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Elvis Specials and Demographics

BruceS8852

BruceS8852

Friday will be the 75th anniversary of Elvis Presley's birth. Years ago oldies stations did specials on the anniversary of his birth and death, but perhaps in 2010, classic hits stations may tend to shy away from that because are afraid that such programming will attract older listeners.

I remember that when I visited Graceland about 5 years ago, most of the visitors were not even born when Elvis died in 1977. His music is timeless and transcends the generations. Perhaps a station doesn't have to play all Elvis for the entire day, but they should offer a specialty show for a few hours highlighting his career.

Bruce
 
BruceS8852 said:
Friday will be the 75th anniversary of Elvis Presley's birth. Years ago oldies stations did specials on the anniversary of his birth and death, but perhaps in 2010, classic hits stations may tend to shy away from that because are afraid that such programming will attract older listeners.

I remember that when I visited Graceland about 5 years ago, most of the visitors were not even born when Elvis died in 1977. His music is timeless and transcends the generations. Perhaps a station doesn't have to play all Elvis for the entire day, but they should offer a specialty show for a few hours highlighting his career.

Bruce
Click to expand...
Many outlets around the U.S. run weekly Elvis hours.
http://radiotime.com/options/p_39504/Elvis_Only.aspx

None of my locals doing a 75 year special, that I know of. That said, Elvis gets plenty coverage, and has for many many years.
 
I'm sure one needn't look any farther than internet radio to find special programming for Elvis fans of all stripes.

Will we get the usual dump of Elvis movies on cable and/or local TV? Silly stuff....but great fun.
 
GridLeakBias said:
None of my locals doing a 75 year special, that I know of. That said, Elvis gets plenty coverage, and has for many many years.
Click to expand...


Yet another reason not to listen to commercial radio.
 
BruceS8852 said:
... classic hits stations may tend to shy away from that because are afraid that such programming will attract older listeners.
Click to expand...

That sounds like an odd statement. Are you suggesting that Oldies stations would intentionally ignore their bread-and-butter listeners to try to attract (temporarily it seems) a younger audience?

Given everything I've been reading on these boards there aren't that many 'younger' listeners of Oldies/Classic Hits genres.

That said, Elvis was indeed big news in his day but he was much more a performer than a musician. His early records introduced music to white audiences which, until that time, had been performed mostly for Black audiences. But the recordings themselves were not pinnacles of the musical arts. It was the acceptance by teens of the day (of which I was one) and corresponding rejection by their parents that made him as popular as he was.....and, of course, the 'teen idol' nature of Elvis himself.

He had a great five-year run as a rock 'n roll headliner and then began putting out ballads and softer songs. By the time of the British Invasion of the early 60's he was pretty much done on the radio.

I equate Elvis to performers like Rudy Vallee and Frank Sinatra of my parent's generation but my kids equate him to the likes of Michael Jackson - a good show but average music.

While it might be nostalgic for us old-timers to pay homage to Elvis annually I'm not sure the adulation is required....or appreciated by audiences of today. I know I haven't listened in many years although I enjoy hearing some of his music every now and then.
 
Until someone de-thrones (is that a word??) him, he is still the King, and deserves all the recognition on this anniverary and any other anniversay....there have been statements in the past on other subjects related to Elvis, that he was not worthy of the title (mostly because that person, commenting didn't like him), no individual has amassed the numbers of records sold, top ten hits, top 40 hits, albums charted, double sided hits, concert sell-outs and so forth and so forth (too many achievment's to list)...only the Beatles had more number ones on the pop charts. Overall ratings complied by Billboard, Elvis has (From Memory) a huge lead over the next competitor (James Brown). Any tributes most likely on oldies stations, would be most appreciated by the overall demo. Elvis is not my favorite artist of all time, actually ranks #3 or #4 .....but I cannot dispute is place in history as the best ever, just because he is not my favorite, the world have voted him the best, and that's a fact. Individually his success was almost matched by a young man from Gary Indiana, whose outside headlines may have tarnished his legacy......first as a part of a phenom family group, whose visual performances were as stunning as the recordings that went straight to number #1........ Like Elvis and the Beatles, this young man proved to mega-talented and no flash in the pan........ he was Like Elvis, the consumate entertainer, even most extraordinary than Elvis Live, unlike Elvis wrote many of his hits, was a great innovator..and along with Quincy Jones put together from an overall perspective(our Demo more than likely excluded) the single most successful, creative and best selling LP of all-time "Thriller"....Unfortunately like I said earlier his legacy is tarnished by his outside acts.... I still think OJ Simpson was one the greatest if not greatest football players of all-time college and pro's, did he lose his popularity for that crime, yes, and righfully so......do I still think he is one of the greatest......we cannot erase what he did on the field as well as off. Elvis and Michael put up some documented statistics and visual performances that are pretty had to dispute. Elvis is also the hardest working deadman in showbiz ..since his death some 33 yrs ago...losing only a few months of his reign to Tu-Pac shortly after Tu-pacs shooting...but Elvis regained the crown back, and went on to score two number one in Elngland twice a few years back. Long Live the King and Prince.........
 
landtuna said:
BruceS8852 said:
... classic hits stations may tend to shy away from that because are afraid that such programming will attract older listeners.
Click to expand...

That sounds like an odd statement. Are you suggesting that Oldies stations would intentionally ignore their bread-and-butter listeners to try to attract (temporarily it seems) a younger audience?
Click to expand...

Seems like there are very few Oldies ('50s/early '60s) stations around anymore, especially in medium and large markets. So the answer to your questions is "yes". Radio ignores what was their bread-and-butter audience as soon as that audience reaches 55 years of age.
 
hornet61 said:
Until someone de-thrones (is that a word??) him, he is still the King...
Click to expand...

Is there a difference between "The King" and "The King of Pop"? I think they are both self-serving media titles although I agree that Elvis had a far bigger impact on the music and entertainment world than virtually any other act. Whether that is deserving of continuing accolades and acknowledgments depends, I suppose, on your personal like or dislike of him. It seems that there are many behind the scenes people in the entertainment world that push these front-men for their own enrichment. In the end it is the buyers of concert and movie tickets and music that determine who the champions of the industry are. The fact remains though that Elvis didn't invent RnR but he did bring "forbidden" black music to white audiences and therefore was responsible in a huge way for the expansion of popular music. I can't think of another performer having that much impact.

I remember having a conversation with my mother sometime in the late 50's about Elvis and the new RnR music and she compared it to the teen hysteria generated by Frank Sinatra (who even then looked like an old man to me). Because the media was much more pervasive in 1958 than 10 years earlier Elvis had a lot more exposure than Sinatra. And the same holds true for Michael Jackson some 20 years later. I think that has a lot to do with where we hold these people today.
 
At K*LUV in Dallas/Ft.Worth, we are remembering 'the king' by playing Elvis' hits A to Z!! Plus, we run the syndicated "Elvis Only" every Sunday. We are, BTW, a mainstream classic hits station.
 
I remember having a conversation with my mother sometime in the late 50's about Elvis and the new RnR music and she compared it to the teen hysteria generated by Frank Sinatra (who even then looked like an old man to me). Because the media was much more pervasive in 1958 than 10 years earlier Elvis had a lot more exposure than Sinatra. And the same holds true for Michael Jackson some 20 years later. I think that has a lot to do with where we hold these people today.
Click to expand...


The way my mom told it, most people at the time thought Elvis would be done in a year, and that the guy who'd really go on to be an icon was...Pat Boone.
 
Elvis, among other things, was a patriot. When the draft called, he answered and served his time in the US military.
Thank you for serving, Elvis.
 
For those with access to TCM (Turner Classic Movies) on cable, tune in and view the TCM 75th Birthday Tribute (to Elvis) for great videos. (7:30pm MST)

The King is dead.

Long live the King.
 
Long live the KING of Rock and Roll.

There will always be ONE Elvis, never another!!

Happy 75th Birthday Elvis!
 
"Elvis has left the building."

Those words will forever ring in the memory of those of us who lived through the Elvis years.
 
This TV is showing several of his circa 1960 movies this weekend (beginning Friday evening).
 
landtuna said:
hornet61 said:
Until someone de-thrones (is that a word??) him, he is still the King...
Click to expand...

Is there a difference between "The King" and "The King of Pop"? I think they are both self-serving media titles although I agree that Elvis had a far bigger impact on the music and entertainment world than virtually any other act. Whether that is deserving of continuing accolades and acknowledgments depends, I suppose, on your personal like or dislike of him. It seems that there are many behind the scenes people in the entertainment world that push these front-men for their own enrichment. In the end it is the buyers of concert and movie tickets and music that determine who the champions of the industry are. The fact remains though that Elvis didn't invent RnR but he did bring "forbidden" black music to white audiences and therefore was responsible in a huge way for the expansion of popular music. I can't think of another performer having that much impact.

I remember having a conversation with my mother sometime in the late 50's about Elvis and the new RnR music and she compared it to the teen hysteria generated by Frank Sinatra (who even then looked like an old man to me). Because the media was much more pervasive in 1958 than 10 years earlier Elvis had a lot more exposure than Sinatra. And the same holds true for Michael Jackson some 20 years later. I think that has a lot to do with where we hold these people today.
Click to expand...
Big difference...Presley never called himself the King. Others did that.... Jackson called himself the King of Pop. He was a self serving ego inflated good dancer who thought he could sing..........There will never be another King.. Presley was IT.
 
Corky Marlowe said:
The way my mom told it, most people at the time thought Elvis would be done in a year, and that the guy who'd really go on to be an icon was...Pat Boone.
Click to expand...

Your mom could be correct. At age 75 Boone is still going strong and still has the pipes that soothed many a teenage girl back in the 50's. If he hadn't changed to gospel in the early 60's he might have gone on to a very lengthy pop career ala Johnny Mathis. As it is, Boone is the 2nd most popular charting artist of the late 50's behind only - you guessed it - Elvis, and is 9th overall from the period 1955-1995. Boone may not have the public acclaim that Elvis gets but those numbers are nothing to be sneezed at. And he didn't sell sex to do it.
 
My guess, and it's only a guess, is if Elvis had lived a normal life span (or was still living) he would have slipped into that foggy nostalgia that seems to envelop most popular performers (with the possible exception of Mick Jagger). He would be an icon (as was Sinatra) but wouldn't have the idolization that now seems to follow his life.
 
A crazy thought entered my mind that if he had lived, the Grand Ole Opry might (and I emphasize might) have invited him back. I say "might" because the average age of the current fan base of the Opry is one that might welcome him back. I say that because he and they are from the same generation. He is (or was) one of them.

And he had certainly gone (primarily) country by the time of his death. Just listen to "Moody Blue." It's definitely "country," although the way it goes "disco" on the chorus is amusing to listen to now! ;D
 
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