In 1956, rock n’ roll was still very much an unknown quantity in the world of pop music. A young Elvis Presley had been setting the Country Western charts on fire with a red hot series of singles for the legendary Sun Records, but when Sun founder Sam Phillips sold Presley’s contract to RCA for the bargain sum of $35,000, nobody knew if he was going to make much of an impact in the world of pop. Luckily, he did – Elvis would go on to become perhaps the top selling artist of all time – and it all starts here with his self titled debut for RCA. Elvis’ television performances of lead single Heartbreak Hotel all but assured the success of the album – his electrifying, sexually charged style of performance was like nothing the world had seen before. Accusations of satanism, screaming hordes of teenagers and other general hysteria soon began to follow Elvis wherever he went. The album hit number one and sold a million units in 1956 alone – Elvis was a made man. Elvis’ debut features a lot of great covers – Tutti Frutti by Little Richard, I Got a Woman by Ray Charles and Blue Suede Shoes by Carl Perkins all became staples of the King’s live set and his interpretation of Blue Suede Shoes has become the definitive version for many. Other album highlights include Blue Moon, Shake Rattle and Roll and Trying to get to You. Guitarist Scotty Moore’s searing guitar work and Elvis’ explosive vocal stylings seamlessly coagulate all over this album, creating the template for rock n’ roll as we know it today and inspiring bands like the Beatles, Bob Dylan and Led Zeppelin to follow their dreams. Elvis’ first outing was as good as he ever got. All hail the King.
Pete Whelan 