49 Years Ago Today, We Said Goodbye to the “King of Rock and Roll”—A Country Boy Who Changed Popular Music Forever

Elvis Presley’s cultural significance is difficult to summarize, yet impossible to overstate. With his slicked-back dark hair, warm velvety baritone, and provocative onstage moves, the artist from Tupelo, Mississippi inspired throngs of shrieking fans wherever he went—along with riots and plenty of hand-wringing.

On this day (August 16) in 1977, Elvis Presley died at a Memphis hospital, sending shock waves throughout the world. He was just 42 years old.

His Final Hours

In the early morning hours of August 16, 1977 , Elvis Presley took care of last-minute tour details and relaxed with family and staff.

That evening, he planned to board a flight from Memphis to Portland, Maine, for a show before kicking off his latest tour the following day.

At about 7 a.m., the “All Shook Up” crooner retired to his master suite to rest before his flight.

Hours later, his fiancee, Ginger Alden, found him unconscious on the upstairs bathroom floor of his sprawling Graceland mansion.

Alden called paramedics to the home, but they could not revive the superstar. He was then transported to Baptist Memorial Hospital, where further efforts to save his life failed.

Presley’s doctor, George Nichopolous, pronounced the three-time Grammy Award winner dead at 3:30 p.m. He listed the cause of death as cardiac arrhythmia, or an irregular heartbeat.

Rock N’ Roll Mourns Its King

Unsurprisingly, Elvis Presley’s untimely passing left fans reeling across the globe.

Mick Fleetwood recalled the news hitting him “like a ton of bricks” on a drive back from the mountains.

“I had the radio on,” said the Fleetwood Mac founder. “They were playing an Elvis medley, and I thought, ‘Great’ — And then they came back with the news.”

U.S. President Jimmy Carter issued a statement calling the singer “unique and irreplaceable.”

“Elvis Presley’s death deprives our country of a part of itself… More than 20 years ago, he burst upon the scene with an impact that was unprecedented and will probably never be equaled,” Carter wrote. “His music and his personality, fusing the styles of white country and black rhythm and blues, permanently changed the face of American popular culture. His following was immense, and he was a symbol to people the world over of the vitality, rebelliousness, and good humor of his country.”

This Hall of Fame Singer-Songwriter Didn’t Speak for a Week After Elvis Presley’s Death

On August 16, 1977, Bob Dylan was at his Minnesota farm with his children and their art teacher, who delivered the bad news to the “Blowin’ in the Wind” singer.

A devastated Dylan “didn’t talk to anyone for a week” after the King’s death, he later recalled.

[RELATED: 4 Elvis Presley Songs That Most People Have Forgotten About]

“I went over my whole life. I went over my whole childhood… If it wasn’t for Elvis and Hank Williams, I couldn’t be doing what I do today,” he said.

Featured image by Oscar Abolafia/TPLP/Getty Images

The post 49 Years Ago Today, We Said Goodbye to the “King of Rock and Roll”—A Country Boy Who Changed Popular Music Forever appeared first on American Songwriter.