*Includes a suggested playlist of the King's greatest songs. *Includes pictures of Elvis and important people, places, and events in his life. *Discusses some of Elvis's most famous encounters with celebrities like Ann-Margret and The Beatles. *Includes a bibliography for further reading. *Includes a Table of Contents “When I first heard Elvis' voice, I just knew I wasn't going to work for anybody; and nobody was going to be my boss... Hearing him for the first time was like busting out of jail.” – Bob Dylan Born in Mississippi, a young kid named Elvis Presley came to Memphis as a teenager and changed music forever. Fusing country and rhythm and blues with rock, Elvis brought traditional African-American sounds to the forefront of music in the 1950s, but he did so as a handsome white man before the height of the Civil Rights Movement. On top of that, his famous stage fright led to the hip gyrations that would make him the envy of young girls and the scorn of their parents. What followed was rock music’s perfect storm. Managed by Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis became the biggest music act in the world, producing about holiday classics, love ballads, and up-tempo rock songs that all hit the top of the charts in the late ‘50s. Elvis merged the quintessential rock star looks with success, scoring nearly 20 #1 singles. With live broadcasts on TV appearances and movie roles, Elvis became a pop culture fixture and a music icon that made even The Beatles giddily nervous to meet him