In nineteen fifty-six... The United States of America
Dropped a hi-fi needle on rock and roll
And coast to coast, we started shakin' all over
One nation, under God, out of control

[Chorus]
It's The Elvis Thing
It cuts right through you
It tangles you up inside... turns your world upside down
Like a mystery train... screamin' through the night
There ain't nothin' been the same since The Elvis Thing been around

I grew up drivin' a tractor and playin' electric guitar
It's a strange road full of detours and twists and turns
And when I ask myself why I do what I do
The answer is simple... there's a reason my earthly heart burns

[Chorus]

Come on, love me tender
Come on, come on, love me true
Just like The Elvis Thing got a hold on me...
I wanna get a hold of you

When they write the history books and try to explain
The second half of the twentieth century
They'll talk about puttin' a man on the moon...
They'll talk about Vietnam...
They'll talk about Martin Luther King and John F. Kennedy...
(But you know what they'll really be talkin' about)

[Chorus]

Like a mystery train... screamin' through the night
There ain't nothin' been the same since
The Elvis Thing been around