Many people think of Elvis Presley as the charismatic and iconic figure with slicked-back hair, flashy jumpsuits, and unforgettable performances, particularly his hip-shaking moves on stage. They often associate him with his popular songs like “Jailhouse Rock” and “Can’t Help Falling in Love,” as well as his impact on the evolution of rock and roll music. His larger-than-life persona and enduring influence make him a cultural icon recognized by people around the world.
When I mention the name Elvis Presley, most of you will immediately know who I mean. Born in Tupelo Mississippi in 1928, the King of rock and roll who was still mysteriously found dead on the floor of his bathroom in his former hometown in 1977. The singer was forty-two years old.
Who was he really?
I’m not going to bore you with all kinds of data that you can easily find yourself on the internet. However, I do want to take you along the “other side” of his life. That side that not many people know. I think that if you have read this story, you will no longer think of that drug-addicted singer as Elvis is gradually known all over the world.
The Birth and start of his life.
Elvis was born in Tupelo Mississippi, a small town where most of the inhabitants were African Americans. His twin brother Jesse Garon died immediately at birth. From birth, his mother Gladys was very protective of Elvis, after all, he was her only child, she had already lost one. Elvis grew up with gospel music all around him. He secretly listened to those concerts at the door because he didn’t have money for the entrance.
Elvis enjoyed the music.
Elvis six weeks before his dead.
One day, when he was listening at the door again, one of the prominent singers saw him. The man got into a conversation with young Elvis and noticed his enthusiasm. Elvis was appreciated and the singer made sure that the young Elvis could attend all concerts for free from that moment on.
The mother’s love grew stronger.
Elvis with his parents
Elvis was a role model-like mother’s boy, this took on even greater proportions when his father Vernon ended up in prison for a fraud. Elvis lived alone with his mother for over a year. He felt more and more at home with the gospel singers. He danced like the negro Americans to the sounds of the gospel music sung loudly in the churches; it became his great love.
Faith occupied a large place.
Elvis was very religious, and most of the time he sang gospels. He knew almost all of them by heart. That was quite normal for that time, because at that time faith played a much bigger role in people’s minds and hearts. On his eighteenth birthday, Elvis, as a stranger in Sam Philips’ recording studio in Memphis, recorded the song Old Shep as a gift for his mother’s birthday.
Old Shep was the beginning.
Sam Philips The Sun Studio The first single
The record that Elvis recorded in Memphis caused a stir. The then very shy boy was discovered by Sam Philips. Philips recognized the peculiar, but at the same time very special Negro sounds in the voice of the young singer. Elvis got a contract and started performing with his band, he changed the world. His singing, but especially the movements he made with his hips, made many girls beat faster. The singer soon had to move to a secure house, “Graceland” after all, he could no longer walk the streets with all those drooling girls chasing him.
The concerts at home.
The million dollar quartet Graceland Tupelo Missisippi
Elvis performed almost every day with his rock and roll repertoire and made a lot of money. Every day he drove his musicians back and forth in his pink Cadillac. Elvis had many famous friends, Johnny Cash, Anthony Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Little Richard. What many people still don’t know is that these singers sang gospel together at the piano at Elvis’ Graceland on Sundays. (There is an LP: The Million Dollar Quartet) Elvis is the only one who has never renounced his faith, he also sang his gospels on the big stages during his live shows.
Gospel singer?
Yes, Elvis enjoys the gospel songs and his faith. He often sang them at the top of his lungs with great inspiration. Once one of his bandmates asked him: “Elvis, you sing those gospel songs with so much pleasure, why don’t you become a gospel singer?” to which Elvis replied: “I would like to, but who pays my bandmates, do I have to put them out of work?”
His health left much to be desired.
Tom Parker Elvis his manager Dr. Nichoupoulis
Elvis was world famous and had a lot of money, which he spent easily. However, his health left more and more to be desired. There was a health problem in his family that caused his mother to die young. Recently, his daughter Lisa Marie also died at a fairly young age. Was he addicted? His manager Tom Parker (the gambling addict Andreas van Cuijk) wanted Elvis to keep going despite his poor health. He hired Dr. Nichopoulos in which Elvis kept going with syringes. This man recently passed away but has never been punished for what he did to Elvis.
Elvis wasn’t a junkie.
We now know that Elvis was severely abused by a manager of Dutch origin who had traveled to America as a stowaway. This heavily addicted man has squandered a lot of money. He received 50% of all Elvis’ earnings. Elvis was his cash cow, the singer had to go on, his earnings let Parker live. I hope you have now gained a different perspective on the life of Elvis Presley.
