After decades of silence, Burton, who has battled strokes, cancer, and COVID-19, is breaking his silence about the final, devastating months of Elvis’s life, revealing a man plagued by addiction and surrounded by enablers.
Burton recounts the heart-wrenching moment in June 1977 when Elvis, just three months before his untimely death, confided in him, “James, I don’t think I can do this anymore.” It was a desperate plea from a man who once commanded the stage with electrifying energy but was now a shadow of his former self, struggling to remember lyrics and relying heavily on prescription drugs. Burton’s voice trembles as he recalls watching his friend deteriorate while the people around him prioritized profit over Elvis’s well-being.
The guitarist lays bare the exploitation that occurred behind the scenes, revealing how Colonel Parker and the Memphis Mafia turned Elvis’s suffering into a spectacle. “The worse Elvis gets, the more tickets we sell,” Parker allegedly said, treating the King’s struggles as mere entertainment. Burton’s revelations expose a tragic reality: those who should have protected Elvis failed him, choosing greed over friendship.
This is not just a tale of rock and roll; it’s a cautionary story about the music industry’s dark underbelly, where young artists still grapple with the same demons. Burton’s decision to speak out now is not merely an act of remembrance but a clarion call for change. He wants the world to know the truth about Elvis, a good man lost in a bad situation, and to prevent history from repeating itself with other artists.
As Burton prepares to share more about Elvis’s final days and the secrets that have haunted him for nearly half a century, one thing is clear: the truth matters, and it’s time for the world to listen.
