Careless Love

Rating:
Summary: You want to know who Elvis really was? Read this book!
Review: A wonderful achievement. Thoroughly researched, beautifully written. You'll learn everything about the King you always wanted to know - plus some facts of which you had rather remained ignorant. Careless Love is on par with the first volume of Guralnik's Elvis-biography, "Last Train to Memphis" (see also my review of that outstanding work).

Rating:
Summary: Elvis: *This* Is What Happened
Review: Elvis Presley is one of those singular cultural figures who naturally and without defiance broke America apart and re-invented it. He didn't come as prophet or destroyer, not as a statesman or reformer, but as a guileless, unpretentious young man blessed with a talent and charisma and drive that leaves us mere mortals agape. In a way, he is like several other men of the era--Kennedy, Brando, Dean, later the Beatles--who created the "youth culture" to which we are (unfortunately) more enslaved to now than ever....

Wait a minute--did I just refer to Elvis as other than merely mortal? Not so, and Peter Guralnick's astonishing Careless Love finally makes it possible for us to grasp Elvis as human. While other books about him could fill a thousand mausoleums, let them, because Guralnick's two-volume set (the first is Last Train to Memphis (1994)), will stand as the definitive biography of this great American.

But before you dive in, let me say that Careless Love, while beautifully and carefully written, and extra-carefully researched--Guralnick had access to unorganized files in Graceland unlike anyone prior to him--it is dense with factual trivia insterspersed with the dramatic events of Elvis' life (and the lives of those around him). This book is not for the casual reader; in its intimate details, vast narrative, and utter lack of superhero worship glitter, this book will probably appeal less to traditional Elvis fanatics than to those seriously interested in this man who became a 20th century phenomenon.

Again and again, Elvis is described as "humble, shy, respectful, hard-working." This seems true, right, but what is most effective in Guralnick's portrait is what's shown and not told--Elvis' misplaced affections, his desire to keep family and friends around him at all times (but then, you can't blame him). These people, from his father Vernon, to Priscilla, to old friends like Red West, had to put up with his mood swings, his anger, his jet-setting on a whim, the covert operations of smuggling girls in and out of his bedroom. Seemingly without concern for finances he gave away Cadillacs, motorcycles, TVs, homes, jewellry, to those around him, testing loyalty, wanting only their dedication to his perverse lifestyle.

Guralnick makes it clear that one of the young men in Elvis' employ became one of his most trusted friends--and one who was hounded out of the circle by Elvis' "good ol' boy" cronies. Larry Geller was a hairstylist when he met Elvis in April 1964. Immediately there was a rapport, for Geller filled a gap in Elvis' life--a hunger for spiritual, even intellectual pursuits. Geller listened while E poured his heart out about his mother--and if you know anything about Elvis, you know he loved his mother and when she died, well, he was never the same.

Elvis became quite the reader--one of the many revelations here. I won't comment on the types of religious books he read--well, suffice to say today they'd probably be shelved in the dreaded "New Age" section of bookstores, but who am I to say? Sometimes the critic in my head won't shut up--but it's obvious that E had found a bedrock for his life that he had not found in Col. Parker, in Priscilla, perhaps not even in his music. You really feel it when Guralnick describes how Elvis' friends (and let's not forget, they were his employees as well) start to openly mock Geller and his interests, and, by proxy, Elvis' interests as well, although they would never do so to his face. This part of Elvis they could never understand, a part that required a depth of feeling--and perhaps an ego--that these guys didn't have.

Some of my favorite parts of the book were when Elvis was in Vegas. Contrary to popular belief, Elvis turned in many great performances in Las Vegas. After spending years away from the stage, preoccupied with Priscilla, the baby, bad movies, etc., he was glad to concentrate on the music once again. He handpicked his backup band, and the performances highlighted his freewheeling, energetic, off-the-cuff personality that had been stifled. Guralnick excels in revealing how Elvis' confidence and enthusiasm returned at this point, and how he spent less and less time with Col. Parker. In these pages, Elvis comes across as simply wonderful.

The best thing about this work is that it is simply about Elvis' life--indeed, it ends a mere page after detailing the funeral (50,000+ outside Graceland); James Brown gets a moment alone with the body; and Col. Parker tells a grieving Vernon Presley that even now they must think of the future (ooh, that conniving huckster bastard!) There is very little moralizing, even when it could be so easy: such as when Elvis wanted to have contracts put out on Mike Stone, whom Priscilla had had an affair with,and on his close friends Red and Sonny, who wrote the 1977 tell-all Elvis: What Happened?

No, what Guralnick gives us here is the portrait of a great man, a man whose legacy today is encrusted with gold and lacquer, a man who should be rediscovered and remembered as he is here: without myth, without ceremony, but with every respect and honor due him.

Rating:
Summary: Brings back memories
Review: Except for some more detail lacking in the post divorce years (after 1973), this is an outstanding book. However, I wish I hadn't read it. It's not hard to understand what the fascination with Elvis is about. There won't EVER be another one. I've seen well over 50 concerts in my life, but the Elvis concert I saw in Dayton, Ohio in 1972 was without a doubt the most incredible event I have EVER witnessed in my life. He TORE the place up, he was in 100% total awareness and control. He was almost God like and he KNEW it. I saw also saw him him in Louisville, Ky on 5/21/1997, less than 3 months before he died. Needless to say, the Elvis I saw in 1977 didn't resemble the Elvis I saw in 1972. He was already dead inside. It is a tradgedy that one man with so much could fall so fast professionally. I wasn't sure the Elvis I saw in 1972 was human and I'm not sure the people around him realized he was human either. But he was and that's the sad part, the show I saw in 1977 made that clear. I wish I hadn't read this book. In fact, I'm going to get rid of it. When Elvis was on top of his game, non-other compared. It's IMPOSSIBLE to stay at that level......IMPOSSIBLE. That's the way people want to remember Elvis, on top.....that MAGIC that ONLY he had. Skip this book if you don't won't to be sad.

Rating:
Summary: Brilliantly written, scholarly treatise
Review: Few people have ever impacted American culture as did Elvis Presley; his contribution to rock music is immeasurable. Guralnick takes a scholarly approach and writes a carefully researched, detailed biography of The King. The first book deals with his meteoric rise from humble beginnings; the second deals with superstar Elvis and his sad decline. No doubt readers will wonder how they could have saved Elvis if only they'd known him; unfortunately, the only person who could have saved Elvis was himself. Forces and fate no doubt played a role which drove Elvis to use drugs as an escape from the stresses and abnormality of his life.
Both books by Guralnick stand alone as well-written biographies of the King. However, I recommend reading them both to get the full impact. It is refreshing to have available a serious, respectful book on Elvis Presley that's void of the usual sensationalistic, simplistic trash found in other, hastily-churned-out Presley biographies.

Rating:
Summary: A poingant, depressing, and insightful look at Elvis...
Review: First and foremost, this is a depressing book. There is a warning in the author's note that the book is about a tragedy, and this is an understatement. Elvis Presely's "fall" was a hard and bitter one. This book outlines events starting in 1960 up to Presely's death in 1977. Things start out looking pretty good for Elvis as he leaves the army and begins his career almost anew, but as the 1970s emerge, things start to cloud over, and the book follows the downward spiraling vortex that Presley and his somewhat bizarre and almost constantly fluctuating entourage followed up to the end. Along the way, Guralnick allows readers to draw their own conclusions about Presley. Mostly the book outlines details of certain events - sometimes so detailed one wonders if Guralnick was there himself - interspersed with commentary from people who lived through these same events. It is not an uplifting read. One gets the impression that Presley's fame isolated him from pretty much the human race, made him untouchable (reprisals were feared by anyone is his immediate "gang", and it didn't help matters that most of them were on his payroll) and ultimately put him beyond the help of his own family and the people who he thought were his friends. Presely's fame turns horrendously destructive in the 1970s, and some of the stories and anecdotes may make the sensitive reader wince. Some of the stories are just downright strange: Presley's religious enlightenment from seeing an image in the clouds of the face of Stalin turn into the face of Jesus; Presley's determination to secure himself a position of Narcotics officer from President Nixon; the pranks Preseley and his retinue play on each other, on audiences, and on themselves; the fact that, as record sales declined, Presely's revenue actually increased. Other anecdotes have a more disturbing undertow: Presley's manipulation and abject objectification of the women in his life, and the fact that many of them kept coming back even after being brusquely brushed off; Presley's fascination with guns, and his sometime not so comforting habit of pointing them at people when angry; Presely's wild, erratic, and irresponsible spending; Presley's inability to take advice from his wife, girlfriends, business manager, and even his own father on dire personal matters (e.g., his finances, his marriage, his health). It is a tragedy to read about someone who both cared about people but also put himself above others in a way that put him beyond their help or aid.

The figure of "the Colonel" lurks behind the entire story. He has Presley's business needs in mind, and, due to his business acumen, makes Presley (and himself) multi-millionaires beyond imagination. It's amazing to read how the Colonel is able to make more and more money from Movie studios, even as movies starring Presley are on a sharp decline in revenue and popularity. The whole story is mind boggling. In the end, the Colonel thought he was taking care of Elvis in the best way he knew how, but insatiable greed and insular attention to the bottom line and almost nothing else probably hurt Presley more than it helped him in the long run. Guralnick does not say this anywhere in the book. Again, the reader must draw moral conclusions based on the evidence. Guralnick does not moralize apart from calling the story a tragedy, and this makes this biography doubly interesting, as different readers will likely draw different conclusions based on their own interpretations of the delineated events. Who is to blame in the end? Is it fair to blame one or a few people? Is it fair to blame Presley? These questions are not answered (as they shouldn't be) but much food for thought is presented. As usual in life, the answer is far more complicated than mere finger pointing can accommodate. Guralnick handles this subject with eloquence and a distance that pull the reader in and allow for reflection upon what happened. This is not the usual shoddy rock biography that typically clutters the "Music" section of bookstores. This is a story to sink one's cognitive teeth into and reflect upon. Warning: this book will make you think; it will make you moralize; it will make you angry and frustrated at what happened, and it will make you ask "Why?" Regardless if you are an Elvis Presley fan or not (I'm really not; I was very young when Presley passed on) this is a book worth reading. It is a thick book, but a quick read (keep your dictionary handy nonetheless). Once you're in fifty pages or so, you'll probably find yourself stuck on it.

Rating:
Summary: A poingant, depressing, and insightful look at Elvis...
Review: First and foremost, this is a depressing book. There is a warning in the author's note that the book is about a tragedy, and this is an understatement. Elvis Presely's "fall" was a hard and bitter one. This book outlines events starting in 1960 up to Presely's death in 1977. Things start out looking pretty good for Elvis as he leaves the army and begins his career almost anew, but as the 1970s emerge, things start to cloud over, and the book follows the downward spiraling vortex that Presley and his somewhat bizarre and almost constantly fluctuating entourage followed up to the end. Along the way, Guralnick allows readers to draw their own conclusions about Presley. Mostly the book outlines details of certain events - sometimes so detailed one wonders if Guralnick was there himself - interspersed with commentary from people who lived through these same events. It is not an uplifting read. One gets the impression that Presley's fame isolated him from pretty much the human race, made him untouchable (reprisals were feared by anyone is his immediate "gang", and it didn't help matters that most of them were on his payroll) and ultimately put him beyond the help of his own family and the people who he thought were his friends. Presely's fame turns horrendously destructive in the 1970s, and some of the stories and anecdotes may make the sensitive reader wince. Some of the stories are just downright strange: Presley's religious enlightenment from seeing an image in the clouds of the face of Stalin turn into the face of Jesus; Presley's determination to secure himself a position of Narcotics officer from President Nixon; the pranks Preseley and his retinue play on each other, on audiences, and on themselves; the fact that, as record sales declined, Presely's revenue actually increased. Other anecdotes have a more disturbing undertow: Presley's manipulation and abject objectification of the women in his life, and the fact that many of them kept coming back even after being brusquely brushed off; Presley's fascination with guns, and his sometime not so comforting habit of pointing them at people when angry; Presely's wild, erratic, and irresponsible spending; Presley's inability to take advice from his wife, girlfriends, business manager, and even his own father on dire personal matters (e.g., his finances, his marriage, his health). It is a tragedy to read about someone who both cared about people but also put himself above others in a way that put him beyond their help or aid.

The figure of "the Colonel" lurks behind the entire story. He has Presley's business needs in mind, and, due to his business acumen, makes Presley (and himself) multi-millionaires beyond imagination. It's amazing to read how the Colonel is able to make more and more money from Movie studios, even as movies starring Presley are on a sharp decline in revenue and popularity. The whole story is mind boggling. In the end, the Colonel thought he was taking care of Elvis in the best way he knew how, but insatiable greed and insular attention to the bottom line and almost nothing else probably hurt Presley more than it helped him in the long run. Guralnick does not say this anywhere in the book. Again, the reader must draw moral conclusions based on the evidence. Guralnick does not moralize apart from calling the story a tragedy, and this makes this biography doubly interesting, as different readers will likely draw different conclusions based on their own interpretations of the delineated events. Who is to blame in the end? Is it fair to blame one or a few people? Is it fair to blame Presley? These questions are not answered (as they shouldn't be) but much food for thought is presented. As usual in life, the answer is far more complicated than mere finger pointing can accommodate. Guralnick handles this subject with eloquence and a distance that pull the reader in and allow for reflection upon what happened. This is not the usual shoddy rock biography that typically clutters the "Music" section of bookstores. This is a story to sink one's cognitive teeth into and reflect upon. Warning: this book will make you think; it will make you moralize; it will make you angry and frustrated at what happened, and it will make you ask "Why?" Regardless if you are an Elvis Presley fan or not (I'm really not; I was very young when Presley passed on) this is a book worth reading. It is a thick book, but a quick read (keep your dictionary handy nonetheless). Once you're in fifty pages or so, you'll probably find yourself stuck on it.

Rating:
Summary: Stirring...
Review: I picked up the book Careless Love. At the time the title puzzled me. Who was guilty of Careless Love? Elvis? Umm. Go figure. But upon completion of the book, I now realize no other title would have suited. Elvis was guilty of careless love as was the people whom he surrounded himself with daily and most importantly the fans.
Now, I find no joy in his music and it is painful for me to look at smiling happy picture's of him when he was at the height of his career. Why? Because I know how it all ends. The man, who would burst on the scene and shred American culture, all the while rebuilding it, fascinates me. He was a pioneer, a rebel. Everyone knows the story. Poor boy makes good. But the trajectory his life took is painful to follow. How could a man whose vision changed the music world not have had enough foresight to see his own destructive and erratic behavior?
Paul Guralnick writes the only account of Elvis that I trust implicitly. Why? Because his regard for Elvis as an artist is woven between even the most heart wrenching accounts of his life. Mr. Guralnick does not try to persuade you to like or dislike Elvis. He merely gives Elvis life and places him in front of you saying, "Here he is...you make the decision on how you feel about him."
The book is a disturbing but respectful look at a man who was gifted beyond reason. Mr. Guralnick clearly demonstrates that the fame Elvis endured was even beyond him.

Rating:
Summary: Masterful and stunningly sad
Review: I was not an Elvis fan before casually picking this up in an airport to have something to read on my flight. Now I can hardly pass a day (or sometimes hour) without thinking about him thanks to this incredible masterpiece of a biography. If the aim of a biography is to guide you to the subject on a personal level, tell you something about them that you never knew before, inspire you learn more about them then Guralnick has accomplished this and more. One of the most fascinating and enlightening aspects of the 2 volume work (Last Train To Memphis) comes in the form of Elvis' recording sessions. To understand him as a person, to truly give him the utter respect that is due him as the ultimate musician, you have to get into those recording sessions and sit alongside him, watch his reactions, listen to his comments, gauge his moods. Guralnick has managed to gain us entrance to these sessions and you are there. At the close of this book beware - even though you know the ending you keep hoping beyond hope that it turns out differently because you will love Presley. You will grieve for him, you will miss him and you will be furious at the utter waste of a genius. Above all, you will be grateful for his life, what he brought us while he was here and to Peter Guralnick for bringing him back to us, if just for the time it takes to finish the book. Thankyou Mr Guralnick.

Rating:
Summary: A NOBLE AND RESPECTFUL BIOGRAPHY
Review: One has to hand it to Peter Guralnick. He's a master of prose and tries hard to be fair to his subject. CARELESS LOVE...picks up where LAST TRAIN TO MEMPHIS leaves off. Elvis triumphantly returns to the U.S. after his stint in the army. And even with
the sadness of his mother's untimely passing, the future looks bright for the young man, both professionally and personally.

Soon after his return, Elvis' manager, Colonel Tom Parker puts "his boy" on the road to on going commercial success. But
unlike the 50's, this time, there is little regard for Elvis'artistry. And here is where Elvis' career problems begin.
While Elvis generates a lot of cash for both himself and the show business industry, the artist in him begins to feel stifled and disappointed because he has few opportunities to express his creativity. But when he does get the odd chance to show his stuff, the results are inevitably good on both celluloid and especially vinyl.

You can see it in movies like "Flaming Star" and "Follow That Dream". And you can hear it in beautiful recordings like Bob
Dylan's composition "Tomorrow Is a Long Time" or in the more raucus numbers like "High Heel Sneakers", "Down In the Alley",
"Big Boss Man" among many others.It makes you think, "What could Elvis have achieved during the 60's had he been given more and better opportunities?"

Heaven must have glimpsed his sorrow and graced Elvis with the opportunity to shine brightly again in both the 1968 Comeback Special and the recording sessions at Chip Moman's American Studios in 1969. The results were stellar and continue to stand the test of time.

The 1970's should have been a continuation of Elvis' creative renaissance and for a while they were. Elvis put on some extraordinary concerts and made more good records. But again,
his creativity was stifled, this time with bad financial decisions made on his behalf, to boot. All this combined with the pressures of his enormous fame, a low boredom level and a restlessness that would not allow him to enjoy a stabilizing, conventional family life, contributed to his unmaking.

There is much tragedy in Elvis' story to be sure. But inside this frequently troubled man was an emormous charisma and humanity that continues to draw fans from every walk of life. While this is wondrous to observe; his fame was too much for a
mortal man to shoulder. At times, Elvis must have felt like Atlas out of Greek Mythology.

I guess it was Socrates, who said, "know thy self". Elvis certainly tried but never seemed to come up with a satisfactory answer as to why HE was chosen to be Elvis Presley and what HE
thought about the part he had to play. You keep hoping Guralnick
will answer these questions for you but he can't.He does however take you along for the ride with Elvis so you can ponder the price of fame and extreme adulation for yourself. A worthwhile read.

Rating:
Summary: Well Written and Researched Tale of the King
Review: There is one way to describe this book - wow, what a story.

The writing is just flat out good. Once you start reading be prepared to finish, except for those pesky breaks to sleep and work.

A very well written account of Elvis's life and actions in and out of the recording studio with lots of details, lots of hanky panky, road trips, recording sessions, flights, drugs, buying Cadillacs, the whole mess. Basically Elvis spent every cent he made. The colonel took each dollar and sent 50 cents to the IRS to keep Elvis out of trouble but Elvis and his "mafia" lived like kings where money was no object. If he was in the mood he would just pick up the phone and buy cars, trucks, land, food, whatever was his fancy. When he died Priscilla actually started to manage the finances and Graceland and then after he was dead, the money really increased.

With his love of music and his drive to create, he had hit after hit, a lull and then more hits, movies, hits, lulls, Las Vegas, and on and on. There were no limits until he came in collision with obesity and drugs. It all became very depressing and then it ended. Elvis came close to pulling back and recovering a few times but was unable or unwilling or not intelligent enough to see what was happening to himself. In that sense he was alone and in charge.

An enthralling and well written blockbuster that stays in your hands until the last page.

Jack in Toronto