Elvis Presley

Elvis Presley was born in 1935, in East Tupelo, Mississippi. His family was poor. The moved to Memphis, Tennessee in search of better opportunities.

What influenced Elvis and his music? First, there was his mother Gladys. For his eleventh birthday, Elvis wanted a rifle. Gladys convinced him to get a guitar. Then there were religious meetings, he went to. They were highly emotional, with singing as well as preaching and prayer. Finally, there was Memphis. Memphis was a centre for blues music and had a radio station that played blues and rhythm-and-blues. Elvis often listened to this station.

Elvis became a truck driver. One day in 1954, he stopped at the Memphis Recording Studio and, just for fun, recorded a song. Sam Phillips, the studio head, heard the song and immediately recognized Elvis's potential.

Elvis was an instant hit on the radio and soon went on tour. Again, success came more from spontaneity than from deliberate plans. Teenagers loved Elvis and rock and roll. The music critics of the time, however, were unimpressed. They found Elvis "unspeakably untalented and vulgar" with "no discernible singing ability."

Elvis and rock and roll were blamed for the nation's problems. The music was called "atheistic", "criminal", and "a threat to democracy". Yet his popularity only grew.

Elvis's career was interrupted in the late 1950s, when he went into the army. When he came out, at his manager's urging he turned to acting. Most of his films were not very good, but they were financially successful.

In 1968 Elvis returned to live performances. But to many people, these performances were like a bad imitation of his former self. Elvis also had problems in his personal life (his wife divorced him), as well as problems with his weight and with drugs.

Elvis died in 1977, at the age of 42. Was he a failure? The answer from musicians and fans is no. The Beatles replaced Elvis in the early 1960s was the most important figures in rock. When asked about Elvis and rock, John Lennon said simply, "Before Elvis there was nothing".

Elvis's mystique lives on. Each year thousands of fans visit Graceland, his mansion in Memphis. Elvis look-alike contests are still popular. And each year there are many people who claim they had seen, not just a look-alike, but Elvis himself. (1924)

Задание 1 Завершите предложения согласно содержанию текста:

1.Elvis's musical abilities were influenced by...

2.Elvis's fame came not from deliberate plans but...

3.Teenagers loved Elvis's songs but the critics...

4.Elvis's music was called..

5.Musicians and fans are sure that Elvis was not...

Задание 2 Исправьте предложения, если они неверны:

1. His family was poor.

2. For his 1l^th birthday he wanted a guitar.

3. EIvis often listened to the Memphis radio station.

4. Music critics loved Elvis's songs.

5. The films where Elvis acted were very good.

6. Elvis is considered a failure by musicians and fans.

7. Elvis look-alike contests are very popular.

Содержание

PART I
1.1 English
1.2 Going to University
1.3 International Organizations
1.4 An Event on the Road
1.5 Getting a Job
1.6 The Right Job
1.7 No Place Like Home
1.8 Text
1.9 Environmental Groups
1.10 Travelling
1.11 Easter Island
1.12 National Heroes and Heroines
1.13 The Girl on the Motorbike
1.14 Strange but True
1.15 Text
1.16 National Symbols
1.17 Two funny stories about robberies
1.18 Game Shows
1.19 Quiz Show
1.20 Life in the 22nd Century
PART II
2.1 Tina Turner
2.2 A Figure-Skater's Story
2.3 The Greatest
2.4 The Race to the Pole
2.5 Shakespeare
2.6 Tom Cruise
2.7 Thomas Gainsborough
2.8 Florence Nightingale
2.9 The Beatles
2.10 David Beckham
2.11 Benjamin Franklin
2.12 Honest Abe
2.13 The Unsinkable Molly Brown
2.14 Two stories about two princesses
2.15 Elvis Presley

Дата добавления: 2015-07-11