HIS NAME WAS ELVIS ARON PRESLEY. He began life in Tupelo, Mississippi. He became a superstar, a fantasy figure, an idol.
HIS NAME WAS ELVIS ARON PRESLEY. He was eighteen and he walked into the of the Memphis Recording Service to record a personal record for his mother. He changed the sound of popular music forever.
HIS NAME WAS ELVIS ARON PRESLEY. He was twenty and RCA Records signed him to a recording contract for $35,000. His records have sold over 500,000,000 copies around the world.
HIS NAME WAS ELVIS ARON PRESLEY. He was twenty-one and he received $10,000 for performing in his hometown, and he gave it back to the people of Tupelo. He raised $100,000 in a benefit concert to help complete the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial honoring seamen who died at Pearl Harbor.
HIS NAME WAS ELVIS ARON PRESLEY. He was twenty-one and he stared in his first movie. He made thirty-one movies and became one of Hollywood's top box office attractions.
HIS NAME WAS ELVIS ARON PRESLEY. He was twenty-one and he made his television debut on CBS as a guest with the Dorsey Brothers. His own NBC-TV special "Aloha from Hawaii", via satellite, was viewed by an estimated one billion people.
HIS NAME WAS ELVIS ARON PRESLEY. He was twenty-one and he made his first Las Vegas appearance with Freddy Martin at the new Frontier Hotel. He became one of the highest paid performers in the history of Las Vegas in sellout appearances at the International Hotel.
HIS NAME WAS ELVIS ARON PRESLEY. He was twenty-one and he toured the south to the increasing enthusiasm of his teenage following. His concert tours were seen by millions of fans from Seattle, Washington to New York's Madison Square Garden, he never played to an unsold seat.
HIS NAME WAS ELVIS ARON PRESLEY. His is the story of a raw talent that became magic for millions of people. His is the story of humble beginnings, a growth in style and stage presence and warmth. It is the story of an almost unbelievable charisma, a unique personal power that inspired a kind of awe among his fans - and there are millions of them.
HIS NAME, ELVIS ARON PRESLEY: the man whose recorded voice has been heard by more people around the world then that of any other performing artist...the man who is known to all those people who have heard that voice simply as - ELVIS.
THE BACKGROUND - In 1980 RCA released an 8 record collectors set called "Elvis Aron Presley". My Mom Helen, purchased one which I still have today. There was a lot of hype surrounding this release and "Elvis Aron Presley" delivered. Never before released singles, interviews, live recordings and even movie song outtakes made the Platinum Album with the striking gold signature across the front (see Picture above) a treasure for any collector.
MY TAKE - I played the 8 records endlessly for about a year and really enjoyed the adversity of the material. I still listen to my favorite parts to this day, when I get a chance. But, what I liked the best about "Elvis Aron Presley" was the packaging. Each of the records came with a large picture from the records era. There is also a booklet with some interesting miscellaneous items which includes a poem (above) that I couldn't find anywhere else.
There have been poems written about Elvis before, Bono's "American David" comes to mind. But, the poem included in "Elvis Aron Presley" is one of my all time favorites, it is strait to the point and strangely haunting (it is also: unemotional and quotes statistics - just the way I like my poetry).
The 1980 RCA release "Elvis Aron Presley" is one of my prized Elvis possessions. I wonder if Taila will enjoy it as much as I did.
( Jody Cranston / 1980 Elvis Aron Presley RCA Release ).
( Jody Cranston / Elvis Blog ).
