In Ep, 29 we talk about the Baz Luhrmann film ELVIS with GAYLE WALD, George Washington University professor of American Studies and author of Shout, Sister, Shout! The Untold Story of Rock-and-Roll Trailblazer Sister Rosetta Tharpe. Our conversation extends to Black musicians and music traditions that shaped Elvis Presley’s music and how that aspect of Elvis’s story is dramatized in this 2022 biopic.
Wald's Rosetta Tharpe biography has been adapted into a musical, "Shout Sister Shout!," with book by Cheryl L. West, premiering at Ford's Theater in Washington, DC in March 2023. You can purchase Wald's "Shout, Sister, Shout!..." book from the podcast's affiliate bookstore on bookshop.org. This conversation was recorded 2/13/23.
TIME STAMPS
0:08 Historical Drama...generic open
1:17 Introduction to ELVIS podcast
1:54: ELVIS, the movie, synopsis
3:11 Austin Butler's performance
3:46 Gayle Wald introduction
7:30 Family, Race, and Music in ELVIS
9:30 Memphis and Nashville Music Hubs (Gospel, Blues, Rock-and-Roll, Country)
12:07 Black Music Traditions in ELVIS
16:23 BB King and Elvis Presley's relationship
20:45 Sister Rosetta Tharpe
26:09 Gospel Music and Social Commentary
31:01 BREAK
31:38 Little Richard -- Pushing Gender Boundaries
34:19 Elvis Presley Smashing Conventions (Austin Butler)
37:31 Elvis and Colonel Tom Parker: Popular Music and Commerce
40:52 Elvis and the Black Community
46:14 Black Music Today: Impacts of Gospel, Blues, Rock-and-Roll
47:58 Lightning Round Questions
53:20 Ep. 29 Outro
54:34 Historical Drama generic Outro
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