Birthplace of Elvis to be honored with Blues marker:

 

Governor Haley Barbour today announced the inclusion of Tupelo, birthplace of legendary rock ‘n roller Elvis Presley, on the Mississippi Blues Trail, which is dedicated to preserving the state's musical heritage through more than 100 historical markers and interpretive sites. "By all accounts, Elvis Presley was the single greatest influence on modern day rock ‘n roll in America, and much of his musical inspiration drew on the Mississippi blues," Governor Barbour said.

"As birthplace to Elvis, Tupelo is incredibly deserving of this very special Blues Trail marker which will honor the work, memory, and music legacy of the King himself."The Blues Trail will honor "Elvis Presley and the Blues" with a marker placed at his birthplace in Tupelo on Tuesday, January 8, 2008, at 1:00 p.m.

The ceremony comes as part of a joint effort by the Mississippi Development (MDA) Tourism Heritage Trails Program, the Mississippi Blues Commission, the Tupelo Convention & Visitors Bureau and the Elvis Presley Birthplace Museum to honor Presley for his for his contribution to Mississippi and America's blues heritage.Elvis's early recordings helped revolutionize popular music through their unique mix of the sounds of blues and country music, and many rock ‘n roll musicians followed his lead.

Presley first encountered the blues in Tupelo, and it remained central to his music throughout his career. The Presley family lived in several homes in Tupelo that were adjacent to African American neighborhoods, and as a youngster Elvis and his friends often heard the sounds of blues and gospel streaming out of churches, clubs, and other venues. According to Mississippi blues legend Big Joe Williams, Elvis listened in particular to Tupelo blues guitarist Lonnie Williams. The blues was undergoing great changes during Elvis's teen years in Memphis, where he could hear the music on Beale Street, just a mile south of his family's home. Producer Sam Phillips captured many of these new blues sounds at his Memphis Recording Service studio, where Elvis recorded his first single for Phillips' Sun label.

Elvis was initially interested in recording ballads, but Phillips was more excited by the sound created by Elvis and studio musicians Scotty Moore and Bill Black on July 5, 1954, when they were fooling around with bluesman Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup's 1946 recording That's All Right Mama.

In September of 1954 that song appeared on Elvis's first single for Sun Records, and each of his other four singles for the label also included a cover of a blues song-Arthur Gunter's Baby Let's Play House, Roy Brown's Good Rockin' Tonight, Junior Parker's Mystery Train, and Kokomo Arnold's Milkcow Blues, which Elvis likely learned from a version by western swing musician Johnny Lee Wills.Elvis continued recording blues after his move to the larger RCA Records in 1956, including Hound Dog, first recorded by Big Mama Thornton in 1952, Lowell Fulson's Reconsider Baby, Big Joe Turner's Shake, Rattle and Roll, and Crudup's My Baby Left Me.

One of Elvis's most important sources of material was the African American songwriter Otis Blackwell, who wrote two of Elvis's biggest hits, All Shook Up and Don't Be Cruel, as well as Paralyzed, Return to Sender, and One Broken Heart For Sale. For most of the ‘60s, Elvis concentrated on his film career, but in1968 he revisited his early blues roots on an NBC television special that reunited him with Moore and Black. In this so-called "comeback"appearance the trio reprised their early Sun recordings, and also performed many other blues songs, including the Jimmy Reed songs Big Boss Man and Baby What You Want Me to Do.

Blues continued to be a main element of Elvis's live performances until his death in 1977. The Mississippi Blues Trail markers are funded in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities and by support from the Tupelo Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Mississippi Department of Transportation, Delta State University and the Mississippi Development Authority.

 

(News, Source: WLBT 3)

 

Great news!!

Thats fantastic news Carole :cheer:

Here's a few of my pics from Tupelo

 

The swing on the back porch

 

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y48/elvis1959/scan0004-1.jpg

 

The Chapel

 

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y48/elvis1959/scan0007-2.jpg

 

View of the wall of tributes to Elvis

 

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y48/elvis1959/scan0005-1.jpg

 

I love the part where the Reverend Frank Smith says, ‘His voice was a gift from God. Many have copied after him, he copied after nobody. His mannerisms, his singing gyrations, these were his way. They didn’t come from the church or other singers. He just kept at what he had begun in East Tupelo and did it his way.’ B)

 

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y48/elvis1959/scan0006-2.jpg

 

Cool pics Carole, can't wait to go myself. :yahoo:

The site of the birth house in Tupelo has another Plaque of Recognition. This week, a comittee unvealed the Blues Trail Marker, recognizing and praising the influence of Elvis on Blues music. The marker was placed between the Elvis at 13 statue, and the Memorial Chapel.

 

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y48/elvis1959/bluesmarkertupelo.jpg

 

In the meantime, it's still unclear what will happen with the Janelle McComb Collection. The entire stock is now in the hands of Janelle's step son who, according to the birth house guides, seems to have no interest in donating the archives for free. Let's wait and see (and hope) if the negotiations result in an agreement that benefits the fans...

 

Source: ElvisMatters / Updated: Jan 10, 2008