Description: Elvis Presley’s life was the ultimate rags to riches story, and it was the rags, as much as the riches that drove him, defined him, and made him the global icon he is today.
Born in a shack in America’s Deep South in 1935, to impoverished parents struggling in the wake of the Great Depression, he sprung from a life of deprivation to one of international fame and untold wealth, all before he was twenty.
Brought up dirt-poor, but surrounded by love and music from birth, Elvis was infused with the sounds of gospel and the raw, hard-life blues of the ‘cotton country’s’ plantation workers. And when the family radio brought country singers, crooners and spiritual quartets to his young ears, his musical DNA was fully-formed.
Elvis’ boarding pass for the rocket-ship to stardom was a voice of liquid gold and his striking appearance upgraded him to a VIP fast-track ticket into the entertainment stratosphere. His unique sense of style and musical talent went hand-in-hand in creating Elvis the Showman. As a teenager, before he sang a note, it was his unconventional look that singled him out among his peers. Later, it was his voice that stopped a conservative 1950s America in its tracks.
This book looks at how Elvis broke down cultural and racial barriers and smiled in the face of safe dressing. His bold outfits were his trademark yet, no matter how dazzling, they never outshone him. They were also his force shield, superhero costumes that protected him from anxiety, pain, the glare of the spotlight and, in difficult times, from reality. It considers how Elvis’s extraordinary style – as much as his pioneering music – defined his life and the experiences that he lived through.
It includes exclusive interviews with:
- Hal Lansky, whose family dressed Elvis for three decades, and who advised Austin Butler on what to wear playing him in the 2022 movie, Elvis.
- Award-wining producer director, Steve Binder who resurrected Elvis’ career and put him in that black leather suit for the 1968 Comeback Special.
- Butch and Kim Polston, who maintain Elvis’ legacy, recreating his spectacular 1970s Vegas jumpsuits, including those worn by Butler.
'Elvis: The King of Fashion' marvels at how an intensely shy and disadvantaged boy from the wrong side of Tupelo, Mississippi, went from homespun to Hollywood in the blink of an eye and became the most popular, successful, idolized and imitated solo performer of all time. Most of all, it regards the rollercoaster life of Elvis the man through a fashion lens as he strode like a colossus through the world of showbusiness, dressed like The King he never quite believed he was.
You can pre-order >>> 'Elvis: The King of Fashion' on Amazon (Associate Link).
The Blue Hawaii Sessions
The Follow That Dream collectors label announced the January 29, 2024 release of 'Elvis Presley: The Blue Hawaii Sessions' 4-CD-set.
The original album spent 20 weeks at #1 on Billboard’s Top Pop LPs chart. Nominated for a Grammy Award in 1961, it became the 2 nd most successful soundtrack album of the 60s only losing out to West Side Story!
Note: Audio previously released in the FTD book 'The Making of Blue Hawaii'.
CD 1 - The Masters: Blue Hawaii - Almost Always True - Aloha Oe - No More - Can’t Help Falling In Love - Rock-A-Hula Baby - Moonlight Swim - Ku-U-I-Po - Ito Eats - Slicin' Sand - Hawaiian Sunset - Beach Boy Blues - Island Of Love - Hawaiian Wedding Song - Steppin' Out Of Line.
Note: Audio previously released in the FTD book 'The Making of Blue Hawaii'.
CD 1 - The Masters: Blue Hawaii - Almost Always True - Aloha Oe - No More - Can’t Help Falling In Love - Rock-A-Hula Baby - Moonlight Swim - Ku-U-I-Po - Ito Eats - Slicin' Sand - Hawaiian Sunset - Beach Boy Blues - Island Of Love - Hawaiian Wedding Song - Steppin' Out Of Line.
March 21, 1961: Hawaiian Sunset (AO - Take 1) - Hawaiian Sunset (AO - Take 2) - Hawaiian Sunset (AO - Take 3) - Hawaiian Sunset (AO - Take 4 - Used For Master) - Hawaiian Sunset (AO - Take 5 - 6, 7 - Used For Master) - Hawaiian Sunset (AO - Final Master - Splice Of Take 4 & 7).
CD 2: March 21, 1961: Aloha Oe - (BO Section 2 - Take 1) - Aloha Oe (BO Section 2 - Take 2) - Aloha Oe (BO Section 2 - Take 3) - Aloha Oe (BO Section 2 - Take 4, 5 - Used For Master) - Aloha Oe (BO Section 2 - Take 6) - Aloha Oe (BO Section 2 - Take 7 - Used For Master) - Aloha Oe (BO 1 - Master - Take 4 & BO 2 - Master - Splice Of Take 7 & 5) - Ku-U-I-Po (CO - Take 1) - Ku-U-I-Po (CO - Take 2, 4, 5) - Ku-U-I-Po (CO - Take 6 - 7) - Ku-U-I-Po (CO - Take 8, 9 - Master) - No More (DO - Take 1 - 2) - No More (DO - Take 4, 5, 7) - No More (DO - Take 8) - No More (DO - Take 9) - No More (DO - Take 10 - 11) - No More (DO - Take 12, 13 - Used For Master) - No More (DO-1 - Insert Ending - Take 14 - 16) - No More (DO & DO-1 - Master - Splice Of Take 13 & Ending Take 16) - Slicin’ Sand (EO - Take 1 - 3) - Slicin’ Sand (EO - Take 4) - Slicin’ Sand (EO - Take 5 - 7) - Slicin’ Sand (EO - Take 8 - 9) - Slicin’ Sand (EO - Take 10) - Slicin’ Sand (EO - Take 11 - 12) - Slicin’ Sand (EO - Take 13 - 14) - Slicin’ Sand (EO - Take 15 - 17) - Slicin’ Sand (EO - Take 19 - Master).
CD 3: March 22, 1961: Blue Hawaii - (FO - Take 1 - 3) - Blue Hawaii (FO - Take 4 - 6) - Blue Hawaii (FO - Take 7 - Master) - Ito Eats (GO - Take 1 - 2) - Ito Eats (GO - Take 3 - 5) - Ito Eats (GO - Take 6 - 8, 9 - Master) - Hawaiian Wedding Song (JO - Take 1) - Hawaiian Wedding Song (JO - Take 2 - Master) - Island Of Love (KO - Take 1 - 4) - Island Of Love (KO - Take 5 - 7) - Island Of Love (KO - Take 8) - Island Of Love (KO - Take 9 - 10) - Island Of Love (KO - Take 11 - 12) - Island Of Love (KO - Take 13 - Master) - Steppin’ Out Of Line (LO - Movie Version - Take 1 - 5) - Steppin’ Out Of Line (LO - Movie Version - Take 6 - 7, 8 - Master) - Steppin’ Out Of Line (LO - Record Eersion - Take 9 -11 ) - Steppin’ Out Of Line (LO - Record Version - Take 12 - 15) - Steppin’ Out Of Line (LO - Record Version - Take 16, 17 - Master) - Steppin’ Out Of Line (LO - Movie Version Tag - Take 18 - 19) - Steppin’ Out Of Line (LO - Movie Wersion - Master - Take 8, 9) - Almost Always True (MO - Take 1 - 3) - Almost Always True (MO - Take 4 - 5) - Almost Always True (MO - Take 6 - 7) - Almost Always True (MO - Take 8 - Master).
CD 4: March 22, 1961: Moonlight Swim (NO - Take 1 - 2) - Moonlight Swim (NO - Take 3 - Master Without Female Vocals Overdub) - Moonlight Swim (NO - Take 4).
March 23, 1961: Can’t Help Falling In Love (RO - Movie Version - Take 1 - 5) - Can’t Help Falling In Love (RO - Movie Version - Take 6 - 8) - Can’t Help Falling In Love (RO - Movie Version - Take 9) - Can’t Help Falling In Love (RO - Movie Version - Take 10 - 12) - Can’t Help Falling In Love (RO - Movie Version - Take 13) - Can’t Help Falling In Love (RO - Movie Version - Take 14 - 16) - Can’t Help Falling In Love (RO - Movie Version - Take 17 - 20) - Can’t Help Falling In Love (RO - Movie Version - Take 21 - 22, 23 - Master) - Can’t Help Falling In Love (RO - Movie Version - Take 24) - Can’t Help Falling In Love (RO - Movie Version - Take 25 - 26) - Can’t Help Falling In Love (RO - Record Version - Take 27 - 29 - Master) - Beach Boy Blues (SO - Record Version - Take 1, 2 - Master 3) - Beach Boy Blues (SO - Movie Version - Take 3 - Master) - Rock-A-Hula Baby (TO - Record Version - Take 1 - 3) - Rock-A-Hula Baby (TO - Record Version - Take 4, 5 - Master).
Echoes of the King
Walter C Iverson published the 88-page biography 'Echoes of the King: Elvis Presley's Life and Legacy'.
Explore the heart and soul of Elvis Presley through this book's deft weaving of untold tales, behind-the-scenes photos, and in-depth critiques of his innovative songs. Every page exudes the unrivaled magnetism of the King, from the unadulterated fire of his early rock 'n' roll days to the glittering lights of Hollywood and the profound impact on world culture.
Note: Buyer beware, probably an II / Chat gtp generated book.
(Source: Lorraine Gibson on Facebook / FTD / Amazon)