I still talk about those Dixie riddle cups. Saw a documentary recently about the Elvis 1968 comeback special. Forget what streaming channel it was. Very well done.
There are two — one on Netflix and one on Paramount+. Last month, I wrote an essay about the bootlegs I acquired from that special — four slabs of vinyl gold — almost 20 years before they were officially released.
You've inspired me to listen to him this morning! I was never much of an Elvis listener. I think that came from being a kid/young adult throughout the '80s and into the early '90s. To quote Mojo Nixon, "Elvis was everywhere." His retro value in the '80s was sky-high to the point of seeing daily commercials of 900-numbers where a caller could "talk to the king," because THE KING WASN'T DEAD. As the '90s rolled into the early '2000s, an umpteenth rockabilly revival wave was happening. Yet again, there were Elvis clones everywhere. It wasn't until recent years when I could finally go back and listen to him without of all my previous judgement clouds. Maybe there's hope for me becoming an Elvis guy!
Great piece -hits the nail squarely. I've been a major Elvis fan since the age of 6 - when he was just out of the army! Still loved Return to Sender etc and the naffest movies. Nina here a lifelong fan too so this is definitely an Elvis household!
Right on, Kris! I'm with you on the movies, too — even the worst ones are like audio/visual comfort food for me, and there's usually at least one musical number in them that's totally worth your while. Like his "psychedelic freakout" in Live a Little, Love a Little... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuviUkzpO4I
I can't begin to tell you how much I enjoyed this, because your experience largely mirrors mine. My father and grandmother were huge Elvis fans, and I became one almost by osmosis. As a result, I was subjected to music snobbery from a very young age, but I held on to my views. I went so far that I made mixtapes with my favorite Elvis tracks (deep cuts from the Sun recordings, Elvis Is Back, my bootlegs of the 1968 special, and From Elvis in Memphis) and shared them with the snobs.
The dinner table story is a hoot. It's always amusing that the the 'non-conformist' hippies demanded conformity in dress, lifestyle, and music -- and as a kid you saw right through that.
I love this piece. For me, my introduction to Elvis and my introduction to music were one and the same so Elvis means a whole lot to me. I remember sharing some of my fandom with my classmates in the early eighties and their bewilderment that some four- or five-year old would be so shook up by Elvis was my first taste of musical snobbery (like you, I've both received and dished it out). These days, people seem far less hung up about liking Elvis.
I appreciate your comments about musical snobbery Dan, I too have been on both sides of that fence and as an older, wiser music lover now wish I'd been a bit more open-minded in my youth. I passed on a few golden opportunities due to 'snobbery'.
My introduction to rock 'n' roll was when The Beatles hit in '64 and they would mention Elvis in interviews & such, but I didn't get it because my image of Elvis was of the schlocky movies and Las Vegas residencies (remember when Vegas wasn't cool for rockers?).
I didn't discover the Sun stuff until I started working at the record store in the mid-70s, but caught up quickly and finally figured out why he was so important to The Beatles & everyone else of the era.
The King is well-represented in my music collection today!
Chuck D did Elvis dirty; he’s even copped to it since “Fight The Power” stuck the R-word onto Elvis’ large lapel.
But what he said struck a chord with me, something like “I like Elvis, but I don’t like his fans”. I agree that the twentysomething in your story from the early ‘70s was treated horribly, and yet I was utterly mystified at Elvis worship in the ‘80s. Weird Al namechecked it in Midnight Star in ‘83, and then of course MoJo amped it up in ‘87 in a fun way.
But it was Living Colour that nailed it for me with Elvis Is Dead, even though they inserted the prickly “a black man taught him how to sing”, most of it was about his fans’ reaction to his death. Obviously, that hadn’t happened yet when your anecdote takes place, but I can’t help but wonder if that sense of Elvis fans as unenlightened had already seeped in.
Also, I think “let people like what they like” is healthy, but I also think Kelefa Sanneh is onto something in his theory that modern music movements are formed out of disdain for what’s currently popular.
once more, you hit it out of the park. Ahh Elvis...for me it was the early music that changed me from a thoroughly bookish pre teenager into.....quite something else!
Hadn't read this one before, Dan, so thanks for the welcome spin of a greatest hit! I also find Elvis irresistible, surely in part because I was musically "raised" by Magic 104, the oldies station in Chicago.
Re: snobbery - came to me in high school as well, when most peers were into awful pop or the Grateful Dead. I was very fortunate to turn 14 in 1989 when there was something of a counter-culture on the rise. I am still a very proud music snob, yet I've learned not to judge people in this way anymore. It took quite a while, though, and even that recovery has SOME limits.
There was a scene in Nick Hornby's book, High Fidelity (that did not make it into the movie) where Rob and Laura go to another couple's house for dinner and hit it off, having an amazing time. Then Laura tells Rob to go to the living room to take a look at their record collection. It is AWFUL. He can't believe it, and of course he realizes that Laura knew this would happen.
I think about that fictional moment often, as a helpful reminder that who people are extends beyond their personal tastes.
I enjoyed this when I read it last year and love it just as much now. As I’ve gotten older I’ve tended (for the most part) to get rid of my music snobbery. I have embraced some of the music I used to be ashamed to admit to liking (such as ABBA and the Spice Girls) and really, let’s just let people like the kind of music they want to like.
I still talk about those Dixie riddle cups. Saw a documentary recently about the Elvis 1968 comeback special. Forget what streaming channel it was. Very well done.
There are two — one on Netflix and one on Paramount+. Last month, I wrote an essay about the bootlegs I acquired from that special — four slabs of vinyl gold — almost 20 years before they were officially released.
You've inspired me to listen to him this morning! I was never much of an Elvis listener. I think that came from being a kid/young adult throughout the '80s and into the early '90s. To quote Mojo Nixon, "Elvis was everywhere." His retro value in the '80s was sky-high to the point of seeing daily commercials of 900-numbers where a caller could "talk to the king," because THE KING WASN'T DEAD. As the '90s rolled into the early '2000s, an umpteenth rockabilly revival wave was happening. Yet again, there were Elvis clones everywhere. It wasn't until recent years when I could finally go back and listen to him without of all my previous judgement clouds. Maybe there's hope for me becoming an Elvis guy!
If I were you, I’d start with From Elvis in Memphis - his soulfulness as a singer really comes through on that one!
Great piece -hits the nail squarely. I've been a major Elvis fan since the age of 6 - when he was just out of the army! Still loved Return to Sender etc and the naffest movies. Nina here a lifelong fan too so this is definitely an Elvis household!
Right on, Kris! I'm with you on the movies, too — even the worst ones are like audio/visual comfort food for me, and there's usually at least one musical number in them that's totally worth your while. Like his "psychedelic freakout" in Live a Little, Love a Little... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuviUkzpO4I
Always liked that one! We're actually partial to the Hawaiian films.
$7.98 in 1972 is the equivalent of about $64.00 today! But this guy WAS WORTH IT!
I can't begin to tell you how much I enjoyed this, because your experience largely mirrors mine. My father and grandmother were huge Elvis fans, and I became one almost by osmosis. As a result, I was subjected to music snobbery from a very young age, but I held on to my views. I went so far that I made mixtapes with my favorite Elvis tracks (deep cuts from the Sun recordings, Elvis Is Back, my bootlegs of the 1968 special, and From Elvis in Memphis) and shared them with the snobs.
I've written two longish essays on Presley, one about my family and a recent one on those 1968 special bootlegs, which is here — https://open.substack.com/pub/glenncook/p/the-pirated-comeback?r=727x&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
Loved the bootleg one, Glenn — please share the link to the one about your family!
Thanks! Here's the second one:
https://open.substack.com/pub/glenncook/p/my-grandmother-elvis-and-me?r=727x&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
Loved it, man. Thanks!
Thanks for reading both of them! Appreciate it.
The dinner table story is a hoot. It's always amusing that the the 'non-conformist' hippies demanded conformity in dress, lifestyle, and music -- and as a kid you saw right through that.
Same reason I kept mostly my distance from the local punk and mod scenes while I was in high school, even though I loved the music.
I remember those Dixie cups! 😊 for taking me back.
I love this piece. For me, my introduction to Elvis and my introduction to music were one and the same so Elvis means a whole lot to me. I remember sharing some of my fandom with my classmates in the early eighties and their bewilderment that some four- or five-year old would be so shook up by Elvis was my first taste of musical snobbery (like you, I've both received and dished it out). These days, people seem far less hung up about liking Elvis.
I appreciate your comments about musical snobbery Dan, I too have been on both sides of that fence and as an older, wiser music lover now wish I'd been a bit more open-minded in my youth. I passed on a few golden opportunities due to 'snobbery'.
My introduction to rock 'n' roll was when The Beatles hit in '64 and they would mention Elvis in interviews & such, but I didn't get it because my image of Elvis was of the schlocky movies and Las Vegas residencies (remember when Vegas wasn't cool for rockers?).
I didn't discover the Sun stuff until I started working at the record store in the mid-70s, but caught up quickly and finally figured out why he was so important to The Beatles & everyone else of the era.
The King is well-represented in my music collection today!
He can still be appreciated today as much as he was in his prime, which is no mean feat. To say nothing of that small army of impersonators...
Chuck D did Elvis dirty; he’s even copped to it since “Fight The Power” stuck the R-word onto Elvis’ large lapel.
But what he said struck a chord with me, something like “I like Elvis, but I don’t like his fans”. I agree that the twentysomething in your story from the early ‘70s was treated horribly, and yet I was utterly mystified at Elvis worship in the ‘80s. Weird Al namechecked it in Midnight Star in ‘83, and then of course MoJo amped it up in ‘87 in a fun way.
But it was Living Colour that nailed it for me with Elvis Is Dead, even though they inserted the prickly “a black man taught him how to sing”, most of it was about his fans’ reaction to his death. Obviously, that hadn’t happened yet when your anecdote takes place, but I can’t help but wonder if that sense of Elvis fans as unenlightened had already seeped in.
Also, I think “let people like what they like” is healthy, but I also think Kelefa Sanneh is onto something in his theory that modern music movements are formed out of disdain for what’s currently popular.
Oh, I completely agree with Kelefa Sanneh — you can let people like the music they like while still running screaming in the opposite direction!
Fantastic piece Dan. Worth it for “the Revolution™ will not be Elvis-ized.” alone. No wonder you’ve copyrighted it.
Hahaha! I meant it more in the sense of "the Revolution" being commodified, but that's okay — it's mine now!
I reckon Gil Scott-Heron would approve
PS Neil Diamond is still with us. Why not ask him that question?
He’s quite ill with Parkinson’s, sadly, and rarely does interviews these days.
Oh, how sad. I wasn’t aware of that.
once more, you hit it out of the park. Ahh Elvis...for me it was the early music that changed me from a thoroughly bookish pre teenager into.....quite something else!
Hadn't read this one before, Dan, so thanks for the welcome spin of a greatest hit! I also find Elvis irresistible, surely in part because I was musically "raised" by Magic 104, the oldies station in Chicago.
Re: snobbery - came to me in high school as well, when most peers were into awful pop or the Grateful Dead. I was very fortunate to turn 14 in 1989 when there was something of a counter-culture on the rise. I am still a very proud music snob, yet I've learned not to judge people in this way anymore. It took quite a while, though, and even that recovery has SOME limits.
There was a scene in Nick Hornby's book, High Fidelity (that did not make it into the movie) where Rob and Laura go to another couple's house for dinner and hit it off, having an amazing time. Then Laura tells Rob to go to the living room to take a look at their record collection. It is AWFUL. He can't believe it, and of course he realizes that Laura knew this would happen.
I think about that fictional moment often, as a helpful reminder that who people are extends beyond their personal tastes.
I enjoyed this when I read it last year and love it just as much now. As I’ve gotten older I’ve tended (for the most part) to get rid of my music snobbery. I have embraced some of the music I used to be ashamed to admit to liking (such as ABBA and the Spice Girls) and really, let’s just let people like the kind of music they want to like.
ABBA were always cool in my book!