Elvis in the 60's without the colonel

If the Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis' overbearing manager who steered him into hokey films for much of that decade passed away in 1962 for example, where do you see Elvis going musically from there?
 
Well, he's not going to keep his crown for the king of rock and roll forever. Even without the movies, He'll be blindsided by Fire!, Pet Sounds, and Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band just like most of Rock's mainstream, as well as with the likes of Mountain, Blue Cheer, The Doors, and Iggy Pop and the Stooges. He won't do Woodstock or Altamont. More than likely, unlike James Brown, he won't do a USO show in Vietnam. Either he goes country and gospel full time by 1968, or the mods and progressive rockers stay cool longer (because his continuing career and rockabilly sound combined with his increasingly reactionary politics will either discredit the London and L.A. flavors of Punk and Psychobilly, or else cause the rise of Speed Metal ten years early, and possibly butterfly the career of Brian Setzer something fierce.)

It's far easier to boo a living fifty-something Elvis who is even more of a dinosaur than his contemporaries Roy Orbison, James Brown, and Little Richard off the stage, than it is to heckle a velvet picture of him and a crackly phonogram of "Battle Hymn of the Republic," or "I Can't Help Falling In Love With You" with an American Flag and U.S. Army Ensign both at half mast.
 
Elvis could have moved into country and with a new manager at his side to help him get better and higher-quality film roles such as dramatic parts and even tour overseas.
 
more important, the colonel was an illegal immigrant, who couldn't travel outside the us. so without him elvis would likely do more stints outside the usa
 
Is it possible he'd turn to country and towards the end of the decade have sort of a return to his rock roots like he did with his '68 comeback?
 
Is it possible he'd turn to country and towards the end of the decade have sort of a return to his rock roots like he did with his '68 comeback?

Not the Sixties, but I could see him pioneering Christian Hard Rock by mentoring (and buying songs from) the likes of Winger, Stryper, and Night Ranger in the mid-late Eighties, in a desperate attempt to regain relevance while maintaining his squeaky-clean image,* assuming he doesn't overdose or die of liver failure.

Imagine an over-the-hill Elvis Aaron Presley in form fitting spandex, belting out lyrics urging teenagers to wait till marriage, and love Jesus with all your heart! He'd be the perfect target for an ATL version of This is Spinal Tap!

*Partially inspired, perhaps, by the career direction of Ronnie James Dio.
 
Could you see him trying to jump onto the "outlaw country" bandwagon? It worked for Hank Williams Jr.
 
Elvis could have recorded music he wrote himself. He wrote at least one song. He did not continue with that, partially because of Tom Parker. Elvis could have gone on a world tour. He did not, because of Tom Parker, most likely terrified he would be exposed and open to extradition. Elvis could have gotten help for his drug use. He did not, because Tom Parker pushed him and pushed him, and covered it up. Elvis would literally overdose and Tom Parker would call in a doctor, tell everyone to shut up, and push Elvis on stage that night. Countless people tried to get a detox period of a month or year for Elvis, and it never happened. In the end, he was held up in an Ivory Tower of nearly no dissent or criticism, oblivious to his own life in context or the outside world, surrounded by yes men, and churning out material that was often second rate and always a cover of a song or something someone else wrote. That could have been very different. Tom Parker was a manager totally uninterested in his artist's creativity, and if anything he worked against it. As a result, Elvis became an artist in a creative art who was not creative. It bubbled up and then was stamped out so he could do some forgettable movie.
 
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If we have a world where Bob Dylan or Paul McCartney still have a fanbase, Elvis Presley absolutely still could, especially without Tom Parker to drag him down.

Rather than country, I see Elvis continuing to pioneer a fusion of Rock and the Blues, with some more experimental country,Christian and patriotic stuff every now and then.

That rock/blues fusion could have some interesting impacts - contrary to popular belief, Elvis was always first to credit the influence black performers had on him, and to his death, was friends with a lot of major black artists. Elvis stays alive, and escapes the influence of Col. Parker, we could see him working a lot more with the likes of James Brown and BB King, maybe taking artists like Jimi Hendrix under their wings. We could see rock and roll maintain that black sound far longer than OTL.

A few decades in, Elvis could be a McCartney level rock star, boasting an impressive discography across several genres, and one of the biggest personalities in music.
 

Archibald

Banned
Folks,
What would be the best moment to remove Parker between 1956 Elvis breakthrough and his 1977 death ?
Was Parker needed for Elvis breakthrough ? before 1958 and the military ? 1960 and Elvis returns ?
 
Despite replying to as many Elvis topics as I have lately, I must state that I am not an Elvis fan. And I am not for precisely the reasons I think he fell off. The "greatest hits" material is fine, but beyond that, it's meaningless and stuff he had no passion for so why should I? I prefer Roy Orbison or Buddy Holly. I think the problem was, he needed to evolve after the 50s, and he really didn't. You either have to sh*t or get off the pot in terms of your musical direction, and you can throw in whatever joke you can think of here. Heck, I even prefer bands I don't like in terms of their bad periods, like Chicago or the Beach Boys, compared to Elvis. And it is because their strong material was so strong. Elvis never made art. He had some memorable songs but they never did anything that was never done. So that is my opinion. It's a pity he didn't do anything that was a break out in terms of music feeling personal and soulful, and just plain honest. But that's my opinion.
 
Folks,
What would be the best moment to remove Parker between 1956 Elvis breakthrough and his 1977 death ?
Was Parker needed for Elvis breakthrough ? before 1958 and the military ? 1960 and Elvis returns ?

parker doesn't need to pass away as stated by the OP, just get elvis started, and then get parker found out and deported while elvis is in the military.
 
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Well, the biggest sports-based impact: racquetball would explode. ESPN has a wonderful 30 for 30 short "When the King held Court" about Elvis falling in love with racquetball as a way to stay in shape and wanting to get fully behind the sport and open up his own branded courts, but The Colonel put a stop to it, because he would not earn money from it, because The Colonel was just the worst. Elvis could have put racquetball on the map and shoved lawn tennis off it.
 

oberdada

Gone Fishin'
He could move to Eastern Germany like Dean Reed...

OK, that is ASB, maybe even frivolous ASB, they wouldn't know what to do with him in 1961...
 
I attempted a TL with a similar idea but slightly ASB origins once when I was testing out different ideas prior to joining. It wound up at one point with Elvis playing Joe Buck in Midnight Cowboy and scoring a hit with "I Guess The Lord Must Be In New York City". And yes, he married Ann-Margret after they did The Cincinatti Kid together.

That said, I prefer Rick Nelson to Elvis for some reason.
 
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