From Canada For Elvis #01: In The Beginning

I’ve always known of Elvis Presley. Who doesn’t? Even without having any interest or any comprehension of his impact on music, pop culture, and American history, I could pick Elvis out of a line-up since I was a kid. I couldn’t, however, name a song of his past “Hound Dog” and “Jailhouse Rock,” and I definitely couldn’t name any of his movies. Other things I knew about Elvis: he played Las Vegas in shiny jumpsuits, was portly in his later years, had an affinity for peanut butter, and died on the toilet.

Like many new E.P. fans, it started with Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis. I had very little interest in watching the film when it was released but had to catch up with award contenders at the end of the year. Given what this film ignited in me, it's ironic how little I actually care for Luhrmann's biopic, although unsurprising given as I've failed to connect with any of his movies in the past (the maximal style just isn't my thing). What did intrigue me though were the scenes depicting the 1968 special, particularly the “If I Can Dream” sequence — I had no idea Elvis had songs like this in his catalogue.

Right after the movie ended, I went straight to YouTube and began consuming all things Elvis, beginning with his extraordinary comeback in 1968. Since then, and I say this without a shred of exaggeration, my life has become consumed with the man, his music, his films, and his legacy.

If I had seen George Klein's (a childhood friend of Elvis who stuck with him to the end) quote just nine months earlier, I would have rolled my eyes. But today, it resonates with me deeply. I can't explain why Elvis has taken such a hold on me and luckily, when I meet other Elvis fans, I don't need to. Through Elvis communities on Reddit and Discord I've discovered that each of us goes through the same exact perplexing affliction, which has brought on an amusing amount of comfort. (Someone on Reddit likened it to being struck with a sudden illness, and I think that's perfectly apt.)

Friends have asked me what it is about Elvis that I'm so taken with, and for all their good intentions, I can see their eyes glaze over as I grasp for words, attempting to describe what a singer from the 1950s means to me. Truth is, I barely understand it myself; but I also don't really care anymore.

I've listened to countless hours of his music, watched 21 of his 31 movies, re-watched the 1968 special and That's The Way It Is more times than I can count (no disrespect to Aloha! and Elvis on Tour), and read copious amounts of material about him. Pretty much, any free time I have had in the last seven to eight months has been dedicated to Elvis Presley.

Being an Elvis fan is an emotional roller coaster to say the least, and it's taken a lot of restraint not to devote a million blog posts trying to make sense of this man and his legacy, and while it definitely won't be a million, I figure I've staked out this corner of the internet to do with as I please. So here we go — It's Now or Never, welcome to the Elvis-era of this blog.