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Careless Love

The Unmaking of Elvis Presley

by Peter Guralnick

Summary

The final volume of Peter Guralnick's two-part Elvis Presley biography begins and ends with two Elvis departures: the first in 1958 for a two year stint in Germany with the US Army, the second his final exit in 1977, on the floor of the bathroom of his Graceland mansion, following an overdose of barbiturates. CARELESS LOVE is a revealingly detailed, acutely written biography that lays bare the daily routines, the relationships between Presley and his inner circle, and the sometimes surreal life of this iconic figure. Guralnick charts the slow post-Army decline of the singer's career, which neither appearances in a succession of terrible movies nor the sharp business practices of his Barnum-like manager, Colonel Tom Parker, did anything to halt. But though he had lost direction, Presley had lost none of his talent, as the author shows in vivid descriptions of mid-'60s gospel recording sessions, and his 1968 comeback TV show was a triumph. However, a vicious circle of personal setbacks, self-parodic shows, and cocktails of drugs prescribed by incompetent physicians to keep the star going contributed to his increasing physical and mental dysfunction; Guralnick's description of his death and the chaotic scenes that followed are some of the most harrowing scenes in the book.

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Media Reviews

"Peter Guralnick's two-volume life of Elvis Aron Presley, of which CARELESS LOVE: THE UNMAKING OF ELVIS PRESLEY is the second installment, is not simply the finest rock-and-roll biography ever written. It must be ranked among the most ambitious and crucial biographical undertakings yet devoted to a major American figure of the second half of the 20th century."    -- Gerald Marzorati

   -- New York Times

"The second and final volume of Gulanick's remarkable biography of an amazing American emblem, a man who got everything he ever wanted and died of it."

   -- New York Times Book Review

"It is a tale of decline and fall to which Guralnick devotes nearly 700 pages of text. This, to anyone who has worked at the craft of biography, is an astonishing decision. Against the received wisdom, Guralnick implicitly argues that the story of failure is as important as the story of success, that Presley's collapse matters just as much as his rise."    -- Jonathan Yardley

   -- Washington Post Book World

"CARELESS LOVE, which clearly takes place at sundown, is a more staggering achievement than LAST TRAIN TO MEMPHIS-which is saying something. Though the first book was more lovable, it was also an easier story to tell. CARELESS LOVE requires guts from the author, a kind of relentlessness and no small amount of faith."

   -- Los Angeles Times

"If Albert Goldman's Elvis book was a cartoon, then Guralnick's version of Elvis's life is great theatre, its participants gripped by forces beyond their control. Elvis emerges as hard to like, but easy to love, his story profound whether you take it as the history of a man or of a phenomenon. There are few tales a epic as this one, fewer still that have been told with such detail, breadth, and love."    -- Paul Trynka

   -- Mojo

"This sequel to Guralnick's LAST TRAIN TO MEMPHIS (Little, Brown, 1994), completing his intensive biography of Elvis Presley, does not disappoint. Careless Love picks up the thread with Elvis's hitch in the army through his death in 1977, a period that becomes increasingly darker and more complex. The breadth of Guralnick's research is nothing short of amazing, and his lyrical narrative presents an empathetic portrait of a man struggling with drugs, sex, family, personal eccentricities, money, and the delicate web of relationships surrounding any famous figure. Elvis's manager Colonel Tom Parker, wife Priscilla, father Vernon, and a host of close associates are portrayed with candor and insight. Details about everything from recording sessions to private conversations make this work hard to resist for die-hard Elvis fans as well as casual admirers. Guralnick's honesty and skill make this tale all the more disturbing, peeling away the romantic image of a fine talent to reveal a deeply troubled man. For all performing arts [and] entertainment collections."    -- Carol J. Binkowski

   -- Library Journal

Bibliographic Details

Publisher: Little Brown & Co
Published date: 1999
Size: 6.5 x 9.75 inches
Weight: 2.4 pounds
Pages: 766

Publisher's Notes

Here at last is the full, true and mesmerizing story of Elvis Presley's last two decades, in the second volume of Peter Guralnick's two-part biography. Beginning with Presley's army service in Germany in 1958 and ending with his death in Memphis in 1977, Careless Love chronicles the unraveling of the dream that once shone so brightly, homing in on the complex playing-out of Elvis' relationship with his Machiavellian manager, Colonel Tom Parker. It's a breathtaking, revelatory drama that for the first time places the events of a too-often mistold tale in a fresh, believable, and understandable context.

Other Editions

• Hardcover - Little Brown & Co (1999) - from $3.33
• Paperback - Little Brown & Co (2000) - from $6.00

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