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COPYRIGHT 2001 Society for the Advancement of Education
IT IS HARD to think of a celebrity whose image is as enduring as that of Elvis Presley. Dead more than 20 years, and recalled by many younger folk as a fat lounge singer, Elvis is everywhere. After he wound up on a postage stamp, one might expect him next on Mt. Rushmore. The culture industry may be making more money out of him in death than he earned in his 42 years of life, during which he transformed American music.
Many will take issue with the latter statement, holding that Frank Sinatra lays a more valid claim to this particular crown, or that Elvis merely bleached the blues, making very vital black rhythm and blues palatable to a white audience. I'm partisan on this. Elvis Presley was the genuine article, that is until he lost control of his career and his life. He was one of the purest expressions of the fusion of various American musical trends that this country has ever seen....
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