Born poor in the segregated deep South, Elvis Presley, as a child, was drawn to the gospel music he heard in church. Even after attaining worldwide fame as the face and voice of rock & roll, Elvis never forgot his gospel roots and often turned to the music for hope and consolation.

         Having sung in a talent contest while still in high school (some reports say he won; others say he came in second), it did wonders for his confidence and set him on a career path. In Memphis, Sam Phillips owned a small local studio, Sun Records, and dreamed of finding a white singer who could sing black music. Elvis and Sam found each other. Elvis’ first single, “That’s All Right” failed to chart, but it got him noticed.  The following year a middle-aged hustler, Colonel Tom Parker, found his way into Presley’s circle and negotiated a deal with RCA Victor to buy out Elvis’s contract. The ex-carnival barker would, in time, become Presley’s all-controlling manager.

         In the second half of the ’50s and early ’60s Elvis dominated the charts with such iconic hits as “Heartbreak Hotel”, “Hound Dog”, “Love Me Tender”, “Jailhouse Rock”, and “It’s Now or Never”. Sometimes lost amidst all the hubbub of swiveling hips, the new race-mixing music termed rock & roll, and the astounding number of records sold is the fact that Elvis was a hell of a singer, blessed with a high, strong baritone, sometimes tenor, voice and was deeply expressive whether singing raucous R&B (“That’s All Right”), pop ballads (“Are You Lonesome Tonight?”), or gospel (“How great Thou Art”).

         That he ended his days a bloated, drug addled, paranoid, sloppy caricature of the brilliant performer he once was is a tragedy. Strangely, though, he’s never been allowed to die. Graceland, his home, is still one of the most visited places in the country; according to the Guinness people there are literally hundreds of thousands of “Elvis Tribute Artists” all around the world; and the music is still being played- why I just heard “Suspicious Minds” last week.

         -Steve Williams (6/15/23) – Greatest Recording Artists Blog Post #19