Everyone has a favorite musician, and they could probably name their favorite songs, the places and dates of when they saw them, but if asked, would they be able to talk about their favorite artist before they were famous? Could they discuss their favorite musician’s childhood, such as where they were from, when they first became interested in music, and if they were even good in the beginning?
Before he would be known as the King of Rock n’ Roll, Elvis Presley led a simple life. His mother, Gladys Presley, was carrying twins, Jesse Garon and Elvis Aron; both were delivered on January 8, 1935; Jesse Garon would be pronounced as a stillborn.1 Although Elvis did not have a chance to actually meet his brother, he would grow up visiting his brother’s grave; he would always refer to Jesse as his twin.2 Gladys believed that even though Jesse Garon did not survive, Elvis would always carry his brother with him. Gladys believed that Elvis carried the strength of both babies, but without Jesse Garon, Elvis always felt he was missing half of himself.3 People that lived around them noticed that Elvis seemed unusually close to his mother.4 Gladys, only having one child, hovered over Elvis as he was growing up; because of that, Elvis would always be by his mother’s side.
It was very hard for the family to lose Jesse Garon at birth, but they made the best of it, and loved Elvis fiercely. Elvis’s father, Vernon, and his mother loved him very much and wanted to protect him from everything, but showed restraint in allowing him be his own person. After losing Jesse, the family was heartbroken, but leaned on one another for strength. They knew that family would always be there for them if they needed help and the Presleys kept their little family of three close. With the tragedy of knowing that someone was missing in their family, Elvis made sure that he was there for the both of them, always promising that he would do whatever he could for his parents.
Elvis started going to school, and although he was not the brightest student, he did his best in his classes and followed the rules. He was always on his best behavior when at school, and was polite to those around him. Elvis was shy and tried to get along with his classmates, trying out for football and ROTC, getting out of his shell.5 Elvis was not good with attention on him in his early life; he was a loner. He was always alone, and found himself more at ease being around teachers than his fellow classmates.6
Elvis started showing interest in music at a young age, but only truly did something with music when he was older. When he was two, Elvis attended a church sermon with his mother and upon hearing the choir sing Shake Rag, a rhythm-and-blues song; he ran from her lap to join the choir.7
His love for music was instinctual; he drank it in, allowing it to flow through his veins like a drug; he had a channel stuck in his head hooked up to the divine gods of music.8
He was passionate even at a young age and to be this passionate, he knew what he wanted to do with his life. The sounds he would hear around him affected him to make his sound, to find what he did or did not like.
Elvis soaked up all the musical sounds around him, the train whistle, the white country singers, the poplar sound on the radio, the jamboree performers at the courthouse, the gospel music at his church, the flux of sounds in Shake Rag, the gospel at the African American churches and the tent revivals.9
Wherever he went, he always found a sound that intrigued him. The hold music had on him would prove to be the most powerful bond he had ever felt in his life.
- Peter Guralnick, Last Train to Memphis: The Rise of Elvis Presley (Little, Brown & Company, 1994), 13. ↵
- Guralnick, Last Train to Memphis: The Rise of Elvis Presley, 13. ↵
- Bobbie Ann Mason, Elvis Presley (A Lipper/ Viking Book, 2003), 11. ↵
- Guralnick, Last Train to Memphis: The Rise of Elvis Presley, 13. ↵
- Glen Jeansonne, David Luhrssen, and Dan Sokolovic, Elvis Presley, Reluctant Rebel: His Life and Our Times (Praeger, 2011), 22. ↵
- Guralnick, Last Train to Memphis: The Rise of Elvis Presley, 35. ↵
- Mason, Elvis Presley, 16. ↵
- Mason, Elvis Presley, 16. ↵
- Mason, Elvis Presley, 17. ↵
75 comments
Miranda Alamilla
Elvis Presley holds a special place in my heart and reading that he had a twin that had a stillbirth breaks my heart. I can see how he would feel that his other half was missing but it was really satisfying to read that his parents loved him with immense strength. It was also very interesting to read that Elvis was much more shy and introverted as a young man, considering all that I know about him consists of him being an extravagant artist. Overall, I really liked the layout and information presented in this article.
Didier Cadena
As someone who has watched performances of Elvis online, I was surprised to hear that he was considered a loner growing up. I guess that it really goes to show how much confidence that someone can get over the course of their life. I was also unaware of his relationship with his mother, which was really interesting to find out. This article was able to put his early years in a way that was both fun and easy to read.
Elias Garza
As much as I like music, I also admire the personality behind these exceptional artist. I do my best to learn about the background of my favorite artist. Although I am a fan of Elvis, I did not know much about him before he got famous. Also, I like how strong their family became after they lost one of their children. Nothing is stronger than a family that comes together because they are all each other have.
Reese Lujan
Who would have thought a musical genius such as Elvis Presley himself would have gone through such a life-changing traumatic experience. Watching videos of his performances I would have never guessed that as a young boy he experienced the loss of a brother and isolated himself from people his own age. It’s a beautiful thing knowing he found his escape in music. Especially knowing he found it through the gospel.
Joshua Breard
Very good article! It was full of details that I knew and some that I did not know. One detail I did not know was about his brother and something I knew he was a dedicated family man. It was touching to read how he would constantly visit his brothers grave. Little things like this show where he heart was and I ultimately after reading this article grew a greater respect for him even though I am not the biggest Elvis fan. Great article!
Michelle Falcon
Elvis Presley was someone I grow up listening to, however I never know anything about him before he became the man we all know and love. To think that Elvis had a twin brother! Could you imagine Elvis singing with his brother, almost of having two kings of rock. This article did a great job of showing us how Elvis grow up and how his love for music started.
Dayna Valdez
Everyone knows about Elvis, who he was, and what he did. However, I don’t think many know that he was a twin, at least, I didn’t. Though I never really knew about his childhood, it seems to have been a good one. His parents seemed to have loved him and a good relationship with your parents is always great, which he seemed to have.
Maria Callejas
Great introduction, it amusingly builds up what your article will talk about. You have great information throughout the piece – I had no idea Elvis had a twin! Imagine if Jesse would have been alive to see his brother transform the music industry. I really enjoyed the in-text citations about Elvis’ personality as they give an accurate insight to his innate musical talent. Great work! Can’t wait to read part 2!
Rebekah Esquivel
So I actually read the second part to this article before reading this one and now the whole story line makes sense to me. I never knew that Elvis had a twin brother before reading this article. The way that the article was started was pretty interesting. It made me think about my favorite artist and if I would really be able to tell their story and really I wouldn’t be able to. This article was very informative.
Mario Sosa
Very fascinating article, as I never knew about Elvis’ childhood. Just like everyone else, I had no idea he had a twin brother, let along how much of an impact he had on him, despite never having met him. It is heartwarming to read how Elvis had such an emotional connection with his brother throughout his whole life. Nicely well made article, great work!