Elvis Presley paid tribute to Martin Luther King Jr in emotional performance
In 1968 Elvis Presley decided he wanted to make a triumphant return to the music industry. After being drafted into the US Army in 1958, he returned to the USA in 1960 and began making films in Hollywood. The star spent the better part of eight years appearing in movies and becoming a household name. However, the King did not perform music live for many years, so in December ’68 he and his manager, Colonel Tom Parker, created a TV Comeback Special to reintroduce the world to Elvis.
LISTEN TO ELVIS’ TRIBUTE TO MARTIN LUTHER KING JR BELOW
During this special, the King of Rock and Roll filmed live performances and discussions with his crowd for four hours.
The final runtime of the TV show was 50 minutes long after lots of material was cut out – but one emotional performance was kept in.
Elvis finished the show by performing a touching track titled If I Can Dream, a song inspired by Martin Luther King Jr – who had been assassinated eight months prior on April 4, 1968.
The director of the Comeback Special, Steve Binder, spoke out about this inspiration years later. He said: “We spent a lot of time together. Martin Luther King that year was assassinated.”
