All Quotes

"When I was a kid, we moved from Canada to the US, first to Pasadena, then to Palm Springs. This guy who lived across the street was the PS's airport manager and he really liked us, so he’d tip us off when famous people were flying in. One day, he told us Elvis Presley was flying in at 3 p.m. and if we showed up we could meet him. He let us ride with our bikes on the tarmac and then, this private plane landed, the steps came down and... there was Elvis. We ran towards him and he picked me up and swung me around, hugged my sister, signed autographs, and talked to us. Finally, one of his guys told him they had to go, but as they drove off, he rolled down his window and waved goodbye to us all the way down the road. He was so nice, really cool and it was so great to meet him and shake his hand.."

"The emergent cultural wars between Mexico and the US over rock 'n' roll, however, took a dramatic turn on 19 February 1957 when a comment gleaned from an alleged border interview with Elvis Presley appeared in Mexico's largest newspaper, "Excelsior", in which the rock 'n' roll star was quoted as saying, "I'd rather kiss three black girls than a Mexican." Two days later, a Mexican woman was quoted in the same column as saying, "I'd rather kiss three dogs than one Elvis Presley." At first unnoticed by the public at large, this exchange soon unleashed a torrent of anti-Presley criticism, his records were burnt at the Zocalo, and he was denied radio airplay, all of which while sustaining a powerful backlash against Presley and the mass media itself. Most people now dismiss the remark as completely false, some even attributing it to an act of political vengeance against him. In fact, it had been started by a high-up Mexican tycoon who wanted to contract Presley for a private birthday party, for which he sent him a blank check to fill in as he wished. Presley, according to the story, returned the blank check, so the tycoon, extremely offended, and with the help of a top politician, invented the storyline about Elvis not liking Mexican women."

"Once a year Parkes, a sleepy mining town in rural Australia, explodes into colour and song hosting a five-day festival and extravaganza to celebrate Elvis Presley, now billed as the southern hemisphere’s biggest tribute to the superstar. The town’s transformation extends beyond this year’s Parkes Elvis Festival generating A$13 million (US$9.3 million) for the local economy as more than 27,000 people visited to attend some 200 themed events. "It’s helped the whole economy", noted Parkes Motel owner Andrew Porter of the frenzied growth in tourists. The New South Wales state government is projecting an injection of Aus $43 million (US̩30.6 million) into the wider region surrounding Parkes this year due to the festival, a much-needed source of income amid a severe drought as the event has helped develop Parkes' service economy – and its numbers. This extends to the sporting field with another regular fixture – a rugby game – featuring teams with players wearing copies of his trademark white jumpsuit. The population has increased by four percent to around 12,000 in the past decade, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, in sharp contrast to the declining or static trend in other regional and rural towns. Inspired by the Parked Elvis Festival huge success, other small towns have started their own events such as the ABBAFestival in nearby Trundle and the Bob Marley Festival in Kandos, said University of Wollongong Human Geography expert Chris Gibson, who has compiled a database of some 2,800 festivals across the country..."

"It hit home when I turned 42 as that was the age when my father died. I have moments when I wish he had lived to see my children, and I speak to my little ones about him. I tell them who he was and we all love his music."

"Steve Sholes, who produced the session, said, “Roll the tape.” And I said, “But I haven't heard the song yet!” And he said, “Roll the tape, Bill!” and I look and the studio is totally black out there. I can't see a thing. I said, “You're kidding!” He said, “No, roll the tape!”. So, I roll the tape and I don't know what's going to happen. And a guitar starts off, and then a bass comes in, and Elvis starts singing. And I still can't see a thing in the studio. And I'm afraid to turn any mikes off because somebody may come in and start playing. All of a sudden, Elvis stops singing and just starts talking. And I say to myself, “This is awful!” because you don't normally put a lot of echo on dialogue. And I thought, next take I'll just turn it down, so we just did the take all the way through. If you listen to the dialogue, the echo matches the effect, because he says, “And the stage is bare, and I'm standing there…”. Later, I said, “How about that echo?”. Sholes said, “Screw the echo, that's a hit!”. And it was done in one take..."

"This was a white kid in the 1950s going on Beale Street, learning from masters of black music like Roy Hamilton, Jackie Wilson and others. He was different, interesting, but not something you felt the magnitude of at first – not until you heard Dewey Phillips playing 'That's All Right' on [his radio show] 'Red, Hot & Blue'. Hearing what he was doing, singing black music with a confidence and a uniqueness, made me and other African-American talents say, 'This guy has something'. And he did! We felt that maybe he was opening up a market that had been not fully opening up to black music, breaking down barriers to a greater appreciation of what black music truly was. That opened up more doors for artists like Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Fats Domino, Brook Benton and so many others. We felt that maybe he was opening up a market that had been not fully opening up to black music, breaking down barriers to a greater appreciation of what black music truly was. That opened up more doors for artists like Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Fats Domino, Brook Benton and so many others. He was soulfully expressing the songs with an r'n'b flair, showing what black music was through his perspective. What Elvis did for me was cement in my mind the great potential reach of r'n'b and soul music. The credibility that he bought to it, whether he viewed it that way or not, doesn't matter, because this was the net result. What Elvis did for me was cement in my mind the great potential reach of r'n'b and soul music. The credibility that he bought to it, whether he viewed it that way or not, doesn't matter, because this was the net result.This documentary gives the complete picture of the person, his greatness, some of his secrets, some of his ups, some of his downs and an abundance of his power. And people would love to see how much of a production role Elvis had in the music that he made. It was a real honor for us at Stax Records, for [Elvis] to record there. He was as soulful as anyone. He was amazing at whatever he chose to do."

"I think Elvis was just a beautiful singer He had the swag. He had the sauce."

"The 21st century is beginning to see (and hear) things differently, though, and many of us now take a broader view of Caruso's art and achievement (and thus) when Ben Watt compares the great tenor with Elvis Presley is a sign of more enlightened times. The digital age gives us unfettered access to the whole of music, unfiltered by snobbery and tradition, and perhaps Caruso can be released from the stale old classical ghetto. In his time, he was indeed as good as Elvis."

"I'm customized to do everything I shouldn't do, I've learned all that I know by stubbornness and (the) blue I got my schooling more or less on the street, My eyes have seen a thing or two. And though my heart has made me weary,I like everything about you, yes I do, yes I do, yes I do, yes. I like the way you look, the way that you talk I like the way that you move when you walk, My mind is set on you,My pelvis is on fire And I can't shake it off"

"Elvis was a (Gospel) singer par excellence. On "Milky White Way", (1960), he' got the strength of a bassman and the sweetness of a tenor. The heritage we have in Elvis' gospel music is a gift to the world."

"There was a real threat of danger, a cold war with an iron curtain and there was a Soviet army stacked up on the other side, so those were serious times. He was just another soldier, he was Elvis Presley but at the same time they assigned him in accordance with the needs of the service and unlike others who have gone in the military from celebrity life and essentially used their talents to entertain troops, he was a scout. Despite living in a house "off post", when it came to the field Elvis Presley was not a celebrity and I think his fellow soldiers respected him for his dedication even though he was as famous as he was. When I met him, he was out in the field and he was recognized for his professional performance in the Third Division which I, interestingly, subsequently commanded 28 years later and it occupied the shallowest part of NATO battle front. Elvis' unit and my unit were in that division and we had the toughest job and it was a time of heightened tension. Anyway, we were in this wooded area and I was driving along in my jeep and somebody noted that, there he was. When I walked over to him he saluted and was very proper and what struck me was that he looked just like another GI. Other than the fact that he was REALLY Elvis Presley, he acted, and I saw him, as just another soldier, in the woods, kind of dirty, doing a job...""

"The Denver Zoo hopes that 11-year-old polar bear, Cranbeary may be expecting. But to be sure, staff sent a sample of her poop to an expert at predicting polar bear pregnancies – Elvis, a beagle working with the Cincinnati Zoo. It is nearly impossible to determine if polar bears are pregnant through traditional tests, so zoos are trying this new approach. Denver Zoo is one of 17 zoos with possibly-pregnant polar bears that have gathered up samples for Elvis to examine. Elvis has a 97 percent success rate in determining polar bear pregnancy and we are anxiously waiting to find out if Cranbeary the polar bear might become a momma bear this year!"

"As to Elvis, some experts believe that the release of music he did not approve in life can reward his fans, but at the same time could end up hurting his legacy over the long term. While alive, he almost always only released music he thought was great but after his death, many of the songs he thought were not, were released on new albums. This is one reason many artists prefer to keep their material under wraps forever."

"i) When you got the last name Presley everybody's gonna get the question, are you related to Elvis? Well, my granddaddy and Elvis' granddaddy were brothers. In fact mine carried Elvis and Gladys down to visit Vernon, his daddy, at the state penitentiary, when he did a little time for altering a check. ii) Mississippi is proud of Elvis. I think his story was a story of somebody that started off with nothing"

"I would continue to do the Elvis Presley show because it is something that's been in my life for years and I won't let it down,"

"Baby let's play house" and "Don't be cruel"

"I dont think as far a screen image is concerned, there is no one like him"

"i) I still find myself captivated by many of Elvis's songs, his style of translating lyrics with music giving the listener the sense that even though he's singing, he's speaking his feelings and living them throughout the song. When I listen to “Don’t,” which he recorded when he was only 22-years-old, I can't imagine anyone else singing this heartfelt song with such an emotional connection to the words. ii)his taste was so diverse. Yes, country, rhythm and blues, black music, but he also loved opera and Bach and Brahms. By setting his vocals in a pop-classical context, I wanted to expose him in a way that he never had the opportunity to — wanted to, but never was able to..."

"After what seemed to be an eternity, a baby boy was born, dead. I was desolate at the loss of our child. But then my father put his hand on my wife’s stomach and announced, ‘Vernon, there’s another baby her. At the time Elvis was born, medicine hadn’t advanced far enough for a doctor to predict twins, so his arrival took us completely by surprise. Gladys and I were so proud of Elvis and enjoyed him so much that we immediately wanted more children. But, for reasons no doctor could understand, we had none after him."

"Elvis laughed, cried, worried about people. He had a generous streak as long as the mighty Mississippi and delighted in being able to help people. He could be angry, funny, sad or happy, just like everyone else. He had all these little traits just like other people, but he was a lot more too. He became a part of our lives and even with his closely guarded privacy, he drew us into his life so willingly and lovingly that he was, in fact, a part of each and every one of us. He made us sing because of his songs, he made us cry at every pain, either mental or physical that he bore, he made us laugh at every little grin he gave, but most of all, he made us love because he gave us love. He gave us himself and asked us for nothing in return."

"I was about 10 years old, the first time I heard Elvis Presley's voice, pouring from my father's car radio, in East St. Louis, Illinois; I can't recall the song, whether it was a ballad or a rocker (but), what I remember is how his voice, that smoldering rumble of a voice, made my skin tingle; I don't know why, but I just loved his voice, his sound just did something to me."

"Elvis recorded “Lawdy Miss Clawdy” and, at every show, he played it. The Beatles, Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Fats Domino, James Brown —all the big acts who have ever recorded rock ‘n’ roll at one time recorded it. It was the first rock ‘n’ roll song that made me a teenage idol with both blacks and whites. In 1952, it was called race music. What opened the gate here in America for race music was that generation of young white boys and girls, but when Elvis got in, he opened the door that much wider. In fact, all the chords are the same, they're not black and white, unless it's on paper. The music and melodies never change."

"He was breathtaking, really, it was very difficult to focus.."

"i) I realize I'm part of a musical history and I revere the legacy of my predecessors, so, for instance, when playing live I'll do some of their bombs, or say, we play "Jailhouse Rock" as a tribute to Elvis. So why Elvis you ask? Well, I was brought up in a black and white world. I dig black and white; night and day, rich and poor, man and woman. I listen to all kinds of music and I want to be judged on the quality of my work, not on what I say, nor on what people claim I am, nor on the color of my skin. ii) I met Elvis Presley at the Dick Clark show at Circus Circus in Las Vegas, a place where a great musical extravaganza with some of the greatest artists of the day always would appear. We were sitting in the audience and Jackie Wilson had just finished his set and then Dick Clark came out, but before he introduced the next act he wanted to announce someone special had arrived, "Ladies and Gentlemen" The lights went down and all of a sudden spotlights went to the back of the room. I looked around and it was Elvis, He was looking cool and wearing shades. He snatched his shades off as if saying "Hello Everybody!, then came walking down the aisle to his table and he saw Louise, stopped said "Hi Louise. Hi Nikki" and they started talking. I stood up and he said "Hi." I said "Hi, I'm Pepe. It's nice to meet you." I shook his hand. He said something else to Louise, and then said "See you later" and went to his table. By the time I was in Las Vegas, I had already met tons of celebrities-- Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, Patti LaBelle and the Bluebells, Dionne Warwick and Wayne Newton. I also met Ike and Tina Turner. I drank champagne with Adam Clayton Powell and I met Redd Foxx but, when I saw Elvis, I said, now that man's a star. It was a different kind of thing.""

"We've come up with a different style in this album. Elvis' “Can’t Help Falling in Love” is a perfect “wedding song” that was somewhat difficult to adapt, but we wanted a new generation to feel it the bachata way."

"The Prince de Galles has counted among its guests Winston Churchill, Marlene Dietrich Elvis Presley and Pele to name but a few of the long list. It is located in Avenue George V, and it's the eastern neighbour of the Hotel George V. – named after the King of England, who, as we all know, was the father of the Prince of Wales. The two hotels, however, bear no family relationship..."

"( That night) after eleven o'clock, Tony Prince took over on ( Radio) Luxembourg. Dazed, frequently in tears, just quietly playing Elvis records and reminiscing into the small hours, as long as it took him to negotiate his grief. The world stopped for a little while. Not long afterwards, it was time for me to return to school, for the start of my third year, when we were supposed to start taking this education thing seriously. There was some gentle mocking on the part of my classroom peers over Elvis' passing, and it struck me that, for nearly everyone my age (or so it seemed), Elvis didn't speak for them, or to them. It's fair to say that the girls in my class tended to like Abba, Boney M, ELO and David Soul, whereas the boys went for Genesis, Queen, AC/DC and Rush. Elvis was somebody your parents liked, regarded as something of a square. I am not sure whether any of these artists came close to sniffing Elvis shoes, never mind filling them, and in any case nor could they have done; as only Elvis could have unbolted the door, made the impact on life – not just on music – that he did. If the postwar generation wanted to burn, not just forget, “the war,” and not grow up as robotic replicas of their parents, Elvis was the active agent who forced newness through to that society." ii) When in 1972, I was made president of the Elvis Presley fan club, we took 200 fans to Vegas to see him. Parker invited 11 of us down to the dressing room and suddenly there he was, leaning against the wall. He had a black suit on, and the first thing that hit you was how handsome the guy was. He came over and was very polite, and I started to interview him for my show, The following year I went back, taking my programme director Ken Evans with me. Elvis was one of the few stars Ken had never met. To return the favour, when we arrived in LA, he took my wife Christine and I to spend an afternoon with Mae West. She gave us some carrot cake and tea. Elvis yesterday, Mae West today. We were buzzing! Tony Prince for the Guardian, published on 4 December 2016. Unquote"

"My Fellowship took me to the USA and UK looking at local history – my research problem was to ask where will the next generation of volunteers come from to manage our historical societies – what programs have been successfulin “firing up” a passion for local history? From there, it took me to historical societies scattered amongst the “knee high by the 4th of July” corn fields of Indiana, to Nashville where the American headquarters of local history sits between the Civil War and Elvis Presley, to Illinois, to Washington, to Troy in New York State, New York City, London and finally Norfolk. It was a brilliant mix of the “grass roots” to the more established; from country societies to more urban;from entirely volunteer run, to historical societies with eighty staff; from the “can do”culture in the USA, to well funded from the Heritage Lotter and , policy driven programs in the UK."

"He was good. I mean, all the girls liked him, and there is a film of that performance, somewhere."

"Elvis had the biggest impact on me, he captured and embodied the whole thing. He had that rockabilly, rock and roll, pop and ballad thing. He was all wrapped up into one for me. I loved listening to “Heartbreak Hotel” and “Don’t Be Cruel,” and I just looked forward to each and every new song that came out.”"

"He had gone through the divorce with Priscilla, but he was definitely there to work. And this guy could do anything vocally. He could croon with Sinatra or scream with Little Richard. And what (I) admired the most about Presley -- then and now -- was his intelligence. especially when it came to human emotions."

"The greatest voice of all time."

"My own musical ambitions were born when I was five, watching the Ed Sullivan Show on TV. When Elvis Presley burst on to the screen, singing 'Don't Be Cruel,' I felt my first sexual thrill, though I didn't know what it was at the time."

"Based on our company's recent growth, his items have resonated with shoppers, with overall sales in the previous 52-week period ending January 22, 2017 advancing 26% as a result of sale of products bearing his name alone. His is one of the fastest-growing segments in the beauty industry."

"When I was riding the bus to school every morning, I would usually see Elvis sitting at the corner of Alabama and Poplar, listening to a black man in a chair playing a guitar. He wanted to play and sing like that man. He was a country boy with big dreams. After he became famous he did something to thank every person who ever helped him in any way."

"At age 25, Lennon wrote “Run For You Life,” a jealous, immature rant inspired by Elvis Presley's recording of Arthur Gunter's “Baby, Let’s Play House,” a song written from the perspective of a spurned lover who wants his former girlfriend with college aspirations to return to him. Elvis performed it live with hips a-thrusting, leaving little doubt as to what he had in mind by “house play.” In the last verse Elvis delivers this dire warning: “Now listen to me, baby, try to understand, I’d rather see you dead little girl than to be with another man.” Lennon's song picks up where “Baby, Let’s Play House” finishes, Most disturbingly, at the end of the song Lennon emphasizes his seriousness: “Let this be a sermon, I mean everything I’ve said; baby, I’m determined and I’d rather see you dead."

"I was a kid of my own generation, so I loved Fats Domino, Chuck Berry and Elvis before I was a teen..."

"The 2018 Pohottuwa Party victory is a Mahinda Rajapaksa victory. At all election rallies, the former President was cheered like mad when he arrived on the platform. It reminded me of Elvis Presley, who was virulently hated and deeply loved in equal proportions throughout his career. But Elvis did not care, he continued singing."

"I grew up playing sports and listening to Elvis Presley, whose music I favored; in fact, when an opera singer came on the "Ed Sullivan Show", I'd think 'Turn this off,'""

"My favourite artists have always been Elvis and The Beatles and they still are!"

"Even as a child, I studied him. I watched videos, I read books, I found every song I could possibly find. One of my favorites was a collection of early Sun Records recordings that included outtakes, and I would just listen over and over to the sound of this young, uncertain, shy Elvis continually and frustratingly f*** up the same song over and over again. And Sam Phillips saying ‘don’t get so damn close to the mic, Elvis.’ Just getting to hear that, and getting to hear his voice crack, and something about the nervous laughter of the King himself — I don’t know, it just made me feel like it was OK for me to not be perfect. I loved Elvis so much that I convinced myself that I had a spiritual connection to him. I really thought that when leaned over to buckle my…second daughter into her car seat and I sang ‘Blue Moon’ …and she smiled at me for the very first time. Then I knew I did have a spiritual connection. Even a couple weeks before that, even being invited to this, my oldest daughter, completely unprompted, said ‘I think I have a spiritual connection to Elvis.’ I had never told her — or anyone — that I felt the same for much of my life. So, something about the Ramseys and the Presleys, we got a direct line!”"

"I had done some soundtrack things earlier in the sixties with him. I never felt Elvis was a man out of time. What you have to understand is that his music never died. You know, at the time, a lot of people were saying he didn’t have a hit record for a couple of years; his career is over. I never thought that at all. It never would enter my mind. Because I know, from the first time I saw him on Ed Sullivan to the days I got to work with him, that this guy could go on forever. The only guy who will stop this guy from going on is himself. That night in 1968 I got the Elvis call. I remember one thing, it was on a Saturday and we all were making a fortune. Double scale. Golden time. Big time. I know this was a little different for Elvis working with us. Sometimes he sang live with us and sometimes he overdubbed. As a matter of fact he sat down at the piano with me a few times for me to straighten out the part he had to sing on ‘Jailhouse Rock.’ We were on the incidental and interstitial music that was all over the soundtrack. What’s more important than hearing Elvis in headphones is that I got to hear him as a human being, having chats, going back and forth. He had a musicality to him. Look, Elvis has innate musical skills. I guess we were all taking Elvis into a different world. It was a completely different thing for him from the A band, or the Memphis band. Just having the Blossoms on the sessions. Elvis loved the Blossoms. He knew Darlene Love and he was now playing with the Wrecking Crew. Hal Blaine, Tommy Tedesco, Mike Deasy, Tommy Morgan, Chuck Berghoffer, Frank De Vito, vocal contractor BJ Baker and yoursutruly."

"In 1958 at the age of 17 Otis started his professional singing career, briefly touring with the “Pat Tea Cake” band before forming his own band, “The Pinetoppers” in 1959, with well known Macon guitarist Johnny Jenkins. The Pinetoppers performed Elvis songs and country music songs in the Macon area. They also toured on the “Chitlin’ circuit," a network of black nightclubs throughout the Southeast and the white frat house circuit across the Deep South."

"A singer, at work, is usually thinking only about making it through the song without flubbing it. Look what's involved: breathing plausibly, remembering the lyrics, nailing the high notes, staying with your band or chorus, maintaining a soulful facial expression and looking good. You might also be whacking a guitar. And -- because Presley did -- you also have to move, oscillate, arm-wrestle with the microphone, throttle it, skid across the stage on your knees, fling your head back and spread your arms; and then you want to salt it with what you possess of art...he flings his voice up beyond the grip of gravity, and then surrenders, like a skater in a leap."

"Musicians like Elvis Presley and Whitney Houston were strongly rooted in gospel music and in the same vein, many musicians of Christian faith begin their musical journey young. In fact, lessons and performances take place in and around the church."

"I would have loved to sing a duet with my childhood idols, Elvis and Piaf. And I will soon, thanks to new technology"

"I've always said I wish my life could be like an Elvis movie, say "Roustabout and "King Creole. And that if "Cold Case" came back today, and we could could reunite, that we somehow were able to discover that Elvis is still alive."

"i) In the early 1950's I DJ'ed in a radio program called "Hillbilly Bandwagon". This was before country music was called country music. So, one day, a guy walks in by the name of Elvis Presley. This was before he was really famous, age 19, I guess. He had come to plug his records at our station, so I had a brief conversation with him. Of course, I was always very proud to have met him, but my wife when I told the story too often, she finally looked at me, smiled as only a wife can smile, and said "I can beat that, HOG...."", That is how she calls me when she is going to tell me something awesome, and that was when I found out my wife had dated Elvis when she was 16 years old. And now she never ceases to remind me, you know, that if things had gone differently, Elvis Presley would be alive today and anchoring the CBS News ii) Fidel Castro could have been Cuba's Elvis."

"We don’t mail Elvis a Social Security check, no matter how many people think he is alive."

"When I think about my family, I listen to André Rieu, a violinist and conductor who is very popular in Europe ( but), when I think about living like it’s my last day on earth, I listen to Elvis Presley"