Elvis Presley

The "King" Elvis Presley has gone down in twentieth-century history as the man who sparked the rock'n'roll revolution, and his success has been marked by a string of classics. Born in Tupelo (Mississippi) on January 8, 1935, the son of a farm labourer and a seamstress, he developed a passion for the music he heard on the radio and in church, whether gospel, country, blues, rhythm'n'blues or popular song. In Memphis, where he grew up after receiving his first guitar, he tried his luck at Sam Phillips' Sun studio and, on July 5, 1954, recorded Arthur Crudup's cover of "That's All Right, Mama", in a trio with guitarist "Scotty" Moore and bassist Bill Black. Considered the birth certificate' of rock'n'roll, the song, followed by "Good Rockin' Tonight", "Mystery Train" and others, formed the basis of his style, synthesizing his influences. His audience, then local, became national with the signing of a contract with RCA, negotiated by his manager, "Colonel" Tom Parker. Released in 1956, No. 1 "Heartbreak Hotel" was the first in a series of hits that included the immortal "Don't Be Cruel", "Hound Dog", then "Love Me Tender", "Jailhouse Rock", "King Creole" and "Loving You", for the films of the same name in which the singer starred. Provoking scandal with his suggestive swaying during TV appearances, Elvis Presley focused the attention of America's youth and, with the multiplied sales of his records, bought the Graceland estate before he left for military service at a German base in 1958. When he returned two years later, although his fame had hardly waned thanks to the Elvis' Christmas Album (1957) and the Elvis' Golden Records compilations (1958), followed by For LP Fans Only, A Date with Elvis and 50,000,000 Fans Can't Be Wrong in 1959, his repertoire had shifted away from the original rock'n'roll to ballads such as "It's Now or Never", "Are You Lonesome Tonight? " ( 1960) and "Can't Help Falling in Love" (1961). Subsequently, the film roles that accumulated, with a total of thirty-two shoots showcasing his physique, were pretexts for as many soundtracks between a few albums, including How Great Thou Art (1967), devoted to gospel, and NBC's Elvis Special, which gave rise to his return in black leather on the album From Elvis in Memphis (1969) and its single "In the Ghetto", or the tribute Elvis Country (1971). After shows at the International Hotel in Las Vegas and Madison Square Garden, the Aloha from Hawaii concert via Satellite was broadcast live around the world in 1973. Living in seclusion on his estate and no longer recognisable, Elvis Presley died of cardiac arrest due to multiple drug ingestion, on August 16, 1977, at the age of 42. Since then, the legend of the "King of Rock'n'Roll" has continued to flourish, with a host of anthologies, reissues, previously unreleased works and projects such as Elvis Symphonique (2017).

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