Elvis News

'Mystery Train' Greil Marcus book - Spotlight: When Greil Marcus' 'Mystery Train: Images of America in Rock 'N' Roll Music' was first published in 1975 it was described as "Perhaps the finest book ever written about pop music.”
Now at it's 50th anniversary re-release, on Sept 16, 2025, Rolling Stone stated, “In 1975 it was hailed as the greatest book ever written about rock & roll. Fifty years after it came out, there’s a lot more competition — but no other book has come close.”
Bruce Springsteen said, “Gets as close to the heart and soul of America and American music as the best of rock ‘n’ roll.”

In the special 50th-anniversary edition, Greil Marcus revives its analysis of the relationship between rock ‘n’ roll music and America with updated discographies and new intros. Marcus’ definitive book focuses on just six bands and artists: early rock ‘n’ roller Harmonica Frank; country blues singer Robert Johnson; and some of the better-known musicians who followed... including Elvis.

GM: Millions of words had been written about Elvis from his first review in the Memphis Press-Scimitar in 1954 to the most recent piece by Peter Guralnick, but it seemed to me that nobody had written about his music. After my book was published, I would always be asked, "What made Elvis so special?" and I always answered, "The way he sang," and then I could talk about that for five minutes or another five days. And yes, I wanted to change the conversation, to, essentially, "This dumb hillbilly has forgotten more than you'll ever know”.. I wanted to say that Elvis had been and gone from places no one else would ever get to, but if you listened, the map of those places begins to fill itself in."
To understand more about Greil Marcus's wonderful book 'Mystery Train' go here to EIN's spotlight
(News, Source;PB/ElvisInfoNet)

Spotlight "What You Don't Know About ELVIS PRESLEY" Movie Mirror Feb 1957: Another brilliant vintage article, this time from 'Movie Mirror' magazine February 1957.
Written by Alfred Wertheimer - the photographer - "Untold Facts about ELVIS PRESLEY by a Friend."

.. "Why do the girls go for Elvis? I'm no judge of that, of course! But I'd guess it's because he has very sensuous eyes and lips.
Elvis doesn't care what people think. And he's not bashful. He'll walk up and talk to anybody.
Elvis is completely unorthodox, and unpredictable. As he puts it, "If you wanta’ get ahead, you gotta be different!" And he means it.
With other performers, you can predict pretty well what the act is going to be when they step on a stage. Not with Elvis."

The 6th in an EIN series looking at early magazine articles about Elvis Presley - this time with some great 1956 images..
Go here to this fascinating article and discover more ....
(EIN Spotlight by Piers Beagley / Paul Gansky)

Elvis June 26, 1977; the Final Curtain: On this very day June 26 in 1977 Elvis played his very last concert at Market Square Arena Indianapolis.
It was his longest and his very best performances of 1977.
..Elvis stepped on stage with energy that was a relief to anyone and the audience burst into an instantaneous, collective roar that was explosive and deafening. Anyone who questions Elvis' power over his audience needs only to listen to the opening of this concert to see the proof of his command. Compared to the truly weak performance that CBS TV had filmed only one week previously, this was a healthier, happy and focused Elvis who was determined to put on a great and memorable 'Closing Night' concert.
June 26 is an important day to reminisce and also consider just how much happiness Elvis Presley brought to us all as a performer.

EIN's Piers Beagley checks out this historic performance
(Spotlight, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

Spotlight "The Night ELVIS Flipped His Pelvis?" 1956: From On The QT magazine, December 1956 issue.

... 'Money isn't the only thing Elvis is getting plenty of. He's the reigning idol of every screaming bobby-soxer in the nation. Girls fight to get near him, quivering with ecstasy at the very thought of touching him.
Elvis was going so strong, so fast and so wide open that the pace became too much. One night in Jacksonville, Florida he plain collapsed - just laid back and passed out cold.
Tense and nervous after a tumultuous show, Elvis walked toward a parked car, then slumped to the ground.
"We took him to a hospital" Bill Black remembers...

The 5th in an EIN series looking at early magazine articles about Elvis Presley.
Go here to this fascinating article and discover more ....
(EIN Spotlight by Piers Beagley / Paul Gansky)

Spotlight "What is Presley doing to our children?" Home Journal magazine 1957: From Canadian Home Journal magazine, June 1957 issue.

. 'By the time Elvis stepped into the spotlight his audience was well primed. The auditorium became a nightmare of piercing shrieks and screams front 18,000 young throats.
Then he began to sing. But his performance was more a pantomime. He could only be heard in snatches when he wasn't contorting his body or face. Screams and shrieks poured in waves from all sides of the huge auditorium and increased in direct proportion to the intensity of his gyrations which closely resemble those of a burlesque dancer.
I was in the very midst of a kind of emotional violence I'd never witnessed before and couldn't understand or assess...
Is this mass hysteria harmful to adolescents?
Three experts suspect it is....

The 4th in an EIN series looking at early magazine articles about Elvis Presley.
Go here to this fascinating article and discover more ....
(EIN Spotlight by Piers Beagley / Paul Gansky)

Spotlight "Elvis Presley: Hollywood Hot Shot or Flop?" Movieland magazine 1956: From Movieland magazine the October 1956 issue.

... 'The most controversial performer in show business today is husky, long-haired, hip-swinging, rock 'n' roll singer Elvis Presley. ... and he can afford to smile at the controversy the mere mention of his name arouses. To date such controversy has meant a million gross within his first show biz year as well as a comfortable seven-year Hollywood film contract.
Hal Wallis, who signed Martin and Lewis to their first Hollywood contract, is the astute producer who is willing to gamble on having the right answer to the question: "Elvis Presley - Hollywood Hot Shot or Flop?"

The third in an EIN series looking at early, original magazine articles about Elvis Presley.
Go here to discover more & with some lovely rare photos..
(EIN Spotlight by Piers Beagley / Paul Gansky)

Spotlight "The Impact of Elvis Presley" LIFE magazine 1956: From the well-respected LIFE magazine August 27 1956 issue.

'Elvis - a Different Kind of Idol' Presley’s impact piles up fans, fads and fears.
In it they note that, "Up to a point, the country can withstand the impact of Elvis Presley as a familiar and acceptable phenomenon" as the US had seen it before with Sinatra and Rudy Vallee.
"The rewards of this, bump and grind, fearless expression are almost unbelievable for the young man who gave up his truck driving job two years ago to become a full-time singer."
Luckily the local Trinity Baptist Church was saying a Prayer For Elvis with the Reverent Gray noting that Elvis "had achieved a new low in spiritual degeneracy."

Elvis' career certainly lasted a little longer than the LIFE magazine writers expected back in 1956!

The second in an EIN series looking at early, original magazine articles about Elvis Presley.
Go here to discover more & with some lovely rare photos..
(EIN Spotlight by Piers Beagley / Paul Gansky)

The “Jerry Schilling” scam….. "alleged" new book by Memphis Mafia member, Jerry Schilling - "Revolutinary of Graceland and the Great Memphis Majfia - Elviss Presslin": This is a detailed account of last week's "fake" book announcement on Facebook attempting to "rip off" Elvis fans. It is an example of how easy it can be to scam people out of money!

- EIN reveals the clues fans should have spotted.
- That Jerry Schilling does not have any Social Media presence
- That EIN advised both Facebook and EPE leading to the removal of the offending page.

Go here as Nigel Patterson reveals the full story.
Thanks to EIN many unsuspecting fans were saved from the scam - which had already cost some enthusiasts between US$120 and US$180 and possibly their credit card details .

(Spotlight, Source:EIN; Facebook)

'The Mono to Stereo Interview with Anthony Stuchbury': The new STEREO Elvis box-set 'PRESLEY The Essential '50's Masters' from producer Anthony Stuchbury will be released by the french RDM label next week.
The question of whether Elvis' mono fifties classic recordings should be re-released in "new stereo" is hotly debated among hard-core collectors and this box-set includes all of Elvis' 50's mono masters in STEREO!
So this week is the perfect time to talk to the man behind the mixing desk, for the backstory behind this recent development of mixing Elvis’ original Mono recordings into STEREO.
Tony talks about working with RDM, Memphis Mansion, Ernst Jorgensen, the FTD label ... and much much more..
EIN's Piers Beagley and Elvis Day By Day's Kees Mouwen combined forces to ask "Mono II Stereo" producer Anthony Stuchbury some tricky questions.
(Interview, Source;Elvis Day By Day/ElvisInfoNetwork)

Nigel Patterson 'Hero of the Comic Books' Interview: 'Elvis, Hero of the Comic Books' is the first book to showcase Elvis' impact in comic books, graphic biographies, graphic novels, comic strips and caricatures.
Written by EIN's founding president, Nigel Patterson, it features outstanding page design by Elvis Day By Day's, Kees Mouwen.

A mammoth 450 page "coffee table" release 'Elvis, Hero of the Comic Books' highlights how diverse and far-reaching Elvis' impact has been, the themes ranging from biography, superhero, teen interest, crime, and satire, to zombies, vampires, the supernatural, anthropomorphic Elvis, and even a Fairy godmother and Lady Hellvis (Lady Death).

To celebrate the recent publication, the book's designer Kees Mouwen (from Elvis Day-By-Day) interviewed the author Nigel Patterson to find out what the book is all about....

Go here to read the interview and check out lots of sample pages

(Interview, Source;KM/NP)

Elvis in Literature #3 – ''Elvis's Man Friday' by Gene Smith: Continuing EIN’s occasional series of interesting and (hopefully) thought-provoking Elvis excerpts (references/discussions) found in general literature.
Elvis's Man Friday by Elvis' first-cousin Gene Smith is an often forgotten "insider" memoir.
Elvis and Gene were very close from a young age, and Gene later became a prominent member of Elvis' Memphis Mafia.
In his book, published in hardcover (with dust jacket) in 1994, Gene recounted his time with Elvis in linear fashion, in what was a very readable, entertaining and informative release.

In particular, the reader is informed about a number of unusual things and Elvis' idiosyncrasies.
EIN wonders how many readers knew that Elvis and Gene had (for a while) their own secret language?...

Go to 'Elvis in Literature #3' 'Elvis's Man Friday' by Gene Smith for the whole story, photos and excerpts..

(Spotlight, Source;ElvisInfoNet)

'The Airplanes & The King' In-depth review: The original spanish book 'Los Aviones Y El Rey' by Carlos Varrenti was republished as an expanded English version 'The Airplanes & The King' towards the end of 2022.
Not only that but it was expanded from its original 197 pages to an amazing 400 pages with a lot of unreleased material and stunning photos from the 'Elvis Files' vaults!
The English version was unfortunately delayed by supply issues due to the worldwide Covid pandemic - but has now been published as a High quality Hardback book.
As an Aeronautical engineer and Elvis fan, Varrenti is well qualified to write a book which details Elvis’ history with his aircraft and his link to aeronautics in general. With photos and stories from 1955 through to 1977 - and beyond - the book is also an interesting historical look at Elvis’ life "on tour" but this time with an delightfully original theme.

EIN's Nigel Patterson takes a very detailed look at this impressive publication and discovers a trove of delights...

(Book Reviews,  Source:ElvisInformationNetwork)

'The Elvis RCA Camden Collection' EIN Spotlight: Most fans have had a love-hate relationship with Elvis' Camden collections. On one hand they are seen as an artistic misstep being released at a time when Elvis was back riding high on the charts saturating the market with a series of albums containing little-known songs. Yet on the other hand many younger fans used these budget collections as a way to enter the amazing world of Elvis’ vast back-catalogue.
The RCA Camdens featured the first release of an Elvis live recording, 19 previously unreleased tracks and 58 tracks previously unreleased on an album. That is quite impressive even if Col Parker only had his increased revenue as the main goal.

Now updated with Readers' Feedback - Read this fascinating article and tell us YOUR THOUGHTS about Elvis' Camden releases...
EIN contributor Neil Colombari reveals all...
(Spotlight; Source;Neil Colombari/ElvisInfoNet)

'Elvis LIVE 1972' (double-LP) Review: On this brand new ‘ELVIS LIVE 1972’ double-vinyl release producer Ernst Jørgensen has cleverly included nearly all of the concert highlights from RCA's ‘On Tour’.
The album features a "best of" the four 'On Tour' concerts using one key section from each of the first three concerts (one per vinyl side) plus the missing unique tracks on Side D.
'On Tour' classics from Hampton Roads 'Polk Salad', 'Big Hunk O' Love', from Richmond 'It's Over', Greensboro 'Burning Love', 'Funny How Times Slips Away', 'For The Good Times' plus San Antonio 'Proud Mary', 'How Great Thou Art' are all included...
But if fans already own all these songs from the recent 'On Tour' box-set can this vinyl version really be worth buying?
This title was released on March 24 2023.

Go here as EIN's Piers Beagley spins the VINYL, played them loud and rumbled his bass-speakers....
(Reviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

EIN Interview with Mike Stone: Mike Stone has had a long and successful career in athletics, in the entertainment business, as an author, sports instructor, bodyguard and personal fitness trainer.
Mike Stone was also a key figure in the emotional roller-coaster that described Elvis and Priscilla Presley's lives in the seventies.
In this exclusive EIN interview Priscilla's ex-partner, karate champion and author talks about his amazing life, including...
- Meeting Elvis and Priscilla
- Hawaii, Elvis and Karate
- Being Phil Spector's bodyguard
- Sitting next to John Lennon recording
- Priscilla and karate
- Fans blaming him for Elvis' marriage split-up
- Elvis putting a "Hit" out on him
- Finding peace in the Philippines
- His new autobiography

EIN was delighted to be able to finally talk with the man and find out more. EIN's Piers Beagley asked the questions..

(Interviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

EIN Joyce Bova Interview: Joyce Bova worked in Washington DC and had a fascinating relationship with Elvis that lasted between 1969 and 1972. The story of which she wrote about in her 1994 book, 'Don't Ask Forever: My Love Affair With Elvis' has recently been re-published as an updated E-Book.
Bova was a Capitol Hill staffer on the House Armed Services Committee when she first met Elvis in 1969 in Las Vegas during her vacation.
'Don't Ask Forever' is the intimate true story of two star-crossed lovers-and a revealing portrait of an Elvis Presley that also looked at the crazy day-to-day world rarely featured in other Elvis books.
As the book publicity stated, "It started out like a fairy tale. She was a beautiful, hardworking Congressional aide. He was America's most explosive entertainer. They met one night in Las Vegas in 1969 - a night that changed Joyce's life forever".

Go here as EIN's Piers Beagley recently caught up with Joyce Bova to talk about her incredible times with Elvis and to learn more about the new revised and update Ebook publication.

(Interview, Source;ElvisInfoNet)

Elaine Beckett -Easy Come Easy Go costar- Interview: Elaine Beckett was born in England, qualified with an Arts Degree and yet was somehow destined to be a co-star in Elvis’ 1966 movie ‘Easy Come, Easy Go’.

Go here as EIN's Piers Beagley talks with Elaine Beckett about her amazing life...

(Interview, Source;ElvisInfoNet)

Elvis Week photo special.

FORTY great candids of Elvis working and relaxing on the movie sets.

'Elvis On the Movie Set'- Click here

Don't miss out on these rare and exciting photographs.