After filming completed on King Creole, Elvis left for Fort Hood in Kileen, Texas to receive basic training. He was never in any danger of seeing combat—the Army would have made sure of that—but to his credit, Elvis said that he wanted to be treated, as much as his celebrity would allow, just like every other soldier. His conscription at Fort Chaffe in Arkansas drew a crowd of screaming fans and eager reporters alike, but Presley insisted he was just another soldier, saying “the Army can do what they want with me.” RCA regularly published updated reports of Elvis’s happenings, and kept the fan clubs that had popped up over the past few years up to date too. The studio even recorded and released a press conference Elvis hosted in 1959, a few months before returning. The interview hinted at Elvis’s comfortability with his time in service as well as anxiety and eagerness to return to the world of show-business.
All told, Elvis spent fourteen months in Germany, away as much as he could be from the chaos of fame and celebrity. Nevertheless, he was acutely aware of the presumption some had of him, expecting that he would demand to be treated like a “star” worthy of special attention. Instead, he treated his fellow soldiers as equals and they did the same. He also donated his Army pay to charity and purchased an extra pair of fatigues for every man in his division. Remember that Bing Crosby waged a radio DJ war against Presley a year before this, and Frank Sinatra frequently viciously attacked him to friends and associates. Both tried to paint Elvis as either a danger to society or as a punk that needed to learn his place. And yet, when the time for them to serve in the Army came (during World War II), Bing did “shows” while Frank used his influence to dodge the draft entirely. Elvis’s service in the military was, from the Army’s standpoint, largely insignificant (though his superiors frequently praised his work ethic), but as a so-called “leader” of the youth in America, he showed a finer commitment to country than either of the previous generation’s musical idols.
Elvis’s time in Germany also introduced him to two of the most significant elements of his final twenty years: Priscilla Beaulieu and drugs. Amphetamines were given to soldiers in those days as a stimulant to improve energy, strength and to keep weight under control (an issue the then-slender Elvis actually struggled with his whole life). Long term side effects and dangers of the drug were not as well known as they are today, and Presley quickly became hooked. He not only took them as often as he could, but he also encouraged others to do so as well, convinced they were almost miraculous in their effects. As the years rolled on, Elvis continued to dabble, and during the 70’s when he was expected to perform multiple Vegas shows between 8pm and 6am, the singer routinely took “uppers” at night and “downers” in the day, doing a number on his internal organs. Certainly everyone today knows “prescription drugs” is the basic answer to explain why he died but few realize how long the road to that death was. It began in Germany.
As did his relationship with Priscilla. The future Mrs. Presley was the step-daughter of a career officer and spent most of her early years moving from base to base. In 1957 her father was transferred to Wiesbaden, Germany, and a year later, Elvis moved to the country, to a town not fifteen minutes away. Priscilla was only fourteen when they first met (in September of 1959); she and some friends slipped away to a party at Elvis’s house. The older Presley was smitten with Priscilla’s looks and immediately took an interest in her. Her parents were initially opposed to the courting, on account of Elvis’s age as well as her tendency to get home well past curfew, but they eventually came around and allowed the budding romance to continue. For the remainder of Elvis’s time in Germany (six months), he and Priscilla were practically inseparable.
Meanwhile, stateside, RCA was carrying out its plan to keep the singer in the public eye while out of the country. There would be no movies for 1959, after releasing at least one between 1956-1958, so it was up to the music to carry the torch of his fame. First, in June of 1958, Elvis recorded eight songs while on leave from the Army. There were a few hold-overs from 1957 and some other masters RCA was holding on to (such as a cover of Hank Williams’ “Your Cheatin’ Heart” that was recorded just before shipping out), but there was never any intention to release another LP. Consolidating the rest of his material into one release was the opposite of the studio’s plan. Instead, they released the songs as four singles. The first of which, “Wear my Ring Around Your Neck” was the first song in Billboards history to simultaneously debut at #3 on Country chart, #2 on the Hot 100 chart, and #1 on the R&B chart. It was followed up by the re-recorded (and de-scandalized) version of “One Night” which peaked at #4 on the Hot 100 chart. Two more followed in 1959, including the exceptional “A Fool Such as I” (#2 on the Hot 100) and then the corny rockabilly “A Big Hunk O’ Love” which brought Elvis his final (out of twelve) #1 song of the decade.
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It was apparent from these final recordings of the decade that Elvis was already eager to evolve. The production is more robust than the stripped-down sound that was present in his first Sun and RCA singles. It was only four years prior that Sam Phillips was pulling his hair out to find something for Elvis to sing that could compliment that radically new “That’s All Right.” Ballads and trite country tunes were all the shy young man knew at the time, but in those proto-days of rock, ballads were left on the back-burner. Four years later, however, the confident Elvis was belting out “My Wish Came True” to top-10 success and trying out Doo Wap music with “I Beg of You.” His desire to constantly tweak his sound would continue for the rest of his career, making the moniker “King of Rock and Roll” a bit oversimplified.
RCA still expected something in the way of album-releases, so a compilation of several of Elvis’s gold-selling (500,000 copies or more) singles was released just after he left the states. The so-called “Elvis’s Golden Records” LP was the first “greatest hits” album in rock-and-roll history. It went on to peak at #2 on the LP charts, and would sell a staggering six million copies, making it his best-selling LP to that point and still ranks among his top five best-sellers, despite so many more robust greatest hits packages that would follow.
In addition, the 1957 Christmas album was re-issued with new cover art for 1958, and then in 1959, RCA packaged Elvis’s Sun material (all of which had been issued on 45s but little of which was widely known at the time) into two, ten-track budget LPs, entitled “For LP Fans Only” and “A Date with Elvis.” Both featured publicity shots of Elvis in his spiffy Army dress uniform and came loaded with posters and even a calendar for girls to decorate with hearts and such. Neither album moved the needle in terms of sales, but they still made the studio a profit and, more importantly, successfully bridged the gap between Elvis’s departure from and imminent return to America.
Meanwhile, back in Germany, Elvis had not divorced himself from music. He was learning new musical styles in Europe that would make their way onto albums and singles throughout the 1960s. In addition, he was constantly playing around on the piano and fiddling with his guitar, trying out whatever old songs he could think of and learning whatever new songs captured his attention. Fortunately for his fans, many of these private performances were recorded and have been made available. A lot of it is just Elvis and his pals laughing and goofing around, but every now and then inspiration would strike and Elvis would lay down a track good enough to be his next A-side.
The audio quality is poor but through the noise and the distortion you can hear the makings of what would become one of his signature tunes, “It’s Now or Never.” There’s also a cover of Nat King Cole’s “Mona Lisa” that matches Cole’s 1950 version in beauty, as well as a take on “Earth Angel” that Elvis apparently became obsessed with and played constantly (as he was wont to do) during his time overseas.
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After basically two years removed from the entertainment world (after two years being on top of it), Elvis was excited to get back to work. Most fans view the final two years of the 1950s as the lost years of Elvis’s quarter-century as a performer, but so many things happened that shaped the entertainer and man he would become. Losing his mother, meeting Priscilla, discovering drugs and getting a taste of another country’s culture all permanently impacted his life and career.
The 1950s began with the popular music scene being dominated by holdovers from the post-war era. The ’50s ended with the likes of Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry, and Elvis Presley controlling the music of their generation. The youth had taken music over from their parents and Elvis had become the poster-child of this revolution. But just as he took the mantel of the king, he was forced to flee the kingdom. In his absence, the revolution continued.
Even with Presley out of the country, Berry in jail and Holly tragically killed, rock and roll refused to go away. It was the new normal and many new voices and new ideas had risen in reaction to it. New entertainers were popping up every week in the late-50’s, capturing people’s attention and controlling their radio dials.
After two years away, Elvis was ready to return, but he would do so to a much more crowded landscape than the one he left behind.
