Throughout her life, Lisa Marie Presley has had a complicated relationship with Graceland. She later criticized the line “that goddamn back garden”, saying it was horrible that there was a family cemetery in the garden. Tragically, she is now buried there, along with her father, grandparents, and only son, Benjamin Keough, who passed away in July 2020. The shocking loss of Lisa Marie earlier this year on January 12 brought the story full circle. Her childhood in a Memphis mansion was a dizzying spiral of excess and euphoria, which began to unravel when her parents divorced in 1972, when she was just four years old. A deeply personal song by Elvis Presley talks about his pain during that time.
Elvis’ entire life was defined by his music, but he wasn’t a songwriter and a few of his signature songs were actually personal to him. All of the great songs find universal resonance, plus he’s brought all of his considerable vocal talents to the recordings and added charisma and stagecraft to their live performances.
But it is one of the lesser-known music legend’s later songs that speaks directly about his private life and that of his young daughter. He sings about the tears she sheds when they part and her pain that her parents are no longer together.
Years later, Lisa Marie, after becoming a recording artist in her own right, would reveal that she was drawn to the “dark” side of emotions and this was reflected in her favorite Elvis songs.
Lisa Marie said, “I love dark, sad songs. There’s a song called Separate Ways that was treacherously haunting.”
The song was released in September 1972, with the Always On My Mind icon on the B-side. Incredibly, it was written by a member of Elvis’ inner circle, a Memphis mobster, a man Lisa Marie would later condemn as a “disgusting idiot..um***” *”.
“Separate Ways” was written by Robert “Red” West, one of Elvis’ bodyguards, in May 1972, along with up-and-coming songwriter Richard Maingra, who was sure King would reject a song that starkly described his troubled life.
“We started leaning the story towards Elvis’ break-up with Priscilla and how it affected their daughter,” Maingra said. “[Red]told me when it was finished, that Elvis was going to cut the song. I left that in one ear and out of the other. I thought, ‘No way! ‘” First of all, why Elvis wants to sing about his personal life that’s already been dragged through the media every single day?”
However, the track was embraced by Elvis, who also lent his name to a compilation album that same year.
The lyrics begin: “I see a change coming into our lives, it’s not the same as before, it’s not too late to realize our mistake, we’re just not right for each other. Love has slipped far left We’re just friends, almost like strangers, all that’s left between us are memories that we shared, sometimes we thought we cared about each other.”
Elvis and Priscilla had already and would separate in 1973. The following verses refer directly to Lisa Marie, who was only four years old at the time.
The song continues: “There’s nothing left but to go our separate ways, pick up all the pieces we left behind, and maybe one day, somewhere along the way, another love will find us. Someday when you’re older, maybe you’ll understand, why her mom and dad Not together. The tears you will cry when I have to say goodbye, will tear my heart forever.”
Red West was one of the three members of the Memphis Mafia, along with his cousin Sonny West, and David Hebler, who were fired from their jobs and wrote a book about the whole thing. Elvis, what happened? It was released two weeks before the star’s death on August 16, 1977, which caused him great distress.
Lisa Marie later said, “These idiots were so disgusting… They helped him down and were actually worse than he was. It pissed me off. They were trying to take away his dignity, the only thing that mattered most to him.”
[ad_2]
