Knowing that I risk the wrath of the Elvis faithful, let me honest and upfront with something. I just don’t get Elvis Presley. I can now say that after spending three hours at Graceland I get Elvis better than I did before. And before all you Elvis fans start firing off “comments” to me I will say that after the tour and seeing all the great things Elvis did outside of music and movies there is a much higher level of admiration than there was before the tour.
I have to admit the Elvis music I’ve heard has been good, but nothing that would lead me to the level of fanaticism that I’ve seen over the year. What I did glean from walking around was that the best of Elvis’ music may not have been the songs he is most famous for. I did come away from the tour appreciating his “voice” much more than I did before walking the grounds at Graceland.
My expectation of Graceland was far different than what Graceland actually was. I had expectations of seeing lots of oddities during my tour. Not the actual tour but with the other tour participants. I expected, and if I’m honest I had hoped, to see lots of crazy Elvis hair, sunglasses, capes and spandex. You know something along the lines of a Star Trek convention but with Elvis fans instead of Mr. Spock fans. But I didn’t see one…not one … Elvis impersonator. Instead I witnessed a deep seated love for a man, singer and movie star. They weren’t strange at all.
I guess I’m going to need to find the time to learn more about Elvis Presley. Listen to some music and maybe I can better understand what it all means. And Elvis had to be a good guy. He had one of these:
If you’d like to see more of my pictures of Graceland please visit my Photo Gallery. (The pictures are not all labeled or tagged yet but you can still see them.)
I’ve lived in Memphis since 1976 and still have never been inside Graceland. I did however go to “Vigil Night” during Death Week with a friend who was doing a photo shoot once. Oh my.
There are plenty of freaks that visit Graceland, I think that is part of it’s charm. I guess you just went on an “off” day. You just need to make your own freak sometimes Larry.
I loved my visit to Graceland although it wasn’t quite what I was expecting – it was really a glorified gift shop but I am SO glad I did it, it’s off “the list” and I can move on to other things. I could have totally lived without the peanut butter and banana sandwich in the cafe…it was $3 and I had to do it. Live & learn.
Next stop Dollywood !
Every “Gift Shop” had a museum attached…
Cool article. Missed you at the Dells BBQ Bash, though
Elvis sang gospel, and he sang it well.