Remembering the original rebel

In the mid-1950s, music, like much of America, was quite segregated. A record company owner from Memphis, Sam Phillips, knew he couldn't reach the white teenagers directly with a black artist but knew there was no sound like the rhythm and blues. Seeking a white singer with a "black sound," he recruited a 19-year-old trucker who had recorded a demo as a present for his mother a year earlier. After several frustrating attempts failed to produce anything substantial, the trucker, Elvis Presley, casually jammed during a break with his two backing musicians, Scotty Moore and Bill Black. The result was his first regional hit: a version of the Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup classic "That's All Right." The rest was history.

Some ignorant folk like to accuse Elvis of pilfering a style for his own race. The best retort for this accusation came from black soul singer Jackie Wilson: ""A lot of people have accused Elvis of stealing the black man’s music, when in fact, almost every black solo entertainer copied his stage mannerisms from Elvis."

But Elvis was more than a uniter of race. He was a pioneer and a rebel. He taught American teens that they could express themselves through music without the constraints imposed on their parents' generation. He brought rock n' roll to the masses. And he redefined what it meant to not only be a musician but an entertainer. As a result, he inspired a whole generation of musicians, including the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan and even Led Zeppelin -- all of whom credit Elvis's influence to their success.

Elvis died on Aug. 16, 1977 -- 34 years ago tomorrow. Yet his influence, music and memory will last forever. He's still the King. And we honor him for Sticking it to The Man.

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