Elvis in '56

Alfred Wertheimer's photographs of Elvis Presley are a national treasure; they are a unique visual record of the most exciting and influential performer of our time.

CHRISMURRAY, OWNER GOVINDA GALLERY

SAVE THE DATE Alfred Wertheimer's "Elvis at 21: New York to Memphis”"runs through December 30 at Govinda Gallery, 1227 34th Street; 202-333-1180; www.govindagallery.com

Taken in 1956, Alfred Wertheimer's photographs document Elvis Presley at the quintessential moment of his explosive appearance onto the cultural landscape. After the photos in this book were taken, no photographer ever again had the access to Elvis that Wertheimer enjoyed. Wertheimer has described his photographs as "the fi rst and last look at the day-to-day life of Elvis Presley." Apart from Elvis’ own recordings from this period, Wertheimer's photographs are the most compelling vintage document of Elvis in 1956, the year the young man from Memphis would shake up the world. Elvis at 21: New York to Memphis is an extraordinary record of how these two storytellers' lives came together: a twenty-one-year-old singer on the verge of fame and fortune crossing paths with a twenty-six-year-old photographer about to document a legend.

Wertheimer's photographs resonate so splendidly because of his awareness and sensitivity as a skilled photographer, qualities that complemented his charismatic subject. Elvis Presley invented the rock 'n' roll persona as we know it. Both on stage and off, he defined the very notion of "rock style." Everyone in rock music still owes a debt to Elvis, especially from that magical time in 1956 depicted in Al's photographs.

From the Beatles to the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan to Jimi Hendrix, Bruce Springsteen to Patti Smith, Joe Strummer to Bono...it all goes back to Elvis in 1956. Elvis was beautiful, his voice was amazing, and his music, an electrifying synthesis of rhythm and blues, gospel, and country, was rock 'n' roll at its very finest.

"Before Elvis, there was nothing."
– John Lennon

These photographs of Elvis Presley are without a doubt the most important and compelling images ever taken of the greatest rock icon of all time. No other photographer has ever come closer to catching Elvis Presley's magic than Alfred Wertheimer.

ELVIS GETS ADVICE FROM WILLIAM MORRIS Studio 50, New York March 17, 1956	ELVIS ON HIS HARLEY Shefi eld, Alabama July 4, 1956

THE KISS Mosque Theatre, Richmond, Va. June 30, 1956	DRIVING FROM THE JEFFERSON HOTEL TO THE MOSQUE THEATER Richmond, Va. June 30, 1956

LIVE PERFORMANCE OF BLUE SUEDE SHOES New York March 17, 1956	ELVIS READING FAN MAIL Warwick Hotel, New York March 17, 1956