Elvis Presley circle of people ... all those so-called friends". In the Memphis Mafia's defense, Marty Lacker has said, "[Presley] was his own man. ... If we hadn't been around, he would have been dead a lot earlier." Larry Geller became Presley's hairdresser in 1964. Unlike others in the Memphis Mafia, he was interested in spiritual questions and recalls how, from their first conversation, Presley revealed his secret thoughts and anxieties: "I mean there "has" to be a purpose ... there's got to be a reason ... why I was chosen to be Elvis Presley. ... I swear to God, no one
Cultural impact of Elvis Presley it seems that many Americans wanted black music without the black people in it," and Elvis had undoubtedly "derived his style from the Negro rhythm-and-blues performers of the late 1940s." Certain elements in American society have dismissed Presley as no more than a racist Southerner who stole black music. The "Elvis stole black music" theme is an enduring one with arguments for and against published in books A southern background combined with a performing style largely associated with African Americans had led to "bitter criticism by those who feel he stole a good thing", as "Tan" magazine surmised. No wonder