Elvis' Ever Lasting Attraction - And Some !

[NightRider]

Whats the attraction. Well...for me its the whole thing. The man, the image, the music, the films......everything elvis did, i have to say i liked.

But why ?

Whilst at school at the time of elvis' death, boy did i go through it. The constant comments - Drug addict - fat overated pile of ****. Did it break me ? Did it put me off ? No way ( though i had many scrapes defending him i recall )

There was just something about elvis that stands him head and shoulders above every other artist(s) that ever lived.

The 50's image was incredible. It was the first image i remember. The first album i ever heard was Golden Records Vol 2. Man, i was amazed.

This guy was incredible. The sound was so raw...his voice so full of energy...immense.
The image itself...cool...but very mysterious...kinda rebel like. I loved it. I rememeber slicking my hair with b-cream ( when i had hair that was :cry: ) and loving the way it looked.

Then i bought From Elvis In Memphis. To this very day it remains one of, if not the, favourite album by anyone...ever.
Every part of it was absolute class. God ****...his voice was even better than in the 50's.

Before long it was to the record shop as soon as i had any spare cash at all. Elvis Is Back followed.......then Elvis' Golden Records....... then King Creole...Loving You......GI Blues....man i was hooked.

About a year later i had managed to get hold of From Elvis Presley BLVD.
That surprised me. The rawness had gone and there was a deep passionate voice...so different to what i had heard before.
But that is the amazing thing. I loved it.
Whatever he sung it seemed not to matter.

That, to me is one of the biggest attractions of all.

Whether Rock'n'Roll,country,blues,gospel or ballads...one thing always remained. Elvis' voice was incredible. He could sing whatever style he chose to.

Then, on coming home from school one day it happened. The news was full of it. Elvis was no more....A shock to the system would be a very mild way of putting it. :cry: I could not believe it.............

All that did in the end was make me more determined to buy more.

All the press, seemingly enjoying the moment was sickening.

But elvis still remained. To his fans he still does, the music and the image still does. That will live on.....young fans on this board prove that

And now, for me its the 70's elvis that stands out .
The lights, the audience, the man in the incredible suits and that truly unmistakable voice.

There are not many,if any, could perform 'live' like elvis. ( ok, we know that there are a few low points during his live career ) When elvis was on the ball...there was/is no live act like him.

But thats enough rambling from me.
A few words trying to explain elvis' attraction to me - with a few little detours along the way

So now.....its your turn

[E.L.V.I.S]

im 16 and wasnt even a twinkle in my moms eye when elvis passed away in 1977, so i can give you a first hand view of being the next generation of elvis fans....

the thing which got me hooked on elvis was simple, this guy was cool like a singing james bond this guy sung like an angel this guy was simply a gift from the heavens ....

my life as an elvis fan started when my dad gave me about 10 lp's i think it was.... anyway they were like gold to me, even though they were nothing rare i believed they were gold.i would clean them, i would write down the label colour, the country the lp was made , even the the cat number and i was bloody 11 years old
i have to admit like nightrider said it does really hurt when you hear people say somthing about elvis, side burns, fat, old fashioned ive heard it all, i personally blame those god **** impersonators any way when hearing this rubbish remarks of elvis i would simply take them on the chin and keep loving elvis as much as ever....

when about 14 i started using gel to get my hair in the elvis 50's style, man i looked a prat . now elvis is just a part of normal day life for me....elvis posters, elvis records, elvis books, elvis scarf's, elvis badges i got them all....my house is like a little elvis gold mine... and i love it!!!!

aron
p.s. i know this was real boring

[Elvis' Babe]

i grew up listening to elvis since before i can remember. since birth probably.

when i was 3 i still remember one night, i was in the tv room and i was in my daddy's arms and we danced to "i can't help falling in love with you" on the radio (back when san diego had a pro-elvis radio station...i haven't heard him since)...

when i was in my later years of elementary school (all through the spice girls days) i listened to elvis and oldies. i was ridiculed by friends who thought i was weird to be sitting with a stack of my (now lame-a$&#036 compilation cds listening to jailhouse rock and all shook up over and over and over and over and over and over again.

i remember having the cd player brought over to the pool in the backyard, and id play the compilation hits while i was swimming and stuff. this is like in elementary school...

little did my parents know i would soon be diagnosed with an obsessive disorder called aspergers syndrome (i had a few other obsessions--the one that condemned me i refuse to even admit to)...

anyway, so i always had really old music taste...

and then awhile ago i became obsessed with the blues brothers after star wars, and the vampire chronicles etc...(still obsessed with all of it)...

then i finally revisited my childhood love of elvis (id always loved him but it took a little wee break on the "obsessive" category)...

and for the last nearly a year i have not gone a day without listening to elvis. probably a good 15+ hours a day of music.

and now i belong to 3 forums, one being lisa marie's forum, which elvis led me too...and so i now like her music.

and i did an oral report for art orientation last semester for performance art...on elvis...probably went overtime. i showed a 7 minute video of elvis moments, and spoke about his impact...

and in english i did a report on graceland for my travel brochure.

and so here it is. im 17, was born 10 years after he died :cry: , my parents are completely indifferent (my dad likes him more than my mom--though both liked him years ago)...im not normal, they are and voila. im here.

my attraction is who he is, his voice, his life, his soul, his humor, his beauty, his goodness...im even willing to say i love elvis the man as much as i love the music.

and im a fan of the 70s mostly, but i love it ALL.

[carolynlm]

My aunty took me to my first Elvis movie, GI Blues, when I was about 7 years old, and from then on it was Elvis all the way. My parents taste in music ran from Dad being a crazy Paul Robeson fan to Mum liking Frank Sinatra, so it was pretty much a musical household. My grandmother used to play the bass in an orchestra during the war and then she went on in her later years to learn the guitar, She also plays the piano by ear. My grandfathers taste went to all the musicals, Showboat, Oklahoma etc, so he took me fairly regularly. My daughter was playing 4 instruments in her school band,(no not all at once) and can really belt out a tune on her trumpet, when she feels like it. I envy her so much, she can listen to something, take out her trumpet for a few minutes, have a bit of a play, then wham hit us with anything. She is also the one who gets up at any sort of function and belts out Jailhouse Rock.....I love my music, I don't know what I would do if I ever went deaf, or couldn't play any music. It really soothes the soul and has pulled me out of a few very depressive states. As far as Elvis goes, I always come back to his music. We need other music in our lives to make us appreciate just what Elvis had and is still conveying to us years after his death. I would even go as far as to say, we finally have those times behind us where we were ridiculed for being Elvis fans, yes, I took a few people down in the school yard, but once again to the rest of the music world, Elvis is cool.......something we have known for 50 years, but everyone else is just catching up (again).....

[P.S. Annie]

Elvis for me means, his music the varity of it, his incredible voice which always makes me happy, his generosity and intereset in other people, his looks off course I think he is the best looking male ever, he started a whole new culture, the way he could laugh and have fun. When ever I'm down he picks me up :elvis:

[Elvis' Babe]

he makes me feel like i have a friend in the world when i feel i don't. his voice is like a friend, or a guardian angel even...he wasn't JUST an entertainer. i think he is truly a part of his fans lives in a weird sorta way. kinda like you know him like hes family, but youve never met him...he gives me that feeling.

he let open his soul, he was himself, and he shared that with us. personally i get as much joy out of him joking as i do with him singing. both touch different parts of my mind and fills that need. i can tell you, i never have smiled as much as i have listening to elvis goof off. and hes the only person whos singing has ever brought me to tears--dozens and dozens of times.

i put on a ballad or a love song and i feel pure joy.

i wish i had met him. or even gone to a concert. or even been born when he was still alive. if i ever could have any wish come true, it would be that. :cry:

[U.S. Male]

For me, the music is the number one reason. I mean just look closely at the songs Elvis did. They were pretty much "clean" and with no subluminal messages that encouraged you to go out and hack your dog up with a chainsaw! Another reason is the image; I never realized that someone could actually make polyester look cool - well, Elvis did! Finally, there's the humanitarian that Elvis was. A man who was freindly and respectful towards his fans, while being generous and humble, never forgetting that the fans were the ones responsible for everything he had, therefore leading him to want to give back. You don't see many (if any) entertainers like that today I'm sorry to say. Elvis was truly a once in a lifetime phenom.

[Lildarling]

As for me-I got to know Elvis with the program of A tribute to Elvis from Memphis in 1994...GOOOOD-I remember myself the day afterwards...and my bro too-we were discussing how magnificent Elvis' looked during NBC Tv Special, how He had his legs put on the table while talkin' thru telephone in 56 show...I fell in love with the man, REALLY!!!
Gooosh and how was I crying when I wanted to buy my first Elvis Country cassette and the shop was closed (as if it won't be oened the next day...)
Then my bro started to grow hair and sideburns, making the hairstyle of Elvis' in the 50´s....OHHHH-THOSE WONDERFUL EVENINGS WHEN LISTENING TO ELVIS ONLY WITH THE CANDLES ON!!!
And that moment when first listening to Love me, having the goosebumps from the excitement and screaming with joy...
I can't express fully what does Elvis mean to me...he is a WONDER sent to us by God...and I will never forget the moment of my promising to Elvis of never forgetting Him after seeing This is Elvis , and the teary fingers that were hiding my eyes from seeing Elvis singing My Way with such a power and beauty!!!!
It's still worth a million to feel the shivers and the heat rushing thru your body to your heart and mind when hearing Elvis' song or movie that I haven't heard (seen)...Even for hundredth time more....