This Rock Star Couldn’t See Elvis Presley Live Even Though He Tried
Many classic rock stars are fans of Elvis Presley. One in particular released an entire album of Elvis covers. Here’s a look at how the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll helped this rock star decide to become a musician — and why he was unable to see Elvis live when he tied to.
How Elvis Presley helped Glenn Danzig decide to become a musician
Glenn Danzig has been an Elvis fan from a young age. During an interview with Billboard, he said he saw the movie Jailhouse Rock on television at a young age. By the end of the film, he decided he wanted to be a musician.
Why Glenn Danzig never saw Elvis Presley live even though he tried
During an interview with Rolling Stone, Kory Grow asked Danzig if he ever saw Elvis live. “No, I never did,” he revealed. “I remember when he first came to the Garden in the early ’70s, I was just a broke little kid. The show was sold out a million years ahead of time. I remember I was at some local fair, and a friend says, ‘Hey, a friend of mine bought tickets for Elvis, and they can’t go. They’re selling the tickets.’”
Afterward, Danzig learned the tickets cost $25 each. “Twenty-five dollars back then was a lot,” he recalled. “I think concerts were like, $4, $5, $6. This is like multiple times what a normal concert goes for. He was like, ‘I gotta sell them by this or that week,’ so I’m raising money. I’m doing all this crazy stuff. Finally, about a week later, I call him up and say, ‘I got the money.’ He goes, ‘The guy sold ’em a couple days ago.’”
How Elvis Presley inspired Glenn Danzig’s music and live performances
This was not the end of Danzig’s connection to Elvis. Legendary vocalists like Elvis, Muddy Waters, Willie Dixon, and Howlin’ Wolf inspired him to sing with a deep voice. In addition, he started covering classic Elvis songs like “Blue Christmas,” “Trouble,” and “Got a Lot o’ Livin’ to Do!” live with his band.
How the world responded to ‘Danzig Sings Elvis’
In 2020, he released the album Danzig Sings Elvis, which includes covers of “Always on My Mind,” “The Girl of My Best Friend,” “Love Me,” “Baby Let’s Play House,” and several other songs. Danzig told Billboard he wanted the album to be a change of pace from his usual output. In addition, he chose to record a number of tracks from Elvis’ movies because he felt they were overlooked.
The album reached No. 192 on the Billboard Hot 100. Danzig Sings Elvis proved that the combination of a heavy metal singer’s voice and the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll’s songs had some commercial appeal — even if it wasn’t a major success.
