It's no secret that John Lennon was a huge fan of Elvis Presley when he was a teenager. Lennon formed his first band, The Quarrymen, which would later become The Beatles, as a result of his love for Elvis Presley and rock and roll.
As teenagers, The Beatles, especially John Lennon, were strongly influenced by Elvis Presley. They started wearing their hair slicked back like Elvis. They admired his rebelliousness and his appeal to women, not to mention his musical talent. “Nothing affected me until I heard Elvis,” John Lennon said.
The admiration of Elvis expanded greatly when Paul got to see Presley's sense of humor and good looks in the movies. “We all loved Elvis – he was so hot,” Paul McCartney gushed years later. “We were just so in love with him.
Without Elvis, there would be no Beatles", John Lennon famously said about the King of Rock 'n' Roll.
John Lennon was once asked what he thought about Elvis Presley and replied, “He's one of my heroes. I saw him in '56 in Liverpool. I was just a kid then, but I've loved him ever since.” It was John Lennon who suggested that The Beatles' song 'She Loves You' could be inspired by an Elvis Presley song.
The Beatles guitarist was, like so many of his generation, indebted to Elvis. Discussing Presley's music in the 1980s, Harrison said: “It had an incredible impact on me just because I'd never heard anything like it. I mean, coming from Liverpool, we didn't really hear the very early Sun Records.
'When Elvis died, people were harassing me in Tokyo for a comment. Well I'll give it you now - he died when he went into the Army. That's when they killed him. That's when they castrated him.
He says Elvis's favorite groups were the Harmonizing Four and Golden Gate Quartet and his favorite gospel singers included Jimmy Jones, Jake Hess (who sang with the Statesmen and later formed the Imperials) and Mahalia Jackson.
A secretive meeting between the Fab Four and the King. On August 27, 1965, a turning point in pop culture occurred at 525 Perugia Way in Bel Air, California, one that few knew about while it was taking place: the meeting between the four Beatles and Elvis Presley, in Elvis's home.
In fact, for much of The Beatles early songwriting career, he and Paul McCartney would trade their lyrics and songs and they'd both be undoubtedly influenced by one man, Chuck Berry.
Now Jerry Schilling, one of the legendary singer's closest friends, is telling PEOPLE how he hopes to see the rock and roll star's legacy unfold in the wake of his only child's death. For him, preserving Elvis's Memphis home, Graceland, is key.
Paul McCartney recalls meeting Elvis Presley in the summer of 1965 in a new interview with Wired Magazine. In the video, McCartney talks about what it was like to meet Elvis and how the king's television technology wowed the Fab Four.
In a recent interview, Eric Clapton was asked about his thoughts on Elvis Presley. He replied, “I think Elvis Presley was a brilliant man who brought a lot of joy to a lot of people. His music was groundbreaking and his influence is still felt today.
Of people who are at least somewhat familiar with the Beatles, 43% say they love McCartney, while somewhat fewer say they love each of the three other band members, including John Lennon (34% love him), Ringo Starr (32%), and George Harrison (31%).
Lennon ended up spending so much time talking about Elvis and other favorites from the 1950s that I was afraid we weren't going to get to the Beatles and his solo career. As Elvis sang 'Don't Be Cruel' in the background, John recalled his first and only meeting with our mutual rock hero.
In terms of numbers, The Beatles have sold 36.5 million more albums in the U.S. than Elvis, yet Elvis sold 25.5 million more singles than The Beatles.
"At the time, The Beatles were at the top of their career. Elvis sits down on the couch and the guys didn't know what to say. "He said to them, 'If you're going to sit here all night staring at me I'm going to bed. ' They laughed and that broke the ice.
“Something”
As the only Harrison A-side on a Beatles single, the song reached #1 on the Hot 100 in October 1969. Elvis sang “Something” during his 1973 “Aloha From Hawaii” concert.
But there are no recordings or photographs of the event. Tony Barrow, who was The Beatles' press officer between 1962 and 1968, was also in the room. As a new exhibition about The Beatles and Elvis opens at The Beatles Story in Liverpool, he recalls that memorable night.
"A few days later when I mentioned Marilyn to Elvis, he said, 'She's a nice gal, but a little tall for me'." "I knew that this was the sort of thing that could ruin their careers."
No, The Rolling Stones never met Elvis Presley. From an interview I read from Mojo Magazine when they interviewed Mick Jagger, Mick said he hadn't meet Elvis Presley. John Lennon said to go with Chuck Berry, so Mick went with Chuck Berry. He already liked Berry better anyway.
Elvis' perfect pitch was just one of the many factors that contributed to his success. The singing range of Elvis Presley was quite extensive, ranging from three octaves to a full seven. He was able to identify pitches accurately, which helped him to create his own unique style of music.
Speaking about the "King of Rock and Roll" after his death in 1977, Sinatra said: "There have been many accolades uttered about Elvis' talent and performances through the years, all of which I agree with wholeheartedly. I shall miss him dearly as a friend. "He was a warm, considerate and generous man."
Michael Francis (Led Zeppelin security): "He was just larger than life. All he ever did during the two days we were there was give people presents, like watches, robes and jewellery. "With Elvis, he must have had 20 people around him all the time; everybody was saying yes.
“Don't criticize what you don't understand, son. You never walked in that man's shoes.” - Elvis often used this adaptation of a well-known quotation. “When I was a child, ladies and gentlemen, I was a dreamer.