Elvis Fans Flood Event
Treidel and others were looking for Elvis - The Hayride Years '54-56, a book that chronicles Elvis Presley's time on the Louisiana Hayride, before the king became the king.
A steady stream of fans came through the Southern Maid Donut Co. on Hearne Avenue. Some love Elvis, some love all '50s music, and some, like Felton Pruett, a steel guitar player on the Hayride, were there from the beginning.
Reprinted posters advertising an upcoming performance by Elvis at the Hayride hung on vending machines. Those who bought a book could take a poster home along with a compact disc of Elvis' music from the Hayride.
Frank Page and Joey Kent co-authored The Hayride Years and signed it at the doughnut shop. The location was chosen because when he was on the Hayride, Elvis frequented a now-closed Greenwood Road shop.
Southern Maid was the only product Elvis ever endorsed, Kent said. The doughnut shops sponsored the Hayride and some of the treats are immortalized in the Hayride book.
The two authors have their own connections with the show. Kent's father bought the Hayride in 1975 and Page had been both emcee and producer of the show when it was owned by radio station KWKH.
About 10 years ago Page approached Kent to write a book.
"I set about researching the Hayride and interviewing dozens and dozens of former artists there," Kent said. "And over the last 10 years (we) have amassed a huge archive of material and knowledge on the subject and in doing so we gathered quite a bit of material on Elvis and so we decided to make the first book release about Elvis."
A large coffee table book on the history of the Hayride should be available either at the end of 2004 or the beginning of 2005, Kent said.
The pair will also publish a book dedicated to Elvis' last show on the Hayride, and this summer a four-CD set of performances by several Hayride greats, such as Hank Williams and Johnny Cash, will be released.
Larry Anderson of Shreveport bought a copy of the book and he was happy to learn a Hayride museum is in the works.
"There's a lot of history here," he said "and we need to do something with it."
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Tupelo's Own Elvis Presley DVD
Never before have we seen an Elvis Presley concert from the 1950's with sound. Until Now! The DVD Contains recently discovered unreleased film of Elvis performing 6 songs, including Heartbreak Hotel and Don't Be Cruel, live in Tupelo Mississippi 1956. Included we see a live performance of the elusive Long Tall Sally seen here for the first time ever. + Plus Bonus DVD Audio.
This is an excellent release no fan should be without it.
The 'parade' footage is good to see as it puts you in the right context with color and b&w footage. The interviews of Elvis' Parents are well worth hearing too. The afternoon show footage is wonderful and electrifying : Here is Elvis in his prime rocking and rolling in front of 11.000 people. Highly recommended.
Tupelo's Own Elvis Presley DVD Video with Sound.
