The Greek profile of Elvis, blazing rocket nozzles of Cadillacs and Lincolns, chrome and nickel harleys, greased coca, onion rings and bacon mega burgers.
Mountains of vinyl, forty-five singles, business cards replacing the gods of rock, radio battles, the universal shame of payola, the first purchased charts, cinemas and halls smashed to smithereens by a raging crowd of fans.
Hot air of freedom, scorching heat of show business.
Light and Rhythm.
Mono and Stereo.
Pickups and sound carriers.
Crackling noise and a smoldering amber receiver scale.
Tricolor suits and four-tone boots.
Ties as wide as Mississippi.
Tear and drive.
Screams and sobs.
The first tear-stained, screaming teenagers.
The first tart and astringent fruits of the "night of consciousness".
The first attempts to stop the already unstoppable.
The era of rock and roll.
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A very short period on the time scale, within which events are quite commonplace for us today and, at the same time, completely unimaginable for those who lived "before everything."
After all, "before everything" "there was nothing."
And over this "nothing", out of nowhere, from the fusion of the music of black slaves and the music of the white rabble, Elvis arose, erected his head reaching to the sky.
It's so scary to look at him, especially in his golden suit from the cover of 50,000,000 Elvis Fans Can't Be Wrong, like in the sun.
The era of rock and roll.
It would seem that, raising such a historical layer, it is worth starting from the origins, with the "big bang".
But it's so trite and trite.
As well as show business itself.
We'll start at the bifurcation point.
From the moment when all rock, from its ancient origins in dancing with tam-tam to the polished albums of hard dinosaurs, went, flew to hell in tartarars.
We will begin with the day when the First and Most-Most, King of Kings, King Elvis, took the stage for the last time in his earthly form.
June 26, 1977 in Indianapolis.
On that day (that night), 18 thousand spectators of the Market Square Arena contemplated making a sacred sacrifice, “fighting with oneself,” a puncture of the temporal and spatial continuum for those who, having barely endured 80 minutes on the stage, easily left it in the shining fields of nirvana.
Are you interested?
Elvis Presley Enterprises (official Graceland) does not welcome and in every possible way opposes the release of video footage of Presley's last tour (the last concert itself was not filmed, it exists in the form of poor quality tapes "from the audience", CBS filmed full-length performances on June 19 and 21).
The heirs and co-owners of the Elvis empire argue that the film Elvis In Concert could damage the King's image.
May damage the image.
King.
Think about it.
Probably, the crown of thorns in this case can damage the image.
But we got distracted.
Who is Elvis and what is his world on the morning of June 26, 1977?
23 years of super successful career.
Triumphant return from military service in 60 and the epic 68 Comeback Special.
National hero with a monument and boulevard named after him in Memphis - during his lifetime, as a gift for his 40th birthday.
First space show to be broadcast via satellite and 1.5 billion viewers (Aloha from Hawaii 73).
Approximately 1 billion discs sold (who would count them, especially pirated copies).
About a hundred gold and platinum albums.
The Graceland Estate (a triumph of southern kitsch and humble dignity) is a "Southern Column Hill House" (3734 Elvis Presley Boulevard, Memphis).
Three Grammys, and all for sacred music!
The unquestioned status of the king of rock and roll.
And at least over 100 million fans around the world (but these numbers are probably very rough).
And the Convair 880 private jet.
And ... full sold out on all shows without exception.
Impressive regalia.
Obvious success.
And all this - at 42!
Is Elvis happy?
In the last bitter times - not a single minute.
Except those that he spends on endless tours.
He was tired of recording in the studio for a long time, he was tired of the pressure from RCA, of "plans to release giant discs", he wants nothing but communication with the public.
For the second year in a row, it refuses sessions, and the omnipotent RCA is forced to come with all the equipment to Graceland in order (humiliatingly and ingratiatingly) to achieve Jungle Room Sessions.
Is Elvis tired of everything?
Has he experienced everything?
Yes and no.
You cannot call him (and there is plenty of evidence for that) a capricious star.
And in general, Presley's distinctive feature is the desire to fulfill the obligations assumed by all means.
He always, always wanted and strived to be a good, reliable guy.
Whether this was influenced by the bad (and which of the poor people was perfect?) Reputation of his father, Vernon, or the daily quiet feat of his mother, Gladys, who with the last bit of strength provides food and decent clothes for her son, it's hard to say ...
Once at a press conference before concerts in Madison Square Garden, journalists managed to infuriate Elvis and to the question "Did you go hungry as a child?"
he replied: “Yes!
We were very poor!
But we NEVER went hungry! "
Their boyish company could be heard a mile away.
In the neighborhood of Tupelo there was a handicraft factory of curtain rings, with these rings they were repaired for a long time out of circulation shoes.
Symbolically.
So that the top somehow held onto the sole ... They were lumpen from the ground.
Proletarians, sometimes poorer than the poorest blacks.
And now he is always surrounded by a large retinue.
Friends.
Fans.
Girls.
And endlessly alone.
Nobody hears his voice.
There is no one in the vast and cold world who could recognize in it, in Elvis, Aaron Presley, the boy from Tupelo.
A ragamuffin without a penny in his pocket, but with a dream in his soul.
Gladys died in August 58th.
On this, the subtle connection with the world and God was cut off.
It did not end, but it was cut off.
Beloved daughter (they adore each other), beloved wife (gone to another).
This was not enough.
It was not the anchor that could hold Elvis, and if anything really held him, it was the audience, concerts.
Since his return in August 69, Elvis (June 26, 1977) has appeared on stage more than a thousand times.
Only on stage is he alive: “We are all here to bring you joy.
This is our job.
Such work ... "
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Sometimes in 29 days he performs in 29 cities, giving (sometimes) two concerts per night.
What for?
For what?
“I learned very early in my life that without a song the day cannot end, without a song a person cannot have friends, without a song you will never conquer the path of life ... Therefore, I continue to sing”.
So what happened to the Tupelo dreamer?
Where has the happiness won by sweat and blood gone?
Who is this overweight, plump and tired man with a shock of blue-black hair, in an unimaginably luxurious white jumpsuit decorated with a stone Mayan calendar, with an almost childish smile open to the world, as if telling us from every frame of his last TV show: “Guys, it seems I'm dying, and to hell with that!
Just be patient, very little is left.
Just be patient ... I have to finish my speech! .. "
Is this the godlike Elvis from the On Tour era?
Yes, this is it.
Only passed through the sausage machine of show business, as old Nick Cohn used to say (the first and most vicious of rock critics).
And what do you think, show business finished him off?
Smeared a dense redneck on the chart boards?
Transformed a cute teen idol into a shapeless, pill-pumped carcass?
Do you think so?
How far are you, in this case, from any intelligible understanding of Presley.
And this is all - the sins of the consumer society.
Unwillingness to see nothing but superficial vanity.
Look at Elvis's music.
Listen to it at least once in silence.
Thoughtfully and seriously.
Things of the 50s.
You know what?
You can't dance to it.
Presley is not dancing.
This is a kind of mass.
Even if Hound Dog or Shake, Rattle and Roll.
But if he, glancing at you half-turned, suddenly sings Anyway You Want Me ... I assure you, you are gone.
Lost forever, and there is no escape for you.
And it doesn't matter how he looks, how much he weighs ...
Watch the latest Elvis Presley concert.
How good he is in this incredible slowness of his, in this ability to understand who he is now and who he really is.
Elvis at the piano.
Unchained Melody.
It seems that the whole audience, holding their breath, takes high notes with him.
Elvis plays the guitar.
Are You Lonesome Tonight, That's All Right, Mama.
It seems that everyone in the hall is 14 again, if not less ...
It is clear why In Concert was filmed: the "golden goose" was about to die.
So one more tuft of feathers never hurts!
It's clear why Elvis agreed: “Truth is like the sun.
You can close yourself off from it for a while, but from this it will not disappear anywhere. "
These are his words.
And he never gave them up.
In his speech at the Ten Outstanding Young Americans (1971), he said, "We are all here, we can all make the world a better place ..."
And he did.
How could.
As best he could.
Trying to be better and be with us.
And it is not for us to judge him for that.
And ...
We adore Elvis not only as he was, but also as he wanted to become.
What I dreamed of becoming.
He killed himself.
This is unconditional.
Death in his youth was predicted by his first doctor, back in 57: “Mr. Presley!
If you don't change your lifestyle, you will not make it to 35! "
He killed himself, not understanding how to live outside of creativity.
Torn apart by passions.
Loneliness.
A lack of understanding of what he does not only and not so much money, but rather happiness.
Every day he does a piece, his own, only he gets the resulting happiness.
For all.
You know, he's gone.
Absolutely.
And we continue to play his vinyls, watch the "blind" TV shows of the 50s with his participation.
And his last concerts too.
How good he is at this incredible difference.
So simple.
Like a silver coin.
Elvis Presley.
Today and forever.
The author's point of view may not coincide with the position of the editorial board.