songs and Their Original Artists. In this third and final volume to the Who Did It First? series, readers explore the hidden history of the most famous, indeed legendary, rock songs and standards. Did you know that the Wild Ones had a “Wild Thing” before the Troggs? Were you aware that it took a second shot for “Double Shot of My Baby’s Love” to make the charts? Had you heard that Guy Villari and the Regents dated “Barbara Ann” five years before the Beach Boys? Were you privy to the fact that there was “Hanky Panky” going on with Ellie Greenwich and the Raindrops, as well as the Summits, before Tommy James and the Shondells made the song a number 1 classic? Some of the information contained within these pages will shock, rattle and roll you. You may fancy yourself a music expert, but this third and last in a series of titles devoted to the story of great songs and their revival as great covers is filled with eye openers. In many instances, one’s eyes will open even wider as a result of the list of cover artists (with Paul Anka’s remake of Nirvana’s “Smells like Teen Spirit” leading the pack). Who Did It First?Great Rock and Roll Cover Songs and Their Original Artistsis the perfect playlist builder. So whether quizzing friends at a party, answering a radio station contest, or just satisfying an insatiable curiosity to know who really did do it first, this work is a must-have.

The Elvis Movies
The Elvis Movies

Author: James L. Neibaur

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2014-04-04

Total Pages: 297

ISBN-13: 1442230746

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Elvis Presley’s stature as the “King of Rock and Roll” will never be challenged. Between his first RCA hit single in 1956—the number-one smash “Heartbreak Hotel”—and his death in 1977, Elvis amassed more than 100 hits on the music charts. Presley’s dominance on the music chart was paralleled only by the singer’s motion picture career. Between 1956 and 1969, Elvis appeared in more than thirty films, further cementing his place as one of the most popular entertainers of the twentieth century. While there have been countless books that explore the real Elvis tucked beneath layers of showbiz mythology, such volumes often dismiss his motion picture career as insignificant or overlook his onscreen work entirely. In The Elvis Movies, James L. Neibaur looks at the thirty-one features that Presley made, from Love Me Tender in 1956 to Change of Habit in 1969. Most of these were star vehicles tailor-made for his image. As Neibaur points out, Elvis had a real interest in being a good actor, but his initial promise was soon thwarted by anti-creative decisions that sold a packaged version of the singer. Despite lapsing into a predictable formula of lightweight musicals, Elvis Presley’s star power ensured that the films became box office successes. Neibaur examines each film, providing information about their production and offering assessments about their value in general, as well as their place in the Presley canon. Additional details include behind-the-scenes personnel, costars, DVD availability, and featured hit songs. An entertaining and informative look at an often underrated aspect of the singer’s career, The Elvis Movies offers readers insight into his films. This volume will be a welcome resource to fans of the singer who want to know more about the King and his successful ventures on the big screen.

Elvis
Elvis

Author: Jerry Hopkins

Publisher: Plexus Publishing

Published: 2014-07-01

Total Pages: 417

ISBN-13: 0859658996

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Elvis Presley is the single biggest personality in American popular culture. Over three decades after his death in August 1977, he remains the undisputed king of rock'n'roll. Featuring a wealth of first-hand interviews, Elvis combines Jerry Hopkins's two previous classic bestselling Elvis biographies - Elvis: A Biography and Elvis: The Final Years - with all-new material to give the definitive detailed account of Presley's fantastic life