Elvis Day by Day: The Definitive Record of His Life and Music

by Peter Guralnick and Ernst Jorgensen

Book Overview

From details of his childhood in Tupelo, through his rise to success, to his death, a chronology of Elvis Presley's life and career draws on an array of archival material, photographs, documents,... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0345420896
• ISBN13: 9780345420893
• Release Date: October 1999
• Publisher: Ballantine Books
• Length: 400 Pages
• Weight: 3.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 8.8" x 11.3"

Customer Reviews

Elvis is....Elvis

Elvis Day By Day is not perfect. The depth of the book doesn't match say, The Beatles Anthology and it could have. It doesn't have the striking pictures that other books in the genre do. But let's not get to critical. Ernst Jorgensen has almost singlehandedly revitalized the music of Elvis into mainstream America and Guralnick, while not always perfect has presented an accurate image of Elvis. Many little things add interest to this book. These include the many photos of documents that Elvis signed. Also, some unreleased and rare photos.I could have suggested more quality photos and experiences from the 68-72 era. The day by day in these years could have been better chronicled, in my opinion. I thought the picture of Elvis on stage live with Tom Jones was quite neat and worth the price of the book. Overall this book is excellent. I thoroughly enjoyed it and any fan will be delighted to have it on their coffee table. Kevin Hogan, ...

The 'Definitive' Elvis history book.

I initially bought this as a gift, but ended up keeping it myself. This is not your typical rock star coffee book with the same rehashed Elvis tidbits regurgitated over and over again.From the very 1st pages you will learn more about Elvis's family that has ever been told. The records are more than just accurate, their are TONS of factual pictures and documents that have been scoured up from all of the Presley family and elsewhere. It is outsatnding! For the devout Elvis fan, I guarantee you will learn new tidbits, especially his early life in highschool, how many times they moved, and ALL the odd jobs he had.The day-to-day history is simple to read, and full of very amazing trivia. Short enough to keep you interested, yet very detailed. The only con I have with this book is that it lists many of his early booking dates, with no more than the location and those get a bit tedious after a while.The pictures throughout the book are amazing. Never have I seen a collection of Elvis pictures, and I'm sure many of them have never been in print before. The occasional full page 'splash' pictures capture The King in all his splendor from different periods of his life, whereas this book can almost be considered an art/photography book. (I really liked his judo poses throughout the years in his different costumes backstage-amusing)In addition to the life of Elvis, we see the corresponding day by day accounts of Col. Tom Parker, Priscilla, Vernon, Gladys, and tons of other characters that somehow would come to touch Elvis's life. Truly a treasure, you will not be disapointed with this book at this price! Now I gotta buy another one as the first gift I intended it to be.

Layout has aesthetic value, but content is far more beautifu

My first thoughts on seeing this book concentrated on the pure beauty of the layout and design (with over 300 pictures, many never seen before), yet as I read the book further, I realized that the content was even more awe-inspiring. This biography defines Elvis' life using not only the important, earth-shaking events, but rather the small, intimate details that seem trivial at times. This book is definetly a must for any Elvis fan.

A GREAT BOOK

This is a great book with lots of wonderfull pictures, If I could have only one Elvis book this would be it.ITs nice to be able to look and see what Elvis did on a particular date and there is so much more to this book than just that. Its that good and I am really Impressed with this, great job. thank you

Guralnick & Jorgensen are the Kings of detailing Elvis.

From Elvis' foremost biographer, Peter Guralnick, author of the best-selling two-volume biography, Last Train to Memphis and Careless Love, and Ernst Jorgensen, the premier archivist and reissue producer of Elvis' recorded work, comes a unique chronicle of Elvis Presley's life and music. Granted unprecedented access to hundreds of thousands of photos, documents, letters, artifacts, and memorabilia by Elvis Presley Enterprises (it pays to be liked by Pricilla), Guralnick and Jorgensen present the King in greater personal detail than most authors. Elvis Day by Day is a complete account of Elvis' public, private, rare, forgotten, and renowned moments, captured with such detail and immediacy they read like diary entries in a life--from his first steps to the first time the young "hillbilly cat" stepped on stage; from the creation of a revolutionary new sound to the last days of a universally known, tragically misunderstood, drug dependent, and emotionally depressed entertainer.The book contains more than three hundred color and black-and-white photographs and features such hitherto unknown details of Elvis' childhood in Tupelo as a father's touching postcards from prison and the family's backbreaking struggle to make ends meet. It includes Elvis' first work application at eighteen in which he describes his leisure-time activities as "sing[ing], playing ball, working on car, going to movies." At last, the complete story of how Elvis met his legendary manager, Colonel Tom Parker, is revealed in detail, and long-debated mysteries like Elvis's famous lost tryout for the Arthur Godfrey show are finally put to rest. In addition, the authors have provided a reference guide to every recording session, record release, song hit, movie, and live performance (including a number of shows not previously documented)--clearing up in the process many misconceptions and misunderstandings about Elvis' life.All the facts are here--from Elvis's unlikely visit with President Nixon in 1970 to his spontaneous articulation of patriotism and pride in a 1957 telegram to a marine private (coincidentally named Nixon). Within these facts lies the great American tragedy of the twentieth century: a poor boy who rises out of poverty to become the best known entertainer in the world only to slip into a world of boredom, depression, insecurity, drug abuse and, ultimately, death by age 42. From private moments to public milestones, this is a complete and an accurate chronology of Elvis' life, in a form that offers accessibility to Elvis expert and casual reader alike. Elvis Day by Day will become a piece of American musical history, bringing the life and times of Elvis Presley into dazzling focus. For those of you who cannot wait until the September 1999 release, order P.J. Pierce's: Ultimate Elvis-Day by Day at this web sight. It, too, is a must for Elvis fans who crave details about the King's daily existence.Thank you, thank you very muc