Forever Elvis

Death hasn't hurt the popularity of the King of Rock 'N' Roll

"Though I'm not the first king of controversy

I am the worst thing since Elvis Presley,

to do Black Music so selfishly

and use it to get myself wealthy (Hey)"

-- From "Without Me," Eminem

By Sam Blackwell ~ Southeast Missourian

Don't be cruel, Eminem. Elvis' fans would say he wasn't so much calculating as someone who had a genius for knowing a good song when he heard it.

At least the rap star understands Elvis' cultural significance. As Patrick Stewart, a music education student at Southeast Missouri State University, says of Elvis, "He was the messenger.

"... He brought African American-style rock 'n' roll into mainstream America. He slowly changed the course of American music."

The song that brought Elvis stardom, "That's All Right, Mama," was written and recorded by a black man named Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup. Elvis had heard him sing it on Beale Street in Memphis. The black blues singer Big Mama Thornton recorded "Hound Dog" before Elvis did.

But the power of Elvis' personality and talent reaches far beyond music. Since his death of a drug-induced heart attack 25 years ago today at age 42, Elvis the cultural icon perhaps has no equal. He is everywhere, from his picture on credit cards to the imitation of his catch phrases and mannerisms not only by comedians but by anyone seeking to be liked by someone else, from a plethora of movies starring Elvis impersonators who skydive or hold up banks to worshipful candlelight vigils that draw many thousands to Memphis on the anniversaries of his birth and death.

His costume is traditionally the most popular choice for children at Halloween. Graceland, the Memphis mansion where he lived, is the second most popular home tour in the nation behind the White House.

The phrase "Elvis has left the building" has become a universal way of saying the party's over.

Elvis' voice, which even detractors respect, has been reaching new ears this year through a minor 1968 hit titled "A Little Less Conversation." The remix by the Dutch artist DJ Junkie XL went No. 1 in Great Britain and has charted in the U.S.

Elvis' music is in the new Disney children's movie "Lilo & Stitch." Lilo is an Elvis fan. Three books about Elvis are scheduled to be published this year.

People who weren't yet born when Elvis died are well aware of him as a cultural figure, and some, like Stewart, listen to his music. He has three Elvis CDs: "The Number One Hits," "Heart and Soul" and "How Great Thou Art."

His strong affection for Elvis' music probably makes him an oddity among his classmates, Stewart said, but he doesn't care.

"The love songs work with the ladies."

A good beat

Kara Koeberl, a Southeast agri-business student from Jackson, has high regard for Elvis' musicianship. "The songs are upbeat and easy to sing to and dance to," she says. "They make you get happy.

"... I think he knew how to get people up and going. He knew what people liked,"

Elvis has sold more than a billion records around the globe, more than any other singer. Everybody in Japan knows about Elvis, says Toshi Ota, a Southeast speech major from Japan. "He was the first rockster," Ota says.

There is no "new Elvis" in popular culture, he says. "He was exceptional. People cannot imitate that."

Elvis was part of his cultural upbringing, says Jonathan Lowrance, a Southeast student who just spent the summer working at Yellowstone National Park. Lowrance's father grew up in Memphis and took him to see the shotgun house Elvis grew up in and to Graceland. "Being from Southeast Missouri, I feel a certain closeness to the culture," Lowrance says. "Even though I don't choose to listen to his music, he feels like a hometown kind of guy."

Some people claim immunity to Elvis. He has had no effect on her life, says Katie Roberts, a criminal justice student at Southeast who likes alternative rock. In fact, Elvis' name has a negative connotation for her.

"Because everybody is so crazy about him."

David Brown, a Southeast secondary education student, says he was "brainwashed" as a child by his parents listening to golden oldies stations during car trips. He likes late '60s music and acid rock in particular and has an appreciation for Elvis' cultural contribution. "He wasn't necessarily original. The African-American community had been making this music for decades," Brown said. "But since he was white, they put it on the radio."

Remembering an icon

Many old enough to remember Elvis' death have some sort of story about him. Beth Mapes of Cape Girardeau wishes she knew whether she was ever in the same room with Elvis.

While a nursing student in Memphis more than 35 years ago, Mapes went to a party at Graceland. The party was thrown for deejays, and Mapes' friend was dating one. Mapes saw many men who looked like Elvis. "There was a bunch of them that walked through," she said. "I couldn't tell which was Elvis. They all looked alike."

Mapes thinks that was a game Elvis played. "I was so disappointed," she said. "Somebody would say, 'Here he comes,' and I couldn't tell if it was him."

Dr. Gary Miller, chairman of the Department of Music at Southeast, is a multi-instrumentalist who gives organ recitals and performs with symphony orchestras. He is a big fan of Elvis.

"I always thought the world of him," Miller says.

The days when rock 'n' roll was developing produced a wealth of bad music and sloppy performances, Miller says. But Elvis surrounded himself with the best musicians, including the backup singers J.D. Sumner and the Stamps Quartet and the Sweet Inspirations, the latter known for their work with Aretha Franklin and many others.

Elvis' television specials were impeccably produced, Miller said, and his eclecticism told of his willingness to embrace many different kinds of music.

"He reflected a lot of what had happened musically."

Miller questions whether any entertainer of his ilk is at work today in popular music. "Sometimes you get the notion it's flavor of the month."

Those old enough to remember Elvis' death knew he was on a downward spiral from the peaks he had reached earlier in his creative life, Miller said.

"Had he lived, it would have been interesting to see where he went."

sblackwell@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 182