Hello all! I rarely post on this site but come here often to enjoy the shared love of Prince and his music that is so alive here. I have been a Prince fan since Controversy. I am also an Elvis Presley fan and have been since I was able to put the needle on a record. I find it interesting and odd that Prince and Elvis so often cross paths in this forum, but I must admit that it makes perfect sense to me.

I do not think that it is a mistake that there are so many people who are fans of both. I don’t think that there are two more comparable figures in the history of Rock and Roll than Elvis and Prince. “Mascara covered eyes, high heeled boots, “vulgar” and sexually charged stage performances, lacey shirts, high collars, androgynous posturing, cocky masculine bravado, self effacing humor…” The list goes on and on and applies equally to Elvis and Prince. But those surface similarities are nothing compared to what these great men have achieved musically. Both embraced the music that filled the air around them and filtered it through their own experience and creativity to present the world with music that blurred the color lines in beautiful and explosive ways. Both broke socially accepted roles of man/woman and black/white. At the center of everything they did was the explosive element of intense sexuality and overwhelming spirituality. I can think of no other artists who had such a deep impact during the peak of their popularity than Elvis and Prince. Both influenced how people dressed, danced, thought and, well—f@&ked. .

This whole debate reminds me of a conversation that I had with a senior NCO when I was stationed at Ft Bragg, NC during the late 80’s early 90’s. My NCO and close friend told me about how when he was young, an entertainer had appeared on the scene that made him feel free to dress how ever he wanted, made him feel like it was okay to spend time getting his hair and MAKE UP just right before he went and how for the first time he felt free to go out and dance with out knowing the “next step.” Most importantly, the performer made him proud of his own culture. I went on to tell him about how my generation had finally found someone who had the same powerful impact. Of course he was talking about Elvis and I was talking about Prince. At the heart of his story was a concert he attended in Seattle in 1957. It would be years later when I went to the Seattle Music Experience that I would learn that it was the same concert that had had such a powerful impact on Jimi Hendrix. Oh, and my NCO was African American, Of course he would have never used that term, he often said he was still "Black and proud."

James Brown is quoted as calling Elvis his “Soul Brother.” To me the same can be said of Elvis and Prince. Prince has asked his listeners to strive for a colorblind world and just dance, to let the pain of history fall away and just love each other (“Race,” “D.M.S.R.”, heck…you all know all the songs…) In 1968 Earl Brown composed the song “If I Can Dream” based on things Elvis had said during conversations with Steve Binder during rehearsals for the 1968 Special. In that song Elvis pleads for a world where all “his brothers walk hand in hand” and the passion and sincerity in his voice is heart wrenching.

It seems that we are a long way from seeing the dreams of these two artists come true.

In my view, when all is said and done and the history books have enough time to look back honestly at the music of the 20th Century, Elvis and Prince will both stand out and above most other performers because of their color blind music and the way they freed the youth of their generation.

I will be honest with all of you, it took me so long to write this that I got logged out before I could post the comment and had to rewrite it. Trust me, the original version was like poetry. Sorry to have to give you the “second hand” version!!!

Peace out and lovesexy!!

Elvis couldn't even really play the guitar , he had a great voice, but to me he was just another white man copying what black people were doing all along and then got all the credit for it due to the colour of his skin.!

kalelvisj said:

brilliant post, captures the complexities of Elvis and America which most Elvis haters won't even consider.

girl66 said:

Well, as far as I know Elvis is dead

After thinking this over I think I should have phrased it "Will Prince's popularity be as big as Elvis"

MantuaPharoah said:

we dont know for sure if elvis was racist or not we can only assume.but if i knew for sure he was i would definitely strongly dislike him.

Yes...imo....yes

Yes!! you heard Face Down right? lol

girl66 said:

i think michael jackson and prince are better than elvis.michael is already the biggest selling artist of all time.how big do you want him to get??
[Edited 4/18/07 12:01pm]

elvis was very popular
he had black songwriters/ producers and took credit for it
he had good songs no doubt i love the more popualar known ones
but to me hes more of an icon then a artist
american people think he can do no bad but he was a blown up drug adict
in his later years and lost all his glamour.

first let me say, for me it will always be Prince 1st..regardless...now it's not that I don't care for Elvis, I can take his music or leave it, either way..I see it like this

Prince is to us ( our time/generation) as what Elvis was to our parents..imo..

kalelvisj said:

One of the best posts I've seen on here for a long time.

I totally agree, especially the bit I highlighted about their shared looks and performance styles. I've long felt Elvis to be an unacknowledged influence on Prince.

And I'm glad you mentioned Elvis' impact on Jimi Hendrix at that 1950s concert. And a lot of people don't realise Elvis wore mascara and other make-up onstage in both the '50s and '70s. Some critics in the '70s even described him as almost like a drag queen in his more elaborate jump suits.

And it says something for the man that even nearly 30 years after he passed, America (in particular) still can't quite get its head around the man, what he achieved/ failed to achieve, stood for/ didn't stand for. And yet, time has somehow stripped away the reality, and he's now virtually a 'castrated' everyman figure, all things to all people, which may partly explain his enduring appeal, but which gets in the way of understanding the man and the entertainer. Men want to be him, women want to bed him, but nobody can ever truly know him.

We're still talking about him. And his music is still loved by many the world over, of all races. Like James Brown, he had a mighty spirit that came through in his performances - call it 'soul' if you like. That's why, for me, he's still the 'king' of singers.

egyptkizzee said:

It's well known that Chuck D has since gone to 'school' on Elvis and now publically retracts his above views on Elvis.

As for the slightly tedious issue of his alleged 'racism', Elvis started out as a poor boy in a mixed race if segregated community. The culture among most white southerners of that era was basically racist, due to ignorance and general historical prejudice. It would be a real rarity imo in that environment for a white child not to be indoctrinated in basic racist views, by osmosis from his parents at least.

As to whether Elvis himself was racist - When you read what his friends say in books about him, they'll say his dad was racist (they allege), but that Elvis himself always tried to fight off the views he was indoctrinated in, and went out of his way to give respect, credit and money (as he did to Arthur Crudup, writer of Elvis hit 'That's All Right') to black music artists (hence his friendships with James Brown and BB King among others. Little Richard always gives props to Elvis in interviews). Elvis may have had some inner conflicts about race due to his upbringing, but it seems he always sought to overcome these inbuilt views and do something good for people of all colours instead.

i never saw elvis and i don't think the next generation will either

First of all thanks to those of you who have made kind comments about my post, your comments mean a lot to m.

To add to the new batch of comments in general.

Elvis being raised in a very racist time and place is a huge part of why he had so much impact. From the very beginning of his career he spoke openly and respectfully about the impact African American musicians had on his own style. HE ALWAYS gave credit to the people who wrote the songs he performed. He gave often and anonymously to many charities to provide aid to the African American Community including but not limited to the NAACP and the foundation for Cyclecell anemia (excuse any spelling errors please).

What makes Elvis significant in terms of the race issues in our country is that he vocally glorified the music and culture of African Americans at a time when it was suicide as an entertainer to do so. He faced death threats for the music he performed and the statements he made and answered those threats by making statements like "This here song was written by a very good friend of mine names Little Richard, Unfortunately I haven't had the chance to meet him, but here's his song anyway..."

Elvis always stated that he could never hope to reach the level of his HEROES Fats Domino and Ray Charles.

To assume that Elvis was a racist simply because he was white and from the fifties is an act of Racism. As a college professor that constanstly calls for his students to embrace people regardless of their race, sexual orientation or religion, it saddens me that Elvis is often referred to on this site which is usually so full of love and acceptance, as a thief and racist based on the color of his skin.

Consider this simple notion, how many record sales did Elvis lose because he embraced and publicly celebrated African American culture, He was cited in Memphis before he was famous from breaking segregation laws for attending a fair during "blacks only night."

The current generation forgets that Elvis was a hero in the black community in the 50's. Did he lose his black audience as his career moved on and he became more successful...Yes. So did Prince. Prince is oten criticized for abandoning his roots when he was at the peek of his popularity form 1984-1991.

Elvis is still debated because he was a revolutionary, not just with his music but for embracing a sense of true democracy that in its most simple form said that every genre of American music was to be celebrated, and that every person should be judged by the quality of their character not their appearance. For those you of you have done your homework about the civil rights movements you will find these ideas very familiar. If those ideas aren't familiar, you might want to do a little homework.

Peace out!!
[Edited 4/20/07 16:16pm]

He never bought me a brand new cadillac after the wembley gig...

"The current generation forgets that Eminem was a hero in the black community in the 1990's, especially after '8-Mile'. Did he lose his black audience as his career moved on and he became more successful...?"
[Edited 4/20/07 17:15pm]

Prince is the most talented but the only person that might possibly knock Elvis off his throne is Michael Jackson.

vainandy said:

he won't though

depends on how u qualify it. we'll see in 30 years. by which point we'll have such short term memory loss through bombardment from the most rarefied media assault ever devised, combined with the personal expression of blogs and MySpace, that we'll all be our own Kings of Popular History.

But in the meantime, Prince by a long shot... i never listened to Elvis. Way before my time.

He had his chance but he lost it with his, not one, but two child molestation scandals. How much do you want to bet there will be a third?

vainandy said:

the guy needs some help

A dick is what he needs....but from a grown man. If he gone after that he wouldn't have gotten himself in the messes he has.

Um YES!

kalelvisj said:

People don't want to think about all those great things that Elvis contributed to the culture, it's much easier for them to say he stole the music, that he was a racist etc.., People talk about Elvis copying black music, but they never consider that James Brown and Jackie Wilson were huge fans of his. Jimi Hendrix was a natural extension of Elvis. I recall seeing a cute little drawing by a young Hendrix where he drew Elvis and the titles to a bunch of his hit songs, it was the sweetest thing in the world. Elvis crossed all kinds of barriers and people of all kinds loved him. My black stepdad was one of the biggest fans I have ever known and he told me stories about his mom buying elvis presley records in the early days. Nothing is as simple as it seems in this so called democracy, especially our top artists.

This site ain't called Elvis.Org

skywalker said:

Well said and I think the POINT!

mozfonky said:

Originality? .....

wlcm2thdwn said:

Unfortunately I will agree with this.

Graycap23 said:

I think in time, perhaps over the centuries his legend will grow. I really don't think even the fans appreciate how remarkable Prince is, I mean just look at all the negative things being said about his music here.

Graycap23 said:

Hell yes originality, Elvis was a genius and genius is really not very easy to track. The way he put styles together took genius, "That's All Right" was a blues tune, he turned it into rock and roll by infusing country and a newfound freedom and joy into the music. His early Sun stuff will always be his most original but he did lots of great stuff all throughout his life. And as for his originality, his stage act, his voice, his expression, his appearance, his demeanor, yes all took from many sources but to put them all together in one package was special and it was the mark of a vangard of his time.