THE MEMPHIS FLASH
MEETS LITTLE MISS
DYNAMITE
BRENDA LEE FIRST MET ELVIS IN 1957...“Being there right at the beginning of rock’n’roll with Elvis was so exciting,” says Brenda.
“I’m so glad to have been a part of that era – rock’n’roll was something else. I fi rst met Elvis
in 1957 when he was just getting ready to go into the army. I think I’m right in saying that I
was one of the few females to ever appear on the same bill as Elvis [Wanda Jackson and
Barbara Pittman were others]. Elvis and I did one appearance together at the Grand Ole Opry
on 13 December, 1957. He appeared exclusively alone after that. I had already had a hit, he
was starting out. He sang That’s All Right and Blue Moon Of Kentucky. The audience
absolutely loved him, he was electric without even trying. And what a nice man. We
continued our friendship right up until his death in ’77. I saw him several times over the
years, mostly when he was in Nashville at RCA, I’d go down to his sessions. I could have met
up with him more but he had such little private time. My youngest daughter Jolie was a huge
fan, she has his autographed scarf.”At age 10, following the sad loss of your
father, you effectively began working,
helping support the family. Was it a
tough time?
I don’t think as a child you register it being
tough as such. Unless you get to a certain
age, you don’t realise you’re poor. Where I
was from, everyone was poor, so we were
all in it together. As I grew older, as one
of four kids, I realised we didn’t have
much in material things but knew that we
were loved and looked after. I especially
noticed after my Dad died that I started
working more. I never even called it
work. I loved to sing, it was fun, it was
natural to me. What artists do on stage we
can do on our heads, it’s what we do. It’s
getting from part A to B that’s the killer...
it’s the constant travel that makes you age in
this business.
During the early years of success, did
you agree with your label and
management to market you exclusively
as a pop artist? Meaning that none of
your best known 60s recordings were
released to country radio – and delaying
your next country hit Johnny One Time
to 1969.
In America, if you were able to sell big,
big, big back in the day, you were classed
as rock’n’roll or pop. Back then, country
music was not like it is today, meaning not
as widespread. If you trace my roots back,
I actually started out as rockabilly – one of
my big hits in Britain was Let’s Jump The
Broomstick, which I’m very proud of. So
altogether I was rockabilly, I was rock’n’roll,
I was country, I was pop. I see it as a blessing
to have been across different fi elds. Yes, it is
unique. I give all the credit to the public... if
they want to categorise me as pop, rock or
country, fi ne. I just wanted to sing!
TV-wise, you fi rst gained fame by
performing on Oh Boy! in 1959. What did
the whole experience feel like?
It’s a strange thing but I always felt very
at home in Britain – I put that down to its
people. They always welcomed me and
cared for me. I loved every trip and looked
forward to going. I noticed its history and
how they revere and value it, I loved that.
Also, later on, being on Ready Steady Go!
and meeting other performers starting out:
Dusty Springfi eld, Cilla Black, Gerry And
The Pacemakers, The Kinks, The Stones –
and The Beatles – opening for me! I don’t
know how that happened, but I’m sure glad
it did! [For more, see sidebar on p47]
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ttyBrenda Lee