The Legacy of Elvis Presley

18 July 2006 The Legacy of Elvis Presley USINFO Webchat transcript July 18 John Bakke, professor emeritus of the University of Memphis Communication Department, discusses Elvis Presley’s life, his times, and his continuing cultural impact in a USINFO webchat. Following is the transcript: (begin transcript) U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE Bureau of International Information Programs USINFO Webchat Transcript Guest: John Bakke Date: July 18, 2006 Time: 9 a.m. (1300 GMT) Elvis Presley’s Impact in America, the World USINFO WEBCHAT MODERATOR: Join Professor John Bakke on July 18 for a USINFO webchat on the life and times of Elvis Presley and his continuing cultural impact. QUESTION [mika]: I wanna know why you are interested in Elvis's life ANSWER [John Bakke]: I was a senior in high school when Elvis Presley performed in LaCrosse Wisconsin near my hometown in Northeast Iowa. There was great controversy about the way Elvis sang and performed and about who he was. World War II and the Korean War and all other problems had never been discussed with such enthusiasm as was the arguments about who Elvis was and what his music was about. I could see from personal experience that something was happening and I wanted to understand what. And I'm still asking the question about what that was. Q [William]: Do you believe any of the rumors that Elvis is still alive? A: No. I know that paramedic who was called to Graceland. Q [Jacek]: I went to Graceland a couple years ago. I was surprised how many people were there. How many visitors come each year? A: Approximately 750,000 people visit Graceland each year. Outside of the White House, it is the most visited home in America. Q [Saxena]: A white man with black soul is Elvis. May there be more like him? A: I think Elvis Presley was a man with a deeply human soul, large enough to be sensitive to blacks, whites, and all human beings. Elvis had the capacity to draw from all of the influences in our culture. And yes, I wish there were more like him who were able to do that. Q [josianeAPC]: What was the first song of Elvis Presley? A: The first song that Elvis Presley recorded was one he made at the Memphis Recording Service that was supposedly made for his mother. The name of it was "My Happiness" and on the flip side he records "That's When My Heartache Begins." These songs were made popular by a local group, The Ink Spot. Elvis's first commercial recording was "That's All Right Mama," recorded on July 8, 1954. Q [mika] Did black people appreciate his music at that time? A: Black people at that time appreciated his music very much. In Memphis, when Elvis appeared at the WDIA Music Review, which included only black performers, and was hosted by the late Rufus Thomas, as soon as Elvis was brought on stage he was literally mobbed and cheered. African Americans in the 1950s appreciated Elvis's music for its own sake and saw it as a means to which there owns music would become better and more widely known. Q [josianeAPC]: Hi John Bake I’d like to know who is Elvis Presley? A: So would a lot of other people, including me. Q [Mirija]: What make him a famous person in the world? A: Elvis Presley's voice was remarkable in the sense that through it, he touched people in a way only great artists can do. The people he touched are as diverse as humanity itself and because of that, his popularity has transcended race, class, national boundaries, and culture. There is no simple answer about why that is so. All I can say is he had that magic, the magic of the artist. When Elvis Presley was first popular, many people said that he did not have a good voice. Almost everyone today knows that he did, but more people today should see him not simply as a performer with a good voice, but as an artist with a great soul. Q [Jacek]: Elvis was young when he died. If he was still alive today, do you believe he could be such a legend? A: People who die young, after having accomplished great things, tend to become legends. James Dean, Martin Luther King, John Kennedy, and Jesus Christ himself all died young and became legends. The fact that Elvis died so young certainly contributed to his life as a legend. However, Elvis was a legend in his own time. Marlon Brando, while living a longer life, still remains a legend. The accomplishments of Elvis Presley, the artist, are and were legendary and would be so, no matter what. Q [Margy]: Do you think that Elvis could have been as big as a star if he was born in another country? Or is he uniquely American? A: Elvis Presley had the talent to become a star no matter what country he was born in, but being born as an American, particularly at a time when America was on the verge of technological and cultural change, Elvis Presley expressed the conflicting values of a generation reared in security yet longing for freedom. Growing up in a time of conformity, Elvis Presley reasserted the very essence of American individuality. In his life and music, therefore, he remains uniquely American. Q [Jacek]: Do you think it is possible today for ANY musician to get to the level of Elvis? He sang all sorts of music, rock, ballads, hymns etc. Nobody does that anymore. A: One of the great things about Elvis Presley, which was really not appreciated until after he died, was the fact that he sang so many different kinds of music. There are performers today who have a variety of interests, but no one who can sing so many kinds of styles so very well. Therefore, while we have many great musical artists today, many of whom I personally appreciate, I don't think any will rise to the level of Elvis. Q [Margy]: How many records did Elvis make in his lifetime? A: Ernst Jorgensen, in his book, "Elvis Presley: A Life in Music," provides a count of every record Elvis performed. If I could get to the end, I could give you an exact count. Instead, I'll tell you that Elvis sold enough records to go around the world about three times. Q [Stephanie]: Are those crazy stories about Elvis and the bacon sandwiches true? A: Probably. Elvis loved peanut butter and banana sandwiches, fried with lots of pure butter. I know an Elvis fan who was an elementary school teacher who served her class peanut butter and banana sandwiches on Elvis's birthday. I also know members of the Elvis in group, or what was called the "Memphis Mafia," who were forced, or strongly induced, to join Elvis in eating his peanut butter and banana sandwiches whenever he wanted them to. They were not happy about this, but they did not want to displease The King. Q [mika] I'm from Madagascar here in Indian Ocean. We have a famous singer, her name is ANYAH, r'nb style, she sang Elvis' song. So, I'd like to know about the copyright. A: None of Elvis's performances are copyrighted, but most of the songs he sang have been copyrighted through BMI, one of the major publishing companies in the United States. I believe it is headquartered in Nashville. Q [Stephanie]: Is Elvis bigger in any country than the U.S.? Where else is Elvis very popular? A: Based on the recent visit to Memphis by the Prime Minister of Japan, I'm not sure where Elvis is the biggest at this particular time. However, the United States is still the country where Elvis is the most appreciated, but he is appreciated all over the world, particularly now in Japan and in Germany, two countries who were enemies of the United States back in World War II. Times change, don't they? Q [Mirija]: What was his problem which he couldn't resolve during his life? A: Like most of us, Elvis probably had many problems that he could not resolve during his life. He never got over his separation from Priscilla, but deeper than that, he never got over the fact that as a human being he was a prisoner of his own experience. In other words, his separation from the rest of humanity. In his novel, "From Here to Eternity," James Jones wrote that being human was like being a cell in a bee hive--you were a part of something, but you could not get through the walls. Especially after his mother died, Elvis had a profound sense of loneliness. If you want to sense how he felt, you might listen to his gospel recording called "Where No One Stands Alone." One of the Jordanaires (Elvis's backup group) told me recently that when Elvis sang that song, he looked at him and said, "This is too much," and he never sang it again. The song is about being in Heaven, where no one stands alone. Elvis used music to reach out and touch people, but in the process never overcame his own sense of loneliness even though he made people feel togetherness. The problem that Elvis never overcame was the problem of being human, and I suspect that he couldn't overcome it until he reached the place where no one stands alone. WEBCHAT MODERATOR: You mentioned Pricilla. I understand that she was instrumental in making Graceland popular after Elvis' death and nurturing the Elvis legend.

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