Our campground was perfectly located right across the street from Graceland, behind the Heartbreak Hotel and 10 miles from downtown Memphis. We were on a corner spot, at the intersection of Love Me Tender Lane and Jailhouse Lane. When I checked in at the office, they had a sign that said, "Thank-you. . . Thank-you very much." (I know, all that right there sounds tacky). A pleasant surprise for Mike . . good water pressure. At our site in Nashville, the water barely trickled out of the shower head. Here, the water came out in full force, just like at home. Oh, wait a minute . . . we are in our home.
Tuesday was Elvis day for us. We could walk to the ticket center for the Graceland tours, but I played the "boot card" and the campground gave us a golf cart ride right to it. Here we had a choice of several different tours, ranging from VIP to a basic house tour. We chose a step down from VIP but included being able to board two of Elvis' planes (a must for the former private pilot). We were happy to be on the 10:00 tour as the crowds only grew as the day went on.
The ticket center is across the street from Graceland and we boarded a small bus (dial-a-ride size) that took us across busy Elvis Presley Boulevard, through the gates decorated in musical notes, up the drive and got off at the front door.
I'm not sure how tours used to be (I should have asked), but we were each given an iPad on a strap to hang around your neck and headphones. We found these to be a smart, savvy move by Elvis Presley Enterprises. The iPads contained so much more than the narration of the house and grounds by actor John Stamos (of Full House fame). There were 360 degree angles of all the rooms that were open to the public. There were numerous pop-up pictures to click on that displayed both the audio and video of home movies, or Lisa Marie and Pricilla relating stories. And always there was background music of Elvis singing. Hearing their voices was better than a live tour guide. Some may argue that, but we really liked it. I overheard a lady say, "Why would I want to look at the rooms on this thing instead of looking in the rooms?" The purpose of the iPads wasn't to walk around the house with your head down, glued to the screen. It was to give you more info than just what you could see.
We looked into the rooms while listening to the narration describing the different furnishings and pointing out unique knick-knacks you might miss. All the rooms are in their exact condition as when Elvis lived there. Remember when I said he did things in a big way? The living room has a 15ft long sofa and 10 ft. long coffee table!
Once you are at the house, you aren't really part of the group you rode over with on the bus. You tour at your own pace. Mine is always slower than Mike's. I often looked around to see different people than were in the last room, with Mike already in the next room or outside waiting on me. The public is allowed on the main floor (living room, dining room, kitchen, his parent's bedroom and the family room called The Jungle Room) and the basement (TV room, billiards room). Out of respect, the upper bedrooms are not on display.
Connected by a car port is Vernon's office, where a TV screen was playing a clip of an interview Elvis did in that office after he returned to Graceland from his 2 year stint in the Army. From the backyard we could see the pasture that still sustains horses. A wing of the house was called "The Hall of Gold" and was lined with all the gold records Elvis recorded in his 23-year career. To see them all in one place makes you appreciate what a talent he was.
We then went in the racquetball court that Elvis had built behind his house. The lounge area is intact, including the piano Elvis sat and played the day he died. The actual racquetball court area is now displays of clothes, memorabilia, and several large screens. You don't have to be even a casual fan of Elvis to be moved by standing in this room, surrounded by his things and see him on the screen singing a stirring rendition of "How Great Thou Art", followed by a full orchestra backing him in his slow, soulful "Dixie". You may have to be of a certain age to do this, but close your eyes and recall that voice - "I wish I was in the land of cotton. Old times there are not forgotten. Look away . . . look away. . . look away, Dixie land."
The tour ends at the Meditation Garden, where Elvis, his parents Vernon and Gladys, and his grandmother Minnie Presley (who outlived them all) are buried. A solemn, serene place. Elvis and his mother were originally buried in a cemetery in Memphis, but after a failed grave robbing incident, Vernon moved them both to Graceland.
After spending as much time on the grounds as we liked, we got on a bus for the ride back across the street. Here there is a whole plaza dedicated to everything Elvis (and what our campground is connected to). Again, this could have been nothing more than over-priced souvenir shops. But the tasteful homage to Elvis carried over from across the street and our platinum ticket allowed us to enter well-designed exhibits like Elvis: Live from Vegas, or Elvis' Hawaii and the Elvis Presley Automobile Museum (with the pink Cadillac he bought for his Mom) and his custom jets Lisa Marie and Hound Dog II. Yes, we did see many of his white jump-suits and we could have bought a replica for $2,600!
Knowing that there are those who could care less about Elvis, I promised myself I wouldn't go on and on about all we learned. But this is my written record of our travels so I will just share the following:
Elvis bought the property in 1957 when he was 22 years old for $100,000. The former owner nicknamed it "Grace's land" after his aunt and that got shortened to Graceland. Elvis liked the name and kept it.
A typical Elvis living large story: He had a horse and thought all his entourage needed one so he bought 17 horses, 17 saddles and 17 pick-up trucks to get them to their horses.
Elvis' first love was gospel music, especially black gospel. At the numerous impromptu jam sessions, it was alway gospel music that Elvis played.
Ed Sullivan vowed he would never have Elvis on his TV show, until his show came in second in the ratings to a competing show when Elvis appeared.
Elvis was nominated for over 50 Grammys, but won only 3 times - all for his gospel albums.
Elvis was generous to a fault. We saw a frame filled with 20 cancelled checks. All were written on the same day, signed by Elvis, each for $1,000 to local Memphis charities.
He was an initial contributor and major fund raiser for the Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor.
In 1970, Elvis was named one of the U.S. Jaycees Ten Outstanding Young Men. Elvis was so humbled by the recognition, it was the only award ceremony he ever attended in person. He carried the "Hand Touching Hand" sculpture with him on all his travels after that.
His live "Elvis - Aloha from Hawaii" concert in 1973 was the first to be transmitted via satellite and was seen by 1.2 billion people. (this concert was a charity one for cancer research)
In closing the Graceland chapter, I will say there was never a hint of the circumstances surrounding Elvis' death on August 16, 1977 at the age of 42. The whole experience celebrates his life, his contribution to music and our modern culture. We both said we enjoyed it so much more than we thought we would. From the start of our tour to walking back to the RV, we spent 5 hours immersed in Elvis. (we did take a break for an waffle cone!) Graceland is a MUST for Elvis fans, and for everyone else, an enjoyable look at the times and life one of the most popular performers ever.
Tuesday night we went downtown to famous Beale Street. On the way we passed the huge complex that is St. Jude's Children's Hospital. Beale St. is like Bourbon Street in New Orleans or Broadway St. in Nashville or 6th St. in Austin. But no boots here, just saxophones and guitar licks. After 6 pm, several blocks of Beale St. are closed to motorized vehicles. Like in all the aforementioned streets, music wafts out of just about every building. They say the blues were born in the Mississippi Delta but became famous on Beale St. We walked around for awhile and went to eat at the Blues City Cafe, which came highly recommended. BBQ is big in Memphis and we were told the ribs here were some of the best. Another big thing is catfish, but we decided to stick to the ribs.
Wise choice. They were delicious, fall-off-the-bone tender.
After dinner we walked across the street to B.B. King's Blues Club for some music before heading back to the motorhome. The place was packed, but since we weren't eating, we found 2 seats at the bar, turned our seats around and we were really close to the stage. The second group of the night was just getting set up - The King Beez. I think we were suppose to be there as their very first song was "Let's Stay Together" by Al Green. A great song for this month-long anniversary trip:
"Lovin' you whether . . . whether. . . Times are good or bad, happy or sad."
The lead singer asked if anyone was there from outside the United States. There was a large group from France, several people from England, Norway and a whole table from Australia. We noticed many different accents while at Graceland - a reminder that Elvis's fame was global.
The band also recognized a birthday in the audience, along with two couples celebrating their 30th anniversary But we got a round of applause for our 40th!
We stayed until they took a break, right after a rousing performance of a B.B. King hit.
I was going to include our Wednesday adventures but realize I did go on a bit too long about Elvis so will save Wednesday in Memphis for tomorrow.
A letter from then Vice-President LBJ thanking Elvis for his fundraising for the Arizona Memorial
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