Quote #157

'Then, in mid 1968 he taped a television special in a black leather suit, in front of a select live audience, opening with 'Guitar Man' and closing with a mild social-conscience song, 'If I Can Dream'. But it wasn't until Greil Marcus brought out the recording of that performance for me, almost three years later, that I realized how significant it had been. Marcus has spent as much time listening as anyone who is liable to be objective, and he believes Elvis may have made the best music of his life that crucial comeback night. It's so easy to forget that Elvis was, or is, a great singer. Any account of his impact that omits that fundamental fact amounts to a dismissal.'

More from Elvis Presley

  1. 'But it is Presley's singing, halfway between a western and a rock 'n' roll style, that has sent teen-agers into a trance; they like his wa…
  2. 'We are startled, on the amazing 'Blue Moon,'(1954), by his trick of shifting, in a heartbeat, from saloon baritone to pants-too-tight wail…
  3. ' 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 tap…
  4. 'During my long career in broadcasting, I've had the chance to interview lots of famous people; it was late summer in 1976 when I was sent …
  5. 'Had Presley never sung a note he might have still caused a stir, but sing he did. Watershed hits such as 'All Shook Up' (1957) or, for ins…
  6. 'Arguably the finest recording found in all the Sun sessions, 'Trying To Get To You' (1955), is a song that Presley made his own due to his…
  7. 'Without preamble, the three-piece band cuts loose. In the spotlight, the lanky singer flails furious rhythms on his guitar, every now and …
  8. ' He had an incredible, attractive instrument that worked in many registers; he could falsetto like Little Richard, his equipment was outst…

All Elvis Presley quotes