Blue Birthdays

A little headline in today’s news is that it’s Elvis Presley’s birthday.  Alas, Elvis died in 1977, so birthdays don’t count for anything now in that timeless place where Elvis is.  In earthly terms, he would have been 78 years old (or young) were he still with us.

            At Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee, his undying fans gathered and enjoyed birthday cake as Elvis impersonators serenaded the crowd.  Graceland is like the Temple in Jerusalem to those who love rock ‘n roll. 

            Elvis is indeed an icon, not only in American culture, but throughout the Western world and beyond.  Elvis broke the rules of culture and musical taste.  His voice sang for so many after World War II who began to rebel against the norms of the time.  I’m in the second generation of rock ‘n roll.  The popular music I listened to as a young person was shadowed by what Elvis did—and what the radio did.  Alongside Motown, the Philadelphia Sound, the Memphis Blues and other musical expressions spoke for the young person on the street, or in the car.

            Elvis is the icon also for other cultural rebels of his time—in motion pictures, James Dean; in literature, Jack Kerouac; in poetry, Allen Ginsberg; in folk music, Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger.   All broke boundaries and shaped new expressions of the popular soul.  The one who profited the most, however, was Elvis.

            Now, I can take Elvis in small doses.  I can watch one of his movies once in a while.  I even can enjoy an Elvis impersonator.  I did, draw the line, however, in worship.  I did not want Elvis to sing in the liturgy.  Can you imagine what he would have sounded like in a choral Eucharist?  (Please, don’t imagine….)  Even at funerals of non-parishioners, I have asked for Elvis not to be in the service.  Not once did someone break this rule.  A family member was going to sing a karaoke of a popular song the deceased was said to love.  She was overcome with an anxiety attack.  So the panicked CD-player operator popped in Elvis singing “Amazin’ Grace.”  I will not speculate here whether composer John Newton would have approved.  But the people at the funeral sure were touched—they were moved to Elvis tears.

            Elvis’ birthday just goes to show that there are some people who never die.  Their bodies may depart this world, but their legacies never do.  Neither you nor I may be Elvis.  But each of us leaves a legacy.  What is the song that you want people to sing about you?