From the moment that he first shook up the world in the mid 1950s, Elvis
Presley has been one of the most vivid and enduring myths of American
culture. Last Train to Memphis: The Rise of Elvis Presley is the first
biography to go past that myth and present an Elvis beyond the legend.
Based on hundreds of interviews and nearly a decade of research, it
traces the evolution not just of the man but of the music and of the
culture he left utterly transformed, creating a completely fresh
portrait of Elvis and his world. This volume tracks the first
twenty-four years of Elvis' life, covering his childhood, the stunning
first recordings at Sun Records ("That's All Right, " "Mystery Train"),
and the early RCA hits ("Heartbreak Hotel, " "Hound Dog, " "Don't Be
Cruel"). These were the years of his improbable self-invention and
unprecedented triumphs, when it seemed that everything that Elvis tried
succeeded wildly. There was scarcely a cloud in sight through this
period until, in 1958, he was drafted into the army an his mother died
shortly thereafter. The book closes on that somber and poignant note.
Last Train to Memphis takes us deep inside Elvis' life, exploring his
lifelong passion for music of every sort (from blues and gospel to Bing
Crosby and Mario Lanza), his compelling affection for his family, and
his intimate relationships with girlfriends, mentors, band members,
professional associates, and friends. It shows us the loneliness, the
trustfulness, the voracious appetite for experience, and above all the
unshakable, almost mystical faith that Elvis had in himself and his
music. Drawing frequently on Elvis' own words and on the recollections
of those closest to him, the book offers anemotional, complex portrait
of young Elvis Presley with a depth and dimension that for the first
time allow his extraordinary accomplishments to ring true.
