Music Banter - Elvis' later years (Vegas Years)

Elvis often gets stereotyped in his later years for being a washed-up has-been addicted to pills.

However, this is not true.

The singer would reinvent himself in the 1970's as a jumpsuit clad live-performer and recording artist. Aerosmith's Joe Perry commented that Elvis' jumpsuits were 'beautiful works of art.'

The new Elvis would become one of the most iconic, celebrated, and imitated artists in history. The legions of young fans who came to Elvis concerts throughout the 1970's confirmed that he still appealed to youth and was not merely a nostalgia trip. In 1970, Newsweek commented "There are several unbelievable things about Elvis, but the most incredible is his staying power in a world where meteoric careers fade like shooting stars.'' The same year Rolling Stone called Presley "supernatural, his own resurrection." In many ways Elvis' concert years in the 1970's were the most successful of his career. Throughout the era Elvis played a staggering 1,000+ sold-out concerts, many breaking attendance records. His concerts were attended by Led Zepplin, David Bowie, Bob Dylan, and by Beatles George Harrison and John Lennon.

According to Susan Doll, PHd, by 1971, Elvis was on the road more than most other acts in show business. In addition, Elvis' record output during the 1970's was extensive, making his recording schedule as grueling as his concert tours.

Each year, RCA typically released three to four studio albums, one to two live albums, and various singles. The selection of songs indicates the eclectic nature of Elvis' tastes, while his ability to put them over with a consistency reveals his style. From the country classic "He'll Have to Go" to the pop song "It's Easy for You" by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, Elvis unites disparate sounds and genres of music into a style that is big, dramatic, and unique to him. Music Critic Dave Marsh argues that Presley, in fact, created a more impressive body of work in the '70s than almost any other pop act. Amazon.com stated this about Elvis in the 1970's, still-magnificent singer ...Presley was a master of intonation and phrasing, delivering his rich baritone with a disarming naturalness. And when he caught a spark from his great T.C.B. Band, Presley could still out-sing anyone in American pop.

Nearly every single released in the period hit the U.S Top 40, and practically every album went on to sell over half a million copies in the U.S alone. In the UK most of the singles went Top 10.

Some of Elvis' bad reputation from the era comes from the fact that his tastes drifted away from rock in the 1970's. A 1970 Richard Meltzer review of his "The That's the Way It Is" album is a great example of this. The crux of the review is a simple condemnation of Elvis for using his talents to sing ballads as opposed to rockers. Indeed, Elvis was not a rocker, but more of a pop act.