A Ranking of Elvis Presley’s Gospel Songs

Elvis Presley in 1958. | Source: Wiki Commons, Public Domain

The King of Rock & Roll and His Love for Gospel Music

Elvis Presley was one of the last rock & roll artists to make gospel music and make it a significant component of his repertoire. He had popular secular and gospel songs, a feat that’s not really repeated in contemporary times.

Presley’s first Grammy Award was for Best Sacred Performance. He earned the award with his album How Great Thou Art (1967). In fact, all three of his Grammy wins were for gospel music. He was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 2001.

His first musical influence was at church. At the age of two, he would rush down the aisle and try to get on stage to sing with the choir. He never had formal vocal training, but he was deeply aware of the musical idioms of both the white and Black churches. His vast knowledge of hymns, when he was just a teen, impressed people.

The singer’s first gospel record was Peace in the Valley (1957). It became the top-selling gospel record in history.

The singer had a short life. He died at 42. Many of us have grown up with his music, and younger generations might not realize just how young he was when he died, and how earth-shattering it was…