Elvis and The Golden Gate Quartet

          I've always wondered where Elvis Presley got his singing style. It was such an unique style of singing, and of course nobody can sing quite like Elvis. I can do it as joke, for a line or two, but that's about it. His approach makes perfect sense to me from a technical point of view. It's breathy, from the gut, but also from the throat. It combines all the basic elements of singing and presents them eloquently. He kind of ruined it for the rest of us. It's fun to sing in that style.

          I stumbled upon a video clip on YouTube. I love YouTube. It was of a black gospel group from the thirties called the Golden Gate Quartet. The song they were singing was called Noah. Upon hearing this for the first time I did a double take. It immediately occurred to me that this was where Elvis got his singing style. One of the singers was a dead ringer for Elvis. I googled the Golden Gate Quartet, and sure enough, Elvis was a huge fan. So much so that he went backstage after one of their shows when he was stationed in Germany. The mystery was solved. Elvis Presley got his singing style from the Golden Gate Quartet. You don't believe me? Listen to it yourself. The clip is called Golden Gate Quartet, Early Years. Scroll to 4:42 of the clip. That's where the song Noah begins. Listen to the whole song, and tell me it doesn't sound like Elvis. Just do it! Don't cry.