Elvis- Why is he still so popular ?

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Bemagnus, May 21, 2016.

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  1. mpayan

    mpayan A Tad Rolled Off

    Sure do. And many many others including his peers and scholars totally agree. See you mistake pure unique talent as being something less because he didnt write any songs. And thats getting in your way of understanding his greatness. But youre not going to see that. You keep saying "Are you serious?" "do you really believe?". And honestly from that frame of mind it tells me that you dont understand nor will you most likely ever understand what made Elvis uniquely supreme in the entertainment industry, as an interpreter of song and an original creative force that has never been nor ever will be equaled.
     
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  2. mpayan

    mpayan A Tad Rolled Off

    You gotta ask yourself: Why did all these other artists think Elvis was "it"? John Lennon, James Brown, Stevie Wonder etc etc. Why did they say what they said about Elvis? Two great writers in that little group. Why didnt Stevie say "Eh hes ok. But he aint great cause he didnt write a song?"
     
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  3. mpayan

    mpayan A Tad Rolled Off

    Take Jerry Lee Lewis. The guy had a totally unique way playing the piano. You cant copy it. Its Jerry Lee Lewis. Try and sing like him. You cant. People try. Listen to some of the rock n roll he created. Listen to the country. He had a strength unmatched in his voice. Straight at you.

    Tell me who is on American Idle that has that kind of talent. Come on, man. This isnt realistic arguement. To even bring that show up in the same mention of Elvis is to show a total unawareness of what level of talent the man had.
     
  4. Mr. Webster the Poster

    Mr. Webster the Poster Well-Known Member

    Location:
    USA
    [​IMG]
     
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  5. mpayan

    mpayan A Tad Rolled Off

    One less snot nosed image on my screen :D
     
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  6. ZoSoUK

    ZoSoUK Forum Resident

    Location:
    Cambridge UK
    THIS !!!! you don't get it gansta & you wont because you clearly don't want too, his voice was not 'good' like the average 'artist' in the charts, more importantly he sang from his heart, he made you believe he meant every word!
    if it was a song about a break-up /divorce you believe he really was broken hearted , a religious song - you believe he loved God , damn you actually believe in god etc etc - he could have sang the phone book & held 20, 000 in rapt attention & the palm of his hand! I can listen to songs by him that I just wont touch by other people !

    writing your own material is not the be all & end all, besides you can either write or you cant !
    there have been millions of great songwriters who coudnt sing or could but then couldn't sell anything!
    ive written songs myself but I'm not revolutionising current trends !

    as mpayan already said, LENNON who was one of THE greatest songwriters ever was in awe of elvis, they (the beatles) looked at elvis the same way we all look at the beatles - lennon never cut him down a peg or two on the basis of his (lack of) original compositions - that's good enough for me !
     
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  7. czeskleba

    czeskleba Senior Member

    Location:
    Seattle
    The notion that a musician is not a valid artist unless he can compose songs is puzzling. It's really quite arbitrary to decide a particular talent is somehow "necessary" and that the lack of it constitutes a deficiency. Doesn't it make far more sense to evaluate a musician based on the talents that they do have, rather than criticizing them for talents they lack? Disparaging Elvis for not being able to write songs is like criticizing Prince for not being able to play the trombone.

    It reminds me of the joke by the late Mitch Hedberg:
    When you're in Hollywood and you're a comedian, everybody wants you to do things besides comedy. They say, 'OK, you're a stand-up comedian -- can you act? Can you write? Write us a script?'... It's as though if I were a cook and I worked my ass off to become a good cook, they said, 'All right, you're a cook -- can you farm?'
     
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  8. mpayan

    mpayan A Tad Rolled Off

    Thats hillarious. And true.
     
  9. BlueGangsta

    BlueGangsta Forum Resident

    Location:
    Australia
    Thus the whole point of asking questions like the ones previous. I certainly hope you don't have this attitude towards everyone who doesn't understand things like you do.

    [​IMG]
     
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  10. czeskleba

    czeskleba Senior Member

    Location:
    Seattle
    [​IMG]
     
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  11. mpayan

    mpayan A Tad Rolled Off

    Im just straight forward. I simply get the idea from posts like yours that you somehow think you float above the idea of Elvis. That its just so "passè". And that its not really you who might need an education on this but all these totally out of touch "Elvis fans". Id rather you just say "Hey, I dont like him nor do I think hes anything special. Hes not of my time and therefore cant be cool"
     
  12. BlueGangsta

    BlueGangsta Forum Resident

    Location:
    Australia
    But I do like him? And he's obviously special? The initial point I made is that if he had existed after many of the most admired artistic standards were put in place, his popularity would be that of a reality show contestant, as they are the industry standards he meets.
     
  13. Stephen J

    Stephen J Forum Resident

    Location:
    Austin, TX
    I guess maybe you had to have been there? That those 'artistic standards' that later came into being wouldn't have been there without him? As Bob Dylan said:

    "I wanted to see the powerful, mystical Elvis that had crash-landed from a burning star onto American soil. The Elvis that was bursting with life. That’s the Elvis that inspired us to all the possibilities of life."
     
    Last edited: May 30, 2016
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  14. Khaki F

    Khaki F Forum Resident

    Location:
    Kenosha, WI. USA
    That's like calling Andy Warhol a printmaker.
     
  15. strummer101

    strummer101 The insane on occasion aren't without their charms

    Location:
    Lakewood OH
    The voice is a musical instrument.
    Elvis probably wrote as many songs as Daltrey wrote for The Who, which also means nothing.
    Are actors required to write their own screenplays?
    You just sound silly.
     
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  16. BlueGangsta

    BlueGangsta Forum Resident

    Location:
    Australia
    Haha, okay, you win the funny award for that one.
     
  17. strummer101

    strummer101 The insane on occasion aren't without their charms

    Location:
    Lakewood OH
    :pineapple::bdance::goodie:
     
  18. JohnnyQuest

    JohnnyQuest Forum Resident

    Location:
    Paradise
    @BlueGangsta I'm not exactly sure how popular he is with the older crowd (in the outside world) but he's certainly not the topic of any discussions I've had with my inner circle or family.
    You have to remember that most music from the 50's didn't translate well over to my generation. People in my age group consider early 90's music "retro". So anything that predates that is prehistoric to them.
    The girl I'm dating considers Jodeci,Boyz 2 Men,etc. "classic R&B". :laugh: The closest she has been to Elvis was posing with a impersonator in Las Vegas for a picture. That's about it.
     
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  19. eileen

    eileen Forum Resident

    Location:
    Minneapolis, MN
    Those who insist that all singers must also be songwriters don't hold out an exception for Elvis. He seems to be freqently criticized by exactly that group. In fact, held out for special criticism if anything - that he's too popular for someone who isn't a songwriter and that's not fair.

    I was following your train of thought until it landed here. If you don't see the difference between the greatest voices and interpreters - people like Elvis, Ella, Aretha - and people like Kellie Pickler and Justin Guarini, then there really isn't a discussion to be had.

    The industry/media most certainly knows the difference, as does much of the public. It's certain fan groups, or demographic clumps anyway, who refuse to do so or tend to use it as cudgel. If what you're trying to say is that those people wouldn't come around for an Elvis due to those standards, I'd say they quietly manage to come around for a Rihanna, or any singer-fake-songwriter who catches their fancy.

    There are a few, very few, reality show contestants who have a much more credible post-show career, you may have noticed. It's because they are indeed that much better, not because they are or pretend to be songwriters.
     
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  20. Bemagnus

    Bemagnus Music is fun Thread Starter

    Of course you are raising a very hyphotetical question. But with that said I think you are wrong because Elvis vocal skills and scene-charisma is something that goes beyond most anything. Don t you think Frank Sinatra would have been apreciated just because he did not write his own songs.
    Or like James Brown put it- there is only two american originals-me and Elvis.
     
  21. Bemagnus

    Bemagnus Music is fun Thread Starter

    In the outside world Elvis albums still sells by the millions and he got fairly high streaming and download-figures cinsidering he s been dead a long time. That is the truth-really
    He is probably not very relevant among the younger population but that a not the point really.
     
  22. BlueGangsta

    BlueGangsta Forum Resident

    Location:
    Australia
    James Brown said a lot of crazy ****.

    I understand the point you're trying to make here, but using black artists (particularly female) from that general era doesn't exactly push a good case when it comes to artistic freedom.
     
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  23. Bemagnus

    Bemagnus Music is fun Thread Starter

    Imo Elvis together with Sinatra and Ray Carles is the greatest male singers within the field of popular music. Of course Ray Chales was a genius musician and great songwriter to. But all three had the gift of making any song their own. That s a gift that might be forgotten today but very valid back in the days. Among female singers I would put Billie Holiday, Edith Piaf and Aretha Franklin in the frontline. Aretha wrote lot s if stuff Holiday and Piaff did not. Does that in any way lessen their impact and genius way if turning songs into personal interprations
    I don t think so
    :)
     
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  24. Khaki F

    Khaki F Forum Resident

    Location:
    Kenosha, WI. USA
    I'd add Judy Garland and Bing Crosby... these are legendary performers. Besides, if you decide to follow the "Artistic Freedom" argument to its logical conclusion, there would be precious few albums worthy of high praise aside from McCartney's self titled debut and a handful of Todd Rundgren records, wherein the artist not only wrote and sang, but played all of the instruments themselves.
     
  25. Synthfreek

    Synthfreek I’m a ray of sunshine & bastion of positivity

    Are you posting to this thread using a flip-phone from 1996? I don't think I've seen a single entry without every other word all jacked up.
     
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