Remembering the musical influence of Elvis Presley:

“Elvis Presley Day” is observed on Aug. 16, the date the “King of Rock  ‘n’  Roll” died in 1977 at his Graceland estate in Memphis, Tenn. He was 42.

 

For good times’ sake, let’s review bits and pieces from the biography of Elvis Presley, who was born Jan. 8, 1935, in a two-room house in Tupelo, Miss. The young parents, Vernon Presley and Gladys Love Smith Presley, were expecting identical twins, but Jesse Presley was stillborn.

 

There was little money, but Vernon and Gladys did their best to provide for Elvis, who was the center of their lives. The family regularly attended church services, and Elvis was inspired by the spiritual music he heard performed there.

 

At age 10, Elvis stood on a chair at a microphone and sang “Old Shep” in a 1945 youth talent contest at the Mississippi-Alabama Fair and Dairy Show, held in Tupelo. 

The tune was a classic country and folk song written and recorded by Red Foley, with lyrics by Arthur Williams. It tells the story of a bond between a boy and his dog as they experience life’s adventures.

 

The talent show was broadcast live over WELO Radio (580 AM) in Tupelo. Winning fifth prize, Elvis received $5 worth of fair ride tickets. (This event marked the first public musical performance for Elvis Presley.)

In 1946, Elvis’ parents went to the Tupelo Hardware Company in search of a gift for the boy’s 11th birthday gift. Gladys Presley offered to buy a bicycle, but Elvis was more interested in a rifle. They reached a compromise in the form of a guitar.

 

The Presley family loaded up that guitar along with the rest of their belongings in 1948 to relocate to Memphis, about 110 miles northwest of Tupelo, in search of finding better jobs in a larger community on the banks of the Mississippi River.

Elvis attended L.C. Humes High School in Memphis and graduated with the Class of 1953. 

One of his classmates, Dwight Malone, would later comment: “Elvis was different. Most boys had crew cuts and wore T-shirts and blue jeans. Elvis would appear at school in a pink jacket and yellow pants and a duck tail haircut. He was quiet, very courteous and largely stayed to himself.”

“I did play touch football with him on the triangle at Lauderdale Courts,” Malone said. “He had very quick movements. He had those swivel hips even then. When he caught the ball, he was difficult to tag. He could swivel out of reach in a moment.”

“It was at the Humes Talent Show in April 1953 that I realized that Elvis could really sing. I remember his props were a chair, a guitar and a loud costume. He put one foot on the chair, strummed the guitar and sang his heart out” Malone said. “To me, that was when rock ‘n’ roll was born. The ovation was thunderous and long.”’

Yet, Elvis was insecure about his talent. Another classmate, Ed Leek, assumed leadership in providing a valuable service. Leek said: “Elvis would call me to ‘round up’ the bunch (about 16 of us) to come to wherever he was to perform. He was afraid there wouldn’t be anyone there if we didn’t come.”

That never seemed to be a problem, however, as Elvis Presley was quickly becoming the “talk of the town.”

 

Leek said he spotted Elvis $4 to make his first recording – a double-sided acetate demo single – at Sam Phillips’ Sun Records/Sun Studio (known as The Memphis Recording Service at the time.)

“It took him two months to get up the courage to do it,” Leek said. “My idea for Elvis was for him to make the record and knock on radio station doors to get it played and hopefully find him a singing job.”

Elvis merely wanted to “make the record” as a birthday gift for his mother. He chose to sing “My Happiness” and “That’s When Your Heartaches Begin.”

 

“My Happiness” was written by Borney Bergantine in 1933, with lyrics by Betty Peterson Blasco, and published for the first time in 1948. The song first became a hit in May 1948 as recorded by Jon and Sondra Steele.

(Connie Francis remade “My Happiness” in 1958, and her version ascended to No. 2 on the pop charts.)

 

“That’s When Your Heartaches Begin” is a 1937 song by Fred Fisher, William Raskin and Billy Hill. It was recorded and released the same year by Shep Fields Rippling Rhythm. 

The song first became popular following a 1941 recording by The Ink Spots (shown below).

 

Overseeing Elvis’ recording session in the studio was Marion Keisker, Phillips’ assistant. In her conversation with Elvis, she asked: “What kind of singer are you?” 

Elvis politely replied: “I sing all kinds, ma’am.”

“Who do you sound like?” she inquired further.

“I don’t sound like nobody.”

That comment resonated, and Marion Keisker remembered the encounter. Elvis was invited back to the recording studio in June 1954. Elvis ran through a number of popular tunes for Phillips, who was highly impressed.

 Sam Phillips, Elvis Presley and Marion Keisker

As a result, Phillips decided to team up Elvis with local musicians Scotty Moore (guitar) and Bill Black (bass) to see if together they could come up with something worthwhile.

That was the start of something good.

 

 

Elvis Presley made a ton of money very quickly, and he bought the Graceland property in 1957 as a family compound. 

He was a 22-year-old bachelor at the time. (His induction into the U.S. Army did not occur until 1958.)

 

Today, Graceland is the most popular tourism destination in Memphis.

Graceland was once part of a 500-acre farm that was owned by Stephen Cummings Toof Jr. and his wife, Mary Bates Toof. 

He was a Memphis printer and successful businessman. The property was named after their daughter, Grace Toof, who was an accomplished artist.

 

Ownership eventually passed to Grace’s niece, Ruth Frazer Brown Moore, and her husband, Dr. Thomas David Moore. He was a distinguished physician in the community. They built the Graceland mansion house in 1939.

In 1945, Dr. Moore was selected as chair of the Department of Urology at the University of Tennessee College of Medicine in downtown Memphis, which is the oldest public medical school in the state.

Dr. Moore enjoyed working with the cattle on the farm (above) as a form of relaxation. Ruth Frazer Brown Moore (below) is shown seated in the parlor. Their daughter is standing directly behind the chair.

Their daughter, Ruth Marie Moore, married Charles Pittman Cobb, a prominent Memphis attorney. 

When they inherited Graceland, Ruth Marie, who was “musically accomplished and the harpist with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra,” hosted classical musical recitals in the front formal rooms at Graceland.

They were just as common as the rock‘n’roll and gospel jam sessions would prove to be…after the new occupants – the Presley clan – moved into Graceland in 1957, nearly 70 years ago.