Last Train to Memphis (Paperback) ~ Peter Guralnick (Author) Cover Art

Last Train to Memphis (Paperback)

By: Peter Guralnick (Author)


List Price: $17.99
Tower Price: $14.94
You Save: $3.05 (17%)
Add to BagAdd to Bag Click to go directly to the checkout.
This item qualifies for FREE Shop N' Save Shipping for orders over $25. Check individual shipping price. *Some Restrictions Apply.
Availability: In Stock
Also Available in: [Hardcover]
Share This:
Add To KaboodleAdd To Kaboodle  Submit To Digg!Submit To Digg!  Share On FacebookShare On Facebook  Add to FavoritesAdd to Favorites  TwitterTwitter 

Mesh Match For "Last Train to Memphis" Paperback by Peter Guralnick:


Product Description



Run a Quick Search on "Last Train to Memphis" by Peter Guralnick to Browse Related Products:

Browse more products related to "Last Train to Memphis"

Browse more products related to "Peter Guralnick"


Review

"A poignant and loving portrait....There were many parts of it that broke my heart."

"An amazing story...a kind of Present at the Creation for the popular culture that now dominates and links most of our world."

"Unrivaled account of Elvis as he walks the path between heaven and nature...the incendiary atomic musical firebrand loner who conquered the western world, he steps from the pages, you can feel him breathe, this book cancels out all others."

"...[A] meticulous marshaling of the facts....There is hardly a dull moment in the trip....Even the minor revelations are positively spellbinding."

First line

It is late May or early June, hot, steamy; a fetid breeze comes off the river and wafts its way through the elegant lobby of the Hotel Peabody, where, it is said, the Mississippi Delta begins.

Publisher's note

From the moment that he first shook up the world in the mid 1950s, Elvis Presley has been one of the most vivid and enduring myths of American culture. Last Train to Memphis: The Rise of Elvis Presley is the first biography to go past that myth and present an Elvis beyond the legend. Based on hundreds of interviews and nearly a decade of research, it traces the evolution not just of the man but of the music and of the culture he left utterly transformed, creating a completely fresh portrait of Elvis and his world. This volume tracks the first twenty-four years of Elvis' life, covering his childhood, the stunning first recordings at Sun Records ("That's All Right", "Mystery Train"), and the early RCA hits ("Heartbreak Hotel", "Hound Dog", "Don't Be Cruel"). These were the years of his improbable self-invention and unprecedented triumphs, when it seemed that everything that Elvis tried succeeded wildly. There was scarcely a cloud in sight through this period until, in 1958, he was drafted into the army and his mother died shortly thereafter. The book closes on that somber and poignant note. Last Train to Memphis takes us deep inside Elvis' life, exploring his lifelong passion for music of every sort (from blues and gospel to Bing Crosby and Mario Lanza), his compelling affection for his family, and his intimate relationships with girlfriends, mentors, band members, professional associates, and friends. It shows us the loneliness, the trustfulness, the voracious appetite for experience, and above all the unshakable, almost mystical faith that Elvis had in himself and his music. Drawing frequently on Elvis' own words and on the recollections of those closest to him, the book offers anemotional, complex portrait of young Elvis Presley with a depth and dimension that for the first time allow his extraordinary accomplishments to ring true.

Annotation

Exhaustively researched and rich in small yet telling details, LAST TRAIN TO MEMPHIS, the first volume of Peter Guralnick's two-volume biography of the first rock & roll star, Elvis Presley, is an impressive feat of detective work. Guralnick takes us from Presley's birth in Tupelo, Mississippi in 1935 to the death of his mother, Gladys, in 1958. The intervening years are a cornucopia of information: Elvis's father is imprisoned for passing bad checks when the child is three; an older Elvis cuts a faltering yet promising demo for Sam Phillips, finishing one song by simply saying, "That's the end"; and, years later, Colonel Tom Parker tries to use Gladys Presley's death for publicity. The gradual development of Presley's talent is set against his small-town Southern background, and Guralnick's contrast of the sudden onset of the singer's fame with his previous quiet, almost laid-back existence is almost shocking. The compellingly told story of the early years of a cultural icon, LAST TRAIN TO MEMPHIS is a superlative examination of the roots of Elvis Presley's fame.



Customer Reviews for "Last Train to Memphis (Paperback)" by Peter Guralnick (Author)

There are no customer reviews yet. Be the first to write a review!

Submit your Review




Explore More Great Tower Sales & Specials



Tower.com BOOK Sales, Promotions & Special Features

Tower.com Popular Book Wiki Articles

  • The Paperback
    Learn more information on the paperback format before choosing which type of book to purchase.
  • The E-Book
    What exactly is an "electronic book?" Learn before you buy with Tower Wiki!
  • The Audio Book
    Do you prefer to read or be read to? Learn more about this increasingly popular book format.

Interact with Tower.com