“Elvis Presley’s death deprives our country of a part of itself.”
~Former U.S. President James Earl Carter

“Elvis is the greatest cultural force in the twentieth century.”
~Leonard Bernstein, Conductor, New York Philharmonic

“If there hadn’t been an Elvis, there wouldn’t have been the Beatles.”
“Before Elvis, there was nothing.”
~John Lennon

January 8, 2010 marks what would be the 75th birthday of Elvis Aaron Presley, The King of Rock & Roll.  No matter what is, was, or can be said about Elvis, there is no disputing his contribution to American popular music and culture.  He was both the end of an era, and the beginning of another, crooning as dreamily as Crosby and Sinatra while rocking as hard as Berry and The Beatles.

Put simply, Elvis Presley was a ‘class act’, with emphasis on the word “class.”

Although Elvis’s ‘pelvic gyrations’ may have been considered racy and unfit for television audiences (in an era when it was forbidden to say “pregnant” on network television), he was still a gentleman of style and grace. He was polite in interviews, respectful to his fellow artists, and an overall gracious individual.  When his country called, he served.  And, although he had V.I.P. offers from both the Navy and Air Force, he refused special treatment and took the U.S. Army route, serving in West Germany in 1958.  Coincidentally, my father was also serving there, and has often told me of his meeting with Elvis while they were both stationed in Baumholder.  My father recollects a down-to-earth Elvis, who was “just one of the guys.”

I was eight years old when Elvis died on August 16, 1977, and I didn’t know him.  His legacy – for me – is primarily his music, but with the introduction of streaming internet video I have had the chance to hear him speak both officially and candidly in interviews and performances.  The more I watch, the more I come to understand the persona of Elvis… or at least the one he presented publicly.

Am I saying that Elvis Presley is an Angel? No. He had his demons and transgressions like anyone else, maybe more. Let’s face it, it ain’t easy being The King.  But, measured by the standards set by today’s ‘artists’, Elvis would at least have a shot at sainthood.

Elvis never attended an MTV Music Awards show, nor—to the best of my knowledge—an Emmy Awards show either.  I don’t think the former could even exist without Elvis, and yet I’m not sure he would have taken kindly to the gimmicks and antics of today’s musical elite.

Elvis Presley belongs to a simpler time, when artists were musicians and performers, and there was something of an unspoken behavioral barometer.  Many (not all) of today’s artists are mere shadows of The King, and the degenerate stunts they seem to pull each year at these award shows become worse and worse. As a public figure, Mr. Presley displayed a moral fiber that the likes of Kanye West can’t even begin to imagine or mimic. As I said earlier, Elvis was a gentleman, and I only wish that someday a new generation of performers might take their cue from him… he was The King for a reason.

-Craig Sumsky
Cutting Edge Entertainment

Elvis image used with permission, Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc.
www.elvis.com

Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I’m sixty-four?
~Paul McCartney

Debbie Harry, front person for the 70′s/80′s band ‘Blondie’ turns 64 today, and how appropriate that The Beatles song ‘When I’m 64′ keeps playing in my head, because for me both Blondie and The Beatles have similar significance in the grand scheme of Rock & Roll.

Now before you Beatles fans get yourselves all in a tizzy, let me assure you that I am quite aware that the fab four’s contributions far outweigh that of Debbie and the boys, having many more hits, many more songs, and certainly a larger impact.  But is Blondie’s impact any less significant?  The Beatles ‘invaded’ the U.S. in 1964, and split up by 1970 leaving us with a brilliant and diverse library of songs that pulled from many music influences, while helping to usher in the psychedelic era (thus doing a bit of their own influencing) at the same time.

But what about Blondie?  Certainly fewer hits, and fewer years of hits as well.  According to Billboard, Blondie only charted seven top 40 songs, while only four of them went to number one… So here is the irony.  Debbie Harry and Blondie were first and foremost a punk band, with Debbie’s on stage antics going as far as appearing bottomless (no pants, no panties) yet none of their four #1 hits were very ‘punk’ at all.  What is notable is that this little kick-ass punk band from an almost forgotten pre-Mtv era are credited with two of these number ones to be in previously ‘uncharted’ categories (or at least #1 charted).  The song ‘The Tide Is High’ which charted at #1 in November of 1980 is widely regarded as the first number one Reggae song to top the pop charts, a year later in 1981 Blondie reached #1 with what is not just regarded, but acknowledged as the first #1 rap song to top the Billboard top 40 pop chart.  Yep… Skinny white punk rock girl helps to usher in the now chart dominating Hip Hop phenomenon.  Again in a strange twist, the other two hit songs were considered Disco, with ‘Heart Of Glass’ in 1979, and ‘Call Me’ (From the Richard Gere film ‘American Gigolo’) in 1980.

Quite significant if you ask me.

Happy Birthday Debbie… Your poster has hung over my desk for over a decade, as I am one of your biggest fans.

-Craig Sumsky

www.cuttingedgedjs.com

I was ten years old, maybe even eleven when Leather and I were first introduced. She made several cameo appearances on Happy Days, being hired without audition when producer Garry Marshall saw her poster hanging on his daughters wall. Naturally there were other crushes of my youth… Susan Dey from The Partridge Family and Debbie Harry from Blondie being two of the other rocker girls that caught my fancy, along with tomboys Tatum O’Neal, Kristy McNichol and Jodi Foster, and the ever angelic Farrah Fawcett-Majors.

But there was just something special about Leather… something tough yet sexy at the same time, at an age when I couldn’t have comprehended the term ‘sexy’ Suzi Quatro captivated my imagination and my heart. She was cool, she was hip, and she was Rock & Roll.

Suzi was born on June 3, 1950, marking today as her 59th birthday… Happy Birthday Miss Tuscadero, and thank you from the ten year old boy inside of me, to whom you will always remain ageless and unforgettable.

-Craig

www.cuttingedgedjs.com