Helluva Ride - Red West: His Remarkable Life Before, During and After Elvis & The Memphis Mafia - Paperback

by Red (Author), Pat West With Jon W. Sparks (Author)

Nobody had a friendship with Elvis Presley like Red West.

The relationship between Red and Elvis was born in respect, cultivated through experience, and rocked and rolled through all the ups and downs that true friends go through over the decades. They worked together and played together; they fought together and fought each other; they laughed about the wild, unbelievable world they lived in.

Elvis changed Red's life. Red tried to save Elvis's life.

It started in high school when Red took care of some bullies who targeted the kid who brought his guitar to school. So, when barely known Elvis started touring the South, he invited Red to come along. Red was a pal, a roadie, and quite naturally a keeper of the peace, even if the peace got a little rough around the edges.

From rowdy taverns in the early days to a stint in Germany to the wild times in Hollywood to the top hotels in Las Vegas, Red was there. And the last thing he ever did for Elvis--even though it got him fired--was the act of a friend protecting a friend.

Red received acclaim for his work as an actor in film and television. He also wrote dozens of tunes, many recorded by Elvis, Ricky Nelson, Pat Boone, Johnny Rivers, and Dusty Springfield, among others.

But the best thing that ever happened to Red, thanks to knowing Elvis, was meeting the young woman who would become his wife. Pat Boyd had taken a job at Graceland as secretary to Elvis, and when she met Red, it was love at first sight. Within weeks, they were married with Elvis in attendance and cheering them on.

Over the years of Red being a friend, bodyguard, songwriter, stuntman, and actor, he and Pat mixed with a host of celebrities. But the biggest star of all was Elvis, and they saw his everyday side as well as his extraordinary creative side--the man who transformed himself and his audiences when he walked on a stage. They saw his exceptional kindness to strangers, fans, and people in need, but they also saw a man who sometimes couldn't be reached by anyone.

Red, meanwhile, embarked on a successful career in film and television, acting in projects with luminaries such as Charlton Heston, Willie Nelson, Jon Voight, Ann Margret, Patrick Swayze, Matt Damon, and Zac Efron, as well as directors Francis Ford Coppola and Robert Altman.

Red's life, from Elvis to his marriage with Pat and a successful career in music and film, was fascinating and one Helluva Ride.

1