ABSTRACT

The International Conference on Elvis Presley, convened at the University of Mississippi in August, transformed a rock and roll icon into a scholarly phenomenon. Educators, artists, and Elvis aficionados from across the worldplus over one hundred internationally based reporterscollected  on Oxford, Mississippi, soil to analyze and celebrate Elvis  impact on the world stage.From this conference, which became front page New York Times Magazine news, springs this book, the best and brightest essays and artwork swirling around the cultural, social, political, and iconographic figure of Elvis Presley. Discussed within are such topics as Elvis as Southerner, Elvis as sign system, Elvis multicultural audiences, Elvis and rockabilly, Elvis as redneck, the Elvis oeuvre, and Elvis religious roots. Taken together, In Search of Elvis represents a daring and groundbreaking academic analysis. Richly illustrated with original Elvis-inspired artwork, this book captures the subterranean essence of one of the most phenomenal artists to have ever lived. }The International Conference on Elvis Presley,  convened at the University of Mississippi in August, transformed a rock and roll icon into a scholarly phenomenon. Educators, artists, and Elvis aficionados from across the worldplus over one hundred internationally based reporterscollected on Oxford, Mississippi, soil to analyze and celebrate Elvis impact on the world stage.From this conference, which became front page New York Times Magazine news, springs this book, the best and brightest essays and artwork swirling around  the cultural, social, political, and iconographic figure of  Elvis Presley. Discussed within are such topics as Elvis as  Southerner, Elvis as sign system, Elvis multicultural audiences, Elvis and rockabilly, Elvis as redneck, the Elvis oeuvre, and Elvis religious roots. Taken together, In Search of Elvis represents a daring and groundbreaking academic analysis. Richly illustrated with original Elvis-inspired artwork,  this book captures the subterranean essence of one of the most phenomenal artists to have ever lived.

part One|72 pages

Music

chapter 1|16 pages

Country Elvis

chapter 3|8 pages

From Denmark to RCA

On the Road with Elvis, Scotty, and Bill

chapter 4|36 pages

Elvis as Anthology

part Two|48 pages

Race

chapter 5|18 pages

Elvis as Southerner

chapter 6|10 pages

Elvis Presley as Redneck

chapter 7|6 pages

Elvis's Man Friday

chapter 8|12 pages

A Revolutionary Sexual Persona

Elvis Presley and the White Acquiescence of Black Rhythms

part Three|66 pages

Art

chapter 9|20 pages

“It Ain't No Hound Dog, Maybe, But I Believe It's Some Kinda Critter Anyway”

Elvis and Southern Self-Taught Art as Storytelling

chapter 10|10 pages

In Search of Elvis

An Exhibition in a Variety of Media

chapter 11|8 pages

Everything Elvis

chapter 13|8 pages

Generation E

chapter 14|8 pages

In Search of the Young Elvis

Confessions of a Dutch Archivist

part Four|36 pages

Religion

chapter 15|12 pages

Dead Elvis as Other Jesus

chapter 16|22 pages

Sermon on Alvis

part Five|19 pages

Epilogue

chapter 17|17 pages

When Elvis Died

Enshrining a Legend