Elvis Presley Died 42 Years Ago Today
It's hard to believe that Elvis Presley, the King of Rock and Roll, has been dead for 42 years. I guess that's partly because Elvis is still alive in so many different ways, especially here in the Shreveport-Bossier area.
It's hard to think about music in our area without thinking about Elvis. Elvis' first big national break happened here in Shreveport at the Louisiana Hayride. His original drummer, DJ Fontana, was a Shreveport guy. The iconic phrase "Elvis has left the building" was said at Hirsch Coliseum. The leader of Elvis' second band, the Takin' Care of Business Band, was Shreveporter James Burton. One of his last shows before his untimely death was here in Shreveport.
Till this day, if you go to Cobb's BBQ in Bossier, they have a plaque that states Elvis used to live in the apartment building behind their shop and eat there. I mean, the King's finger prints are literally everywhere and on everything in this town.
And that's just local stuff. If you look at Elvis on an international level, he completely changed the music industry. From the way recording contracts are structured to the type of music that was marketed to mainstream America.
Whether you're a fan of Elvis or not, you have to appreciate what the man's music not only did for the world but for our area. He made a lot of people happy and kept a lot of local folks employed for a lot of years.