Little Known Friend of Elvis Dies

Grelun Landon, 80, a publicist, a mentor to many Nashville music executives and a member of Elvis Presley's inner circle, died Monday in Ojai, Calif., of age-related ailments.

He was a founding board member of the Country Music Foundation, which oversees the Hall of Fame and Museum, and quietly championed Nashville's music business from his Los Angeles base. Many of his protégés have gone on to leadership positions in the industry.

'Grelun was a patient, behind-the-scenes, caring advocate for country music and for young people whose work he liked - either as executives or as performing talent, and was simply a great friend and counselor to a group of us,' said Bill Ivey, head of the Curb Center at Vanderbilt.

'He was extremely generous and expected nothing in return. He was one of the most unusual personalities I've ever known.'

Mr. Landon worked at Hill & Range Music in Los Angeles in the 1950s, which became Presley's publishing partner at the direction of his manager, Col. Tom Parker. Mr. Landon later moved to RCA Records, running West Coast publicity from the 1960s through the 1980s.

While there, he persuaded RCA to imprint the backs of all country albums with the words 'Visit the Country Music Hall of Fame, Nashville, Tennessee' for years. He also co-authored Country Music: The Encyclopedia, which had its first edition in 1969, and worked with such diverse artists as Waylon Jennings, Dolly Parton, David Bowie and Jefferson Airplane.

'He was very kind to Nashville,' Ivey said. 'I suspect he saw Nashville as the music industry's better side and was always trying to help things along here.'

Mr. Landon also had the singularly difficult job of managing RCA's relationship with Parker and Presley and did it well, becoming a confidant to both. He kept Presley's famous 1960 gold Cadillac - the one with the record player - in his garage for years before persuading Parker to donate it to the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

Mr. Landon didn't call attention to himself and never rose particularly high at the companies where he worked. Yet he became very popular among music journalists and colleagues. Ivey called him a man of 'no power but tremendous influence.'

When RCA let him go in the 1980s, people were spotted wearing 'Bring Back Grelun' T-shirts, said Bob Kirsch, president of Nashville's Welk Music Publishing, who thought of Landon as almost a second father.

'It sounds like a cliché, but he was really a beloved guy,' Kirsch said. 'His door was open to anyone with a problem. He was one of the nicest people I ever met in my life.'

Mr. Landon is survived by two daughters, Anne and Jennifer; a son, Christopher; and three granddaughters. Services will be private.

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