CDL Life showcases a lot of Truck Driver Songs. Many times, we feature songs that explore the similarities of road life that truck drivers and musicians share. They both criss-cross the country to make their paycheck narrowly avoiding many pitfalls and pranksters looking to steal a buck from someone trying to make an honest living. But did you know one of the most famous musicians of all time started his career as a truck driver? True story. Elvis Presley got his start at Parker Machinists Shop running regular errands and supporting machinists. But soon he took to driving a truck for the Crown Electric Co. that basically paid him a pittance. After a short stint in the stock room he was promoted to truck driving and began to sport his long hair, which at the time was the current truck driver style. While on the road, he began writing thoughts and lyrics down on notepads, developing his unique blend of country, gospel, rockabilly and soul that basically wrote the blueprint for modern rock music in the early 50s. One day Elvis stopped by the small, unassuming recording studios of one Sam Phillips in Memphis to make a record of his music for his mother as a gift. He was also looking for a job as a professional singer, but didn’t find any leads before the day was out. What he found was a bit of unexpected opposition from a music industry “veteran” by the name of Eddie Bond. Eddie had a gig that night at a club called the Hi Hat, and Eddie called Elvis to the stage to do a bit of performing. Eddie was less than impressed with the young truck driver, however, and basically told Elvis to “stick to driving a truck, because you’ll never make it as a singer.” Undeterred, Elvis kept going back to Sun Studios to record more tracks until he finally hit gold with his breakthrough rocker “That’s All Right Mama.” The rest, as they say, is history. So in honor of the King of Rock N’ Roll today, we’re showing a video of That’s All Right Mama from the King’s big televised comeback special in 1968 on NBC. You may not like his style or his business and personal decisions, but popular music wouldn’t be the same without him. Happy birthday, Mr. Presley.
Famous Truck Drivers: Elvis Born Today
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