I have been a Elvis fan for as long as I can remember. When I went to school
a friend of mine said: "You just gotta hear this song". We went to an ice-cream
bar with one of those jukebox and he went over and put on a song. It was
"Return To Sender" with Elvis Presley. I think I was in the 6th grade at school
at the time. And from then on, it was all about Elvis Presley.
Elvis stood alone at the top, his position was impregnable - whether or not
anyone could have challenged him, no one did, not even the Beatles.
And it's now we can really understand that Elvis himself
established the truth
of his answers to the questions Marion Keisker posed
to him way back in the
summer of 1953. When Elvis first showed up at the Sam
Phillips Recording
Service in Memphis, Tennessee:
- Marion: "What kind of singer are you?"
- Elvis: "I sing all kinds"
- Marion: "Who do you sound like?"
- Elvis: "I don't sound like nobody."
- Marion: "Hillbilly?"
- Elvis: "Yeah, I sing Hillbilly."
- Marion: "Who do you sound like in Hillbilly?"
- Elvis: "I don't sound like nobody."
The true measures of a person is the effect he or she had
on other people's
lives. In terms of society, Elvis broke down musical
barriers, bringing Rock
and Roll into the lives of many.
He broke down racial barriers, making it possible for
white people to sing like
black people and vice versa. He broke down sexual barriers,
making it acceptable
to express oneself through dance in public. He broke
down regional barriers,
bringing Northerners and Southerners together around
his music. Perhaps
Elvis' greatest effect was on artist of all styles and
backgrounds; Elvis
embodied freedom, the opportunity - no, the right - to
follow your own muse.
To do it your own way, no matter the consequenses. Without
such liberation,
art dies.
Elvis, was free, unfetted by convention, untouched by
stricture. He was pure,
natural, a force of nature. He transcended his roots,
transcended poverty, igno-
rance, and smallmindness to create magic for millions.
Maybe that's the reason
the King lives on so persuasively - for in true freedom
are no boundaries, even
those of mortality. Or maybe he was just a great singer!
What can be said as a tribute about this man, this legend,
this genius? I guess
one of the things that have always amazed me was and
still is - his unbelivable
way of performing
all sorts of songs.
Some of Elvis' honours
and awards.
Links to other Elvis pages.
Webmaster of this homepage is Birger
Rokne.