--- title: Elvis Presley's Birthday: See Photos of the Young Singer description: On the 81st anniversary of Elvis Presley's birth, see photos of the singer as a breakout star in 1956. canonical: https://time.com/4148472/elvis-presley-1956/ author: Eliza Berman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-01-08T13:00:34.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T04:46:45.997Z og:title: See Photos of Elvis on the Precipice of Fame og:description: On the 81st anniversary of Elvis Presley's birth, see photos of the singer as a breakout star in 1956. og:url: https://time.com/4148472/elvis-presley-1956/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte97d6b979c8e383d/6988754b196cf4c60103973f/151214-elvis-presley-03.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2254 og:image:height: 1268 og:image:alt: Elvis Presley 1956 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: See Photos of Elvis on the Precipice of Fame twitter:description: On the 81st anniversary of Elvis Presley's birth, see photos of the singer as a breakout star in 1956. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte97d6b979c8e383d/6988754b196cf4c60103973f/151214-elvis-presley-03.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # See Photos of Elvis on the Precipice of Fame > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=176bc10f-e197-4da3-aebe-2c2764440f66&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1)  by [Eliza Berman](https://time.com/author/eliza-berman/)  ## Eliza Berman Berman is a senior editor at TIME. Jan 8, 2016 1:00 PM UTC  Presley, looking tired and somewhat dejected, leans over a railing in a recording studio during a break from cutting a new record in Nashville, 1956. Presley, looking tired and somewhat dejected, leans over a railing in a recording studio during a break from cutting a new record in Nashville, 1956. Don Cravens—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images  by [Eliza Berman](https://time.com/author/eliza-berman/)  ## Eliza Berman Berman is a senior editor at TIME. Jan 8, 2016 1:00 PM UTC In 1954, Elvis Aaron Presley was working as a truck driver for $35 a week. Two years later, he was raking in $12,500 for a week’s work in Las Vegas. Before long, a surname was no longer required to invoke the megastar LIFE dubbed a “howling hillbilly success.” Though he began recording music in 1953, it was in 1956 that Presley—born on Jan. 8, 1935—became a phenomenon. That was also the year he first appeared in the pages of LIFE, in a one-page story about the runaway success of “Heartbreak Hotel.” The magazine explained: --- > “” --- A string of television appearances introduced the young singer to households across America, and within a short time he was inspiring frantic behavior among overwhelmed fans. “Shortly girls were quivering and fainting wherever he turned up to sing _Long Tall Sally_, _I Got a Woman_, and _Blue Suede Shoes_,” the magazine explained. “On a tour of Texas last week they kicked through a plateglass door in Amarillo to get him to autograph their arms and underclothes.” Here, on what would have been Presley’s 81st birthday, is an intimate look at a Nashville recording session for a new star who would, in due time, become a legend. _Liz Ronk, who edited this gallery, is the Photo Editor for LIFE.com. Follow her on Twitter_ [_@lizabethronk_](https://twitter.com/LizabethRonk)_._  Caption from LIFE. Looking like it hurts, Elvis records new song in Nashville studio. Don Cravens—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images  Presley sings expressively while recording a new song in a Nashville recording studio, backed by the Jordanaires, made up of Gordon Stoker, Neal Matthews Jr., Hoyt Hawkins and Hugh Jarrett. Don Cravens—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images  Presley, looking tired and somewhat dejected, leans over a railing in a recording studio during a break from cutting a new record in Nashville, 1956. Don Cravens—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images  Presley (second from right) during a break from recording,1956. Don Cravens—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images  Presley shows a framed gold record of "Heartbreak Hotel" to (L-R) drummer D.J. Fontana, singer Gordon Stoker and guitarist Scotty Moore, 1956. Don Cravens—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images  Presley performs emotionally, even in the privacy of a studio. Don Cravens—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images  Presley sings during a recording session. Don Cravens—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images  Presley sits in a chair during a break from recording a new record n Nashville, while head of Country and Western Artist and Repertoire, Steve Sholes, talks to producer Chet Atkins in the background, 1956. Don Cravens—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images  Presley uses the roof of a taxi to sign autographs for teenage girls outside of the Nashville studio where he had just finished recording a new record, 1956. 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