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
Alexis Soto
Truth be told I did not know much about Elvis before reading this article. I say that because I thought I knew all there was to know. Elvis seemed to be a figure that was more fable than historic. There are various shows allude to his persona and even impersonators. One would think they would know all about him. He was the King of Rock and Roll, had crazy dance moves, crazy hair, and said thank you. But it was enjoyable to learn of his early childhood, his life before the fame.
Gabriela Serrato
Very interesting because it is true that while we have favorite musicians and artists, we lack the knowledge of their personal backgrounds. I was shocked to find out that Elvis was a twin. It is heartbreaking that his experience had to experience such loss, and that Elvis did not get to have a relationship with his brother. I was also shocked to read that Elvis was more on the shy side as a student because this is something I would simply not guess when I see Elvis. This article proves how relatable Elvis was, and how his passion really lead him to go above.
Lianna Ybarra
I thought this was a great article. I never knew Elvis had a twin brother as well. I really liked how you mentioned that Elvis was very family oriented and wanted to do what was best for them. It’s funny to think of Elvis as a shy and lonely person because of who he was. He walked out on the stage and sang to thousands of people, if not more. Maybe it was his great passion of music that helped him really come out of his shell. Knowing his background and where he comes from makes me appreciate him as a person more than I had, and if more people knew this I think they would to. I am excited to read part II of the next article.
Gabriela Medrano
Good read! I was not yet aware that losing his twin at such a young age had such a great impact on Elvis and his family, which was probably the impact of him growing up to become this odd loner kid. I like the opening paragraph of the article because you mention things people can relate to. I began to think of my favorite artist, my favorite song by this artist and how much I really know of their growing up. With that said, great topic and good idea choosing Elvis!
Erick Martinez
Great article. I never knew Elvis had a twin brother. It is tragic for the family, but amazing to look back at all Elvis accomplished. The structure of the article was easy to follow and full of great information. A lot of which I had never come across before. I enjoyed learning of his journey to find music to be his passion. This shows how overtime he was able to be successful.
Aaron Mcglown
Great article! It was well written, well organized, and well researched with reliable resources. I never knew Elvis Presley I had no idea he had a twin pass away at birth. If his brother would have made it would Elvis Presley be as big as he is? Or maybe they could’ve made a great group. Overall, very good article Vanessa.
Nicolas McKay
One of my favorite lines in this piece was how how the music flowed in his veins like a drug, I suppose that must have been before the actual drugs. Tasteless jokes aside, this was an amazing article. The king of rock and roll is often seen as his namesake, a king.One who might have more in common . Whats truly amazing about this article is how it humanizes Elvis and turns him into a normal person whom anyone can relate to. It was an amazing portrayal of Elvis that I have not seen anywhere else and for that I say well done
Briana Bustamante
I loved how you started off this article. The questions that you had asked, would then be answered as I read the article. This also allowed me to understand what I was going to be reading. While reading this article I discovered information that I did not know, nor did I think to wonder. For example, I did not know that Elvis had a twin brother. Then to find out that he had died when he was born was more of a shock. I now understand why Elvis took music to another level. You can now get an understanding that he would sing not only for himself, but also his brother. Elvis has a made a huge impact in people’s lives, and is the true King of Pop!!
Alyssa Valdez
Very nice read! Me and my family have always been a fan of Elvis Presley; especially my dad. It was nice to learn more about him and his past as a child. I had no idea he was a twin. I also think it’s touching at how close his family was. Usually tragedy’s like that are what separate families, it’s nice to know it made theirs stronger.
Aaron Jaramillo
Great article Vanessa! It was well written and had a good amount of reliable resources! Growing up knowing of Elvis Presley I never knew he had a twin pass away at birth. If Jesse would have made it, they would have had made a pretty good group together. I can tell you are a big fan of “The King” and you made reading about his childhood interesting.