[Alanna] Nash belongs in the pantheon of great music writers, and [Baby, Let’s Play House] is a fascinating study.” —Rosanne Cash
Just in time for Elvis Presley’s would-be 75th birthday comes a new book by Elvis expert, journalist, and Country Music Association Media Achievement Award winner Alanna Nash. Called "by far the best study of Presley I have ever read. . . Impressively researched written—and felt" by New York Times bestselling author Philip Norman (author of John Lennon and Shout!) and “the most entertaining Elvis book ever” by New York Times bestselling author Jimmy McDonough (Shakey: Neil Young's Biography), Baby, Let’s Play House is the first-ever Elvis book to focus solely on his complex relationships with women, including celebrities such as Ann-Margret, Linda Thompson, Mary Ann Mobley, Cher, Raquel Welch, Barbara Eden, and Cybill Shepherd. Featuring dozens of exclusive interviews and scores of never-before-seen photos, Baby, Let’s Play House is a must-have collector’s item for fans of The King everywhere.
Nearly thirty-three years after his death, Elvis Presley's extraordinary physical appeal, timeless music, and sexual charisma continue to captivate, titillate, and excite. Though hundreds of books have been written about the King, no book has solely explored his relationships with women and how they influenced his music and life—until now.
Based largely on exclusive interviews with the many women who knew him in various roles—lover, sweetheart, friend, costar, and family member—Baby, Let's Play House explores Presley's love affairs with, among others, Ann-Margret, Linda Thompson, Sheila Ryan Caan, June Juanico, Joyce Bova, Barbara Leigh, Cybill Shepherd, and Priscilla Beaulieu, as well as his friendships with actresses Raquel Welch, Barbara Eden, Mary Ann Mobley, Yvonne Craig, and Celeste Yarnall.
The book also spotlights important early girlfriends and the women who dared to turn him down, including Cher, Petula Clark, and Karen Carpenter, as well as two women—Kay Wheeler and Tura Satana—who taught him dance moves he used onstage.
Baby, Let's Play House, named after the 1955 song that was his first to hit the national charts and his mother's favorite Elvis recording, presents Elvis in a new light—as a charming but wounded Lothario who bedded scores of women but seemed unable to maintain a lasting romantic relationship. While fully exploring the most famous romantic idol of the twentieth century, award-winning veteran music journalist Alanna Nash pulls back the covers on what Elvis really wanted in a woman—and was tragically never able to find.
"Deliciously gossipy but never mean, revealingly intimate but never leering, Baby, Let's Play House is a masterwork of psycho-sexual history neatly disguised as celebrity journalism."
