Elvis, We Love You!

It is immensely sad -- but true -- to say that the pinnacle of Elvis' performing career came in 1968, and he never reached that high again, though he worked very hard at it. During the celebration of the 25th anniversary of his death in 2002, a number of famous musicians remarked that his had to be the worst managed career in the history of music. They were right.

Some people hail "Colonel" Tom Parker as a genius for seeing that Elvis made more money than any other musician in history, at least during his time period. But all that money, and how it was made, cost Elvis way more than it was worth in self-esteem, self respect and the loss of several of his dreams.

Parker promised Elvis and his parents in 1955 that he would make the boy a millionaire. That thought was irrestible to a family that often had had only cornbread and water to eat. Ever wonder why Elvis looked so gaunt and starved the first few times he was on TV? Because he was. Vernon had never been a good provider. He was considered a good-looking layabout in Tupelo who had no ambition, didn't like to work, claimed he had a bad back. Gladys did most of the supporting of that family, including Vernon's mother, who Elvis loved dearly and called Gramma Dodger.

Vernon couldn't wait until Elvis reached sixteen so he could quit school and go to work to support the family. Gladys put a stop to that idea when she declared that if it was the last thing she ever did, she was going to see that her son graduated from high school. She was determined he was going to have a chance to make a good life for himself.

For his tenth birthday Gladys gave Elvis a guitar she'd bought at a pawn shop because she couldn't afford the bicycle he really wanted. As Elvis was fooling around trying to learn to play it, Vernon announced, "I never knew of a guitar player that ever amounted to a damn!" Elvis later had that engraved on a chunk of bronze and kept it in his trophy room.

Gladys never liked the Colonel and didn't want to sign for him to be Elvis' manager, but Elvis and Vernon talked her into it despite the way she felt. They should have listened to her; the Colonel didn't have Elvis' best interests at heart. He saw Elvis as his meal ticket, his way to become a millionaire. And once he had his hooks into Elvis he never let go. He started out keeping 25% of everything Elvis made, besides keeping most of the money from the souvenirs; he ended up keeping over 50%.

I could write an entire book about how all the people around Elvis -- with the exception of two, I think -- including his father and Priscilla all had agendas of their own. They didn't want what was best for him, either. They wanted what they figured was best for them. Most of them robbed him blind and spied on him for the Colonel. But I really don't want to get into all that because it makes me hopping mad, doesn't hurt them a bit, and Elvis doesn't care anymore. Suffice it to say they acted like a school of sharks attacking a dolphin. One example:

The Colonel was afarid Elvis' spiritual studies might give him enough personal power that he could no longer be manipulated, so he ordered all of Elvis' beloved spiritual books destroyed. And he got Vernon and Priscilla to help him do it.

Larry Geller, in his book If I Can Dream, said that Elvis was one of the most intelligent men he knew, despite his lack of formal education. It was Larry's opinion that neither the Colonel nor any of the people surrounding Elvis could have read, studied, or comprehended the more than 100 spiritual books Elvis loved and carried with him wherever he went. They had no right to deride him or consider him a damn fool for being interested in spiritual studies because they were bored by them. But they did.

Whereas Geller understood that Elvis was tortured and very conflicted by his relationship with Parker, many other members of his entourage, including Joe Esposito, have been quoted as believing Elvis was simply gutless when it came to Parker.

During the filming of Jailhouse Rock, Elvis began having fits of anger none of those around him had ever witnessed before. He also began making Lamar Fike, who at 300 pounds was a good Colonel-substitute, the butt of his less than good-natured jokes.

Elvis' natal chart shows a lot of Scorpio power. When Scorpio feels he is being attacked he strikes out with as deadly a force as possible. Also, His Solar Return Chart for 1957 has Mars in Aries on the Ascendant, square the Sun/Mercury conjunction. And there's a slightly out of degree Grand Trine in Fire composed of Mars in Aries, Uranus in Leo, and Saturn in Sagittarius. Add to that a Yod comprised of Neptune in Scorpio and Pluto in Virgo focused through the Moon in Pisces in the 12th house. Plus a couple of T-squares.

This is an excellent receipe for depression, resentment and violent behavior over power plays and deep emotional wounding from the past. He had always been high strung and somewhat manic, never being able to be completely still, but I feel 1957 was when he began adding depression and suspicion to the mix.

Despite everything that occurred in Elvis' life during the next decade which made him doubt himslef and his talent, he was able to come back and be an outstanding entertainer -- for a while. Elvis finished his Comeback Special for TV in 1968 with a song called If I Can Dream. Some thought the words verged on sentimental corn, but Elvis delivered them with such raw conviction that the listeners knew Elvis was singing a vision of his own life. He had never looked better in his life than he did in skin-tight black leather for that special. He reclaimed the stage, proved to all the naysayers (and himself) that the world still loved Elvis.

The inspirational songs he sang in Las Vegas and on the road during the last nine years of his life, have no peer. Elvis poured both his heart and his soul into his music. The gospel songs show his reverence for God, and the ballads mirror the sadness and regrets of his life. The Solar Return charts for those years paint an undeniable picture of his downfall.

Milliuons have turned to his inspirational music, when they are down, when things are going crazy in their lives, and when they need to connect with a special part of themselves. I am one of those millions.

And I will always be thankful that second baby boy born in abject poverty on January 8, 1935, in Tupelo, Mississippi, lived and was able to fight the odds long enough to create his heartfelt music. It has healed my soul many times. Evidently, I'm not alone in believing that thus far Elvis is the greatest "interpreter of songs" the world has ever known. He had a voice that knew no musical boundaries. Not only did he present Rock 'n' Roll to the world, but he also gave the world a wealth of native American folk music.

On June 26, 1980, the Library of Congress proclaimed Elvis, "A Vocal Folk Genius." The Congressional archives acclaimed Elvis not simply an entertainer, but as "A great distinguished artist . . .a folk music genius."