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Summary: The Elvis we all want to know and love!
Review: A recent visit to Graceland and reading this book turned me into a confirmed Elvis fan. Extremely well-researched, it dials back time to Memphis in the '50s and paints a picture of what it was like to be caught up in the phenomenon of the Elvis craze. One of the best bios I've read; you learn Elvis is a charming bundle of insecurities, humility, talent, and mamma's good manners, not to mention the overt 'all shook up' sex appeal. The second volume, Careless Love, shows the inevitable downside of his fame. Last Train is a must-read for any rock or Elvis fan and even those who don't claim him as a favorite will enjoy this biography.
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Summary: Some People Actually Think He's Dead...
Review: But it's not true...Elvis DOES live...in the pages of Guralnick's outstanding biography of Elvis Presley, a biography that will stand the test of time as the definitive study of the King of Rock n Roll. In Volume One, Guralnick takes us from Elvis' humble beginnings in Tupelo, Mississippi to his departure for Army duty in Germany twenty-three years later. In between, readers will be fascinated with what they THOUGHT they knew about Elvis. LAST TRAIN differs from other books about Elvis in two very distinct ways: First, the author gives us first hand accounts from the people who were actually there. There's no tabloid journalism or second-hand anecdotes. Guralnick has done his research and it shows. Second, Elvis is never presented as an icon or an idol. Guralnick has the unique ability to step back away from the action as an impartial observer and give us an extraordinarily clear image of what Elvis was really like - a really nice, clean, religious kid who was consumed with music and making people happy. You can almost feel the electricity of the recording sessions at Sun Studios. You can watch Sam Phillips as he realizes that this boy could change the course of popular music forever. Elvis' girls, friends, musicians...they're all here and they all have a piece of the story to tell. And what about the "Colonel" Tom Parker? Genius or huckster? Of course, the hysteria is recorded as well. After all, it's part of the story. Crazed fans were nothing new. After all, girls had been going nuts over singers like Frank Sinatra and many others for years. But the world had never seen anything like this? How can you explain it? Guralnick never really comes right out with an explanation, but you'll be able to pick it up between the lines. But you'll enjoy the book so much in the process, all you'll care about is what happens next. The writing, the storytelling, the descriptions...it's all outstanding. But if I had to pick two moments that really struck me, one would be Elvis near his popularity peak looking out of a train window. He saw a lone dog running in a field and longed for the freedom to roam the world unhindered by masses of admirers. It's a very simple, but powerful image of things to come. The other is the [end of life] of Elvis' mother near the end of the first volume. In one of the most heartbreaking scenes I've ever read, Elvis kneels beside his deceased mother's body, crying out that he would give up all of his success and go back to digging ditches if he could only have her back again. If you have dry eyes at the end of this book, your heart needs to be jumpstarted. Like all good writers, Guralnick expertly foreshadows the tragic events that will take place in Volume Two. Even if you think you know the full Elvis story, you'll learn plenty by reading this book. The only bad part about finishing Volume One is not having a copy of Volume Two nearby. Buy both. You won't be sorry. 488 pages of text, 50 pages of notes and bibliography
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Summary: This REALLY IS one of the best biographies of anybody, ever!
Review: Extremely well-written bio, it took me right back to the 50's. Shows how important Sam Phillips was in the genesis of Elvis' "new" style of music. Gives glimpses into the King's initially very conservative moral stand - no drinking or smoking. Sometimes he even read from the Bible to his dates. The book takes us to the day he is shipped out to Germany. Towards the later chapters, darkness seems to creep into Elvis' life. He is very fearful, and the death of his mother appears to almost destroy his self-confidence. It gives great insight into just how and why Elvis' music was truly revolutionary. Shows how Elvis rose to the top thanks to three forces. First of course was his own talent, drive, ambition and energy. Then there was Sam Phillips who not only recognized that this phenomenon was totally new and different, but helped steer Elvis in the right direction musically. And finally there was the very clever Colonel Tom Parker, who was like a field general obsessed with effectively promoting Elvis' career. All in all, this book is hard to put down - in fact one wishes it would never end because it is such an enjoyable read.
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Summary: Reverent and Respectful
Review: Guralnick takes a scholarly approach to an American Pop Icon, giving a detailed, fact-based account of The King without the sensationalistic, tabloid-style trashiness found in other quickly-written-for-profit, exploitative Elvis books. He divides his work into two books: the first, Last Train to Memphis, traces his meteoric rise, while the second explores more aspects of his superstardom and then his decline. Guralnick's books on Elvis Presley are a welcome addition for those interested in a serious, respectful treatise on a talented, generous, and complex artist.
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Summary: should be assigned in history classes!!
Review: I don't own a single note Elvis Presley ever sang. I've never been particularly interested in his life or his music. The only other popular music books I've ever read are largely about punk rock, my true musical obsession. Yet my interest was piqued by the rave reviews this book received. Perhaps because of my interest in punk, and to a lesser extent 60's protest music, I've always been fascinated by the way in which popular culture both reflects and constructs its contemporary historical context. And what Guralnick does so brilliantly in this book is distill precisely that relationship. This book is simply a beautiful portrait of 1950s America, of a strange decade when outward moral propriety just began to hint at the possibilty of subversive rebellion. Who better to embody that contradiction than a shy, polite religious boy from Tupelo who somehow transformed his love of gospel into seminal - the MOST seminal - rock and roll? Guralnick eloquently portrays both the humanity and poignancy of his subject, and through it, the humanity and poignancy of a historical era on the verge of massive disruption. It still seems quiet and respectful and homely - like Elvis himself - and yet somehow you just know that lurking beneath the surface is genuine social rebellion. A great book, a page-turner. So good I might even pick up an Elvis record.
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Summary: FASCINATING!
Review: I found this book a fascinating & riveting read. Of the two biography books of Elvis Presley by this author I think I prefered this one the best, possibly because in the second book you already knew of the ultimate ending and with each page you could see it coming. This first book was especially interesting I found because it was a social history of the American 50's as well. All credit to the author for such an incredibly well researched and thoroughly enjoyable read. I believe Elvis himself would have given this 5 stars!!
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Summary: Elvis was just a man
Review: I'm not particularly drawn to biographies, and certainly not music biographies, but I make exceptions for Elvis. I was also swayed because I have heard Peter Guralnick's books praised many times. Most satisfying about this book, volume one of Guralnick's two volume biography of Elvis Presley, was Guralnick's ability to humanize his subject. The persona of Elvis, years after his death, is such a caricature, even a joke, that it can be hard to remember that there was a real, living, breathing person named Elvis Presley. The book contained what were, for me, some fantastic revelations. For one, Elvis was nearly done in when he was a youngster, not by the difficulties of his quest for fame, but by the swiftness with which it arrived. In a year's time, he went from being a nobody to being one of the most recognizable faces in the country, a man whose presence literally caused riots whenever he appeared in public. For Elvis, it was a major struggle simply to adjust to this new life. Television documentaries and magazine articles often mention in passing that Elvis' music and persona caused quite a stir, moral outrage even, when he appeared on the scene in the 1950s. Such stories sound quaint and exaggerated in this day and age, but with the context provided by Guralnick, I was able to see how groundbreaking Elvis really was, both musically and socially. Finally, I was enthralled by Guralnick's portraits of Elvis' supporting cast, quirky characters like Elvis' mother Gladys, his manager Colonel Tom Parker, and the guy who gave him his first big break, Sam Phillips. The book rekindled my love, as it surely will rekindle yours, for the early days of rock and roll, and it left me with a serious hankering to read volume two of the biography, Careless Love: The Unmaking of Elvis Presley sometime real soon.
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Summary: Outstanding - as if the author and Elvis were Siamese twins
Review: One of the best biographies I have ever read. Detailed, sensitive, written with just the right mix of empathy and detachment a biographer needs. I know two people who are about Elvis' age and grew up with him. Both of them say that the chapters dealing with the King's upbringing in Tupelo and his years at the Lauderdale Courts read like they have been written by someone who grew up with him. If you have only the slightest interest in Elvis, Memphis, Southern history, or American popular culture, buy this book.
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Summary: Guralnick Gives Us Back the Music!
Review: Peter Guralnick -- with both love and meticulous scholarship -- has written a supremely ethical work of cultural archaeology. With meticulous care and fairness -- but with no sugarcoating whatsoever -- he excavates Elvis out of the layers of rumor, innuendo, and mystery that have conspired over the years to make him a caricature and a joke rather than a human being. Gurlanick gives us back the artist (who first thrilled me on 78s) and exorcizes so much of the snobby and dismissive trashy gossip (Goldman) that has obscured Elvis for almost 40 years. I don't mean that a saint emerges. No way. But in Guralnick's telling, a brilliant musician and excruciatingly vulnerable human being pushes aside the fat guy in the gold Vegas suit. The result? The music -- in all its glory and raw excitement -- returns to take its rightful and deserved place. The best books (with Guralnick's 2nd volume) about rock and roll ever written.
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Summary: Entrancing read
Review: This book is one of the best, if not the best, I've ever read about Elvis Presley. It is very well written in an original way. I'm almost through reading it for the second time. To be able to get all of the information in this book, it is a must read more than once! You won't be able to put it down. Not only is it a great book for Elvis fans, but also for the avid reader. It describes Elvis' influences and surroundings and people in his early life and career in an accurate, yet exciting, way. This insightful biography of Elvis will open your eyes to more than just his image. It will help you understand the "real" Elvis. Emotions run high as you read about his first gigs, girlfriends, frenzied fans, Hollywood life, army concerns and his Mother. To own "Last Train to Memphis" is an inspiration.
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