Today is Elvis' birthday. If he had lived to this point, he would have turned 75 today. Whether you agree or not, the fact is that no one in music history has ever had the effect that this one guy had on the music we listen to. You point out the Beatles and Michael Jackson, Led Zepplin, Wings (who had more success than the Beatles, just weren't noticed for it) and dozens of others who have sold records, put on fabulous shows, the Stones were recently named band of the decade for all the money they have made touring in the 2000s, and the beat goes on...and I have thrived on all of it...I LOVE ROCK AND ROLL (thanks Joan). But if you weren't around when it happened, you can not understand the impact that Rockabilly-cum-Rock and Roll had on record companies, radio stations, TV shows, movies, and concert halls. I was given an old Philco radio when I was about seven years old. It was huge and heavy and had a curved wood case and could pick up several bands of transmissions. I could listen to ships at sea, planes in the air, and ham operators talking to each other. But the AM band was my favorite. KCBQ in San Diego was just changing format from what we now refer to as the "old pop standards" to jump on this new stuff...they were calling it Rockabilly. There were lots of young guys doing it, Elvis did it in '55, too. But in '56 something happened. Elvis came out with some songs that were beyond the Rockabilly sound, they were different, he was different, and suddenly his name (who would pick a name like "Elvis", anyway) was everywhere. He was on a few TV shows before Ed Sullivan, but when he showed up nationwide on that Sunday night, he instantly became the "King" of Rock and Roll, and rightfully so. Believe it or not, through most of '57, there raged a heated controversy over who was the "real" king. The leading contender? Pat Boone. Really. Not Jerry Lee, not Johnny Cash or any of dozen others, not even Buddy Holly...Boone?
I became an avid listener to the new wave, the next big thing, and learned the words and beat to every new rock and roll song that came out of my speaker. My mom, Betty Lou, joined me in my enthusiasm for Elvis. She would sing along with me and the King when his songs came on. I think his name appealed to her Okie roots more than anything. In 1958, when Betty Lou and the Chief bought their first hi-fi record player, the first album they bought to play on it was Elvis. Second was Hank Williams.
I actually saw Elvis live at the Block Arena in Pearl Harbor when he did the Arizona Memorial benefit concert in 1961. I kind of lost interest later when he became the Las Vegas Elvis. I felt bad when he became the fat, forgetful, disoriented Elvis. I felt really bad the day he died. I don't know what he would be like if he had lived this long, but the image of a jump-suited, dyed black pompadour, sweaty-scarfed Elvis at 75 is creepy. I prefer to remember the magic man that took the stage a block arena in 1961, the one who was the king.