So, Elvis is responsible for Muhammad Ali’s draft woes (Not ‘Cassius Clay’, as that name ceased to be used by Ali some years prior) and the Vietnam war itself?
Bad Elvis, no PBJ.

‘Little Richard broke with Pat f*cking Boone because Boone wasn’t fundie enough. Little Richard is deeply f*cked up. He sure wasn’t expected to come out in 1957, but my comment is entirely valid: he found Jesus instead of dealing with being gay. He’s still alive and welcome to come out any time.’

A shame indeed that Richard Penneman didn’t take advantage of the huge ‘dealing with being gay’ industry available to him at the time…Oh wait, perhaps he dealt with it by using personal religion as a morality guide to abstain from his sexual urges…Silly antiquarian him.

‘Yes, James Brown opposed taxation: he cheated on his own taxes to the tune of $4.5 million—a true Republican. He also tried to bribe a radio station and attempted to murder his wife.’

JB paid it all back, 7 times over. By that standard, Willie Nelson and Redd Foxx must be Republicans then. And ‘murder’? My, what colorful language.

‘We’ll excuse the multi-state fugitive flight and the 5 drug arrests in 10 years as “misunderstandings”. But voting for George W. Bush, twice?? And proud of it?’

How gracious of you to excuse such things, and I trust you will provide some proof of James Brown’s voting record as soon as you are up to it.

‘I lived through the years with these jerks. You may have read about them. Acquire your own sense of history at your leisure.’

1) No, you didn’t. 2) Perhaps I have. 3) Thank you, I will.

I don’t know if you will see this–I came late to this party.

Peter Guralnick wrote the definitive biography of Elvis. This first volume “Last Train to Memphis” won a bunch of awards. I wasn’t particularly interested in reading about Elvis, but when this book came out Guralnick said to reporters that he was influenced by Taylor Branch’s first volume of MLK’s biography, “Parting the Waters.” HELLOOOOO!

Yes, it was deserving of all the accolades. It took Elvis from his birth until he went into the Army. The second volume, “Careless Love” was much less edifying. It dealt with his drug addictions (which he picked up in the Army) through his weird relationships with women.

Seriously, if you are interested in Elvis as a whole, these are must-reads.

Little Richard broke with Pat f*cking Boone because Boone wasn’t fundie enough. Little Richard is deeply f*cked up. He sure wasn’t expected to come out in 1957, but my comment is entirely valid: he found Jesus instead of dealing with being gay. He’s still alive and welcome to come out any time. No apologies on that count.

Yes, James Brown opposed taxation: he cheated on his own taxes to the tune of $4.5 million—a true Republican. He also tried to bribe a radio station and attempted to murder his wife. We’ll excuse the multi-state fugitive flight and the 5 drug arrests in 10 years as “misunderstandings”. But voting for George W. Bush, twice?? And proud of it? No apologies here, neither. If we’re going to glorify wife-beating, tax-cheating Republican assholes, he should be in our pantheon.

I lived through the years with these jerks. You may have read about them. Acquire your own sense of history at your leisure.

To me, Elvis was a cracker goodie-two-shoes who took the easiest way out on Vietnam. Muhammed Ali? He was brave. Elvis? Cowardly douchebag…Elvis was as phony as both of them—a true Republican.

You use ethnic slurs while showing your ignorance of history. Are you sure that you aren’t a Republican yourself?

Can’t feel the love on this one. To me, Elvis was a cracker goodie-two-shoes who took the easiest way out on Vietnam. Muhammed Ali? He was brave. Elvis? Cowardly douchebag.

Interesting that Donita quotes Little Richard, who found Jesus instead of dealing with being gay, and James Brown, who beat his wife while voting Republican. Elvis was as phony as both of them—a true Republican.

You have no sense of history.

Elvis was in the U.S. army from 1958 to March of 1960…Five years before the Marines hit the beach at Da Nang.
Using your logic, one could imply that Jimi Hendrix was a traitor to some nebulous progressive cause for serving with the 101st Airborne.

How was Little Richard supposed to ‘come out’ in 19-Fifty-f*cking-Seven, 12 years before Stonewall… Exactly?

Also, James Brown supported Republican causes because they supported small business, low taxes on the individual (not just corporate privateers) and individual achievement back in the 1960s…Two things that JB thought were very necessary for people to get out of the burning ghettoes of that time and succeed.

Conflating his latter spousal abuse with that to make a cheap shot…

>:(

If you don’t dig the music or the personalities, fine…But don’t try to reinvent the past to fit your point.

his private physician was “dr. nick.”

iirc, peter guralnick indicates in his biography of elvis, that elvis started on the pills when he was in the army. apparently, soldiers were encouraged to take them so they could function better.

personally, i’m partial to “mystery train.”

relurking.

Can’t feel the love on this one. To me, Elvis was a cracker goodie-two-shoes who took the easiest way out on Vietnam. Muhammed Ali? He was brave. Elvis? Cowardly douchebag.

Interesting that Donita quotes Little Richard, who found Jesus instead of dealing with being gay, and James Brown, who beat his wife while voting Republican. Elvis was as phony as both of them—a true Republican.

“Suspicious Minds” is his only song worth remembering. Flush the rest down the toilet he died on. If Elvis were alive today, he’d be on George Bush’s A-list for White House dinners.

Whatever the politics of these guys, they did an enormous amount culturally, by making black culture accessible and/or attractive to generations of young whites, who as a consequence, make rascism less and less culturally acceptable in this country. And just as Ray Charles did country albums, perhaps they felt that by being politically “in the mainstream” would open more doors for blacks than being confrontational. Whether correct or not, I respect their choices and believe that they were forces for positive change.

You should check out his 1968 “comeback” video. He is amazingly healthy and good. Fantastic live music in an intimate setting.

Was there ever a sexier man than black leather clad Elvis in the ‘68 special? It made you forgive him for all of the sub-par movie music.

I remember when “Aloha from Hawaii” was first on. It was a big deal because it was live “via satellite”. My mom and her girlfriend were in a tizzy, taking over the tv for the evening while the men rolled their eyes. You have to remember, no cable, just the 3 major networks, no VCR’s, you had to be there to see it, prime time, it was an EVENT!

“Lord almighty, I feel my temperature rising!”