Rock Archives: Watch Elvis Presley Sing the Beatles Classic “Yesterday” in 1970

An unearthed clip recently showed the famed King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley, playfully covering The Beatles’ famed song “Yesterday” back in 1970. You can watch the clip below:

It was a lovely little cover accompanied by Elvis’ backing band in a toned-down performance. Presley clearly took it seriously, which poses the question: Was Elvis Presley a Beatles fan?

Allegedly, the Fab Four met Presley at his Bel Air home back in 1965. No recordings or quotes from either party exist, so a lot of what went on there is hearsay. According to Jerry Schilling’s book Me And A Guy Named Elvis, the superstars didn’t have a jam session that evening. Even Paul McCartney and George Harrison said that nothing of the sort happened.

What Elvis Presley And The Beatles Thought Of Each Other

Outside of their first meeting, it seemed for a while that Presley might have resented The Beatles in a way. John Lennon said in 1964 that he wanted the band “to be bigger than Elvis.” They more or less did exactly that. According to some accounts, Presley called them “sons of b*tches” and was jealous of their sudden rise to fame.

If this is true, it’s kind of understandable. Beatlemania rivaled any pop career before the 1960s. If Presley was threatened, he had good reason to be.

[See The Beatles’ Paul McCartney Live In Concert]

However, it seems like Presley was actually a fan in reality. The rock star said that he enjoyed the Fab Four’s songs, particularly “Yesterday” (obviously, since he covered it) and “Hey Jude”. He even said live in 1968 that he liked “new groups” like The Beatles, The Beards, etc.

Unfortunately, Presley got a lot of attention over some pretty harsh words he had for the band in 1970. He told then-president Richard Nixon that he found The Beatles to be “kind of anti-American.” John Lennon was reportedly annoyed by the comment. Ringo Starr even said that Elvis had tried to get them “banned” from the United States.

It’s not clear if the band and Presley ever made up. However, McCartney has honored his memory through the years with nothing but respect.

“If I were Bill Black, then Elvis would have been right there,” he said in a PBS performance back in the early aughts. He then covered “Heartbreak Hotel” with the kind of passion you’d only expect from a fan and a contemporary.

Either way, Presley’s cover of “Yesterday” is quite beautiful.

Photo by Hulton Archive

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