That's All Right, Elvis. It Really Is....

Brown Burnett The title of That’s Alright, Elvis: the Untold Story of Elvis’ First Guitarist and Manager, Scotty Moore (Schirmer Books), sums up the tone of this book. Author James Dickerson pulls you into a journey to the genesis of rock and roll that unfolds slowly and dramatically, detailing the life of the seminal guitarist, now nearly 70, living in Nashville and enjoying a renaissance of appreciation among his peers. Photo Courtesy of James Dickerson The story of Scotty Moore is the story of Elvis, the story of Elvis is the story of rock and roll and the story of rock and roll is the story of our culture. The author stays away from "fandom" and lurid expose, bringing us some welcome relief from all the Elvis trash we’ve seen published over the past two decades. Every detail of Scotty’s personal life is here -- his rural upbringing, his family, his marriages and the ex-wives. We’re all defined by our successes and failures, and Scotty’s rich life has had plenty of both. The man who emerges is someone we actually want to know. He’s an artist who helped nurture the immature Elvis Presley in the early years, defining Elvis’s sound and his own art. In the process, he helped shaped music that will live forever and molded a young star who, as a chapter in the book says, "shook the world." Early on you find yourself wondering, "Where is all this leading? Why all the detail?" But it’s in the chapter about Scotty’s stint on a boat in the U.S. Navy in China --where Moore becomes a man and defines his guitar sound -- that the story of rock and roll begins forming. The book then takes you on a whirlwind ride. Scotty (how can you call him anything else but "Scotty"?) emerges as a strong, stoic figure, a "big brother" to the nervous young singer who hung around Sun Records until Scotty took a chance to get Elvis to sing for him and Bill Black with the Blue Moon Boys. Scotty’s role in those early Elvis Sun years has been downplayed by hype for almost a half a century. No more. Anecdotes flow as the Blue Moon Boys travel the region, forming a legend and making a King. When Elvis is soon spirited away by his success, he takes the Blue Moon Boys with him, but merely as musicians, not as the partners they once were, eventually leaving them behind as well. Scotty basically remains in Memphis and Nashville, struggling along as a session guitarist, producer, manager and businessman, living an everyday life of sorts -- lost loves and lost dollars -- while author Dickerson parallels that tale with Elvis’ rise and fall. But Scotty has no unkind words for his friend, whom he last saw in 1968 (Presley died in 1977), seeing the King as a victim of his own success. In fact, he often speaks with love and admiration for the man he looked upon as his brother in some of the book’s most touching passages. Elvis made millions. Scotty made about $30,000 with Elvis. Obviously there are more things in this world more important than money to Scotty Moore. The book is powerful, filled with irony and detail, and while reading it I found myself traveling Memphis side streets with new appreciation as I geographically tracked the Presley legend. Scotty Moore is in Nashville, finally getting the admiration he deserves. The Elvis legend has become a business and a cruel joke. We should all have friends as loyal and understanding as Scotty Moore. This is not to be missed.