Never knew about this controversy. Seems Elvis’ version of White Christmas, when released in 1957, was considered “obscene,” “vulgar,” “nauseating,” “poor taste” etc. and was banned on some radio stations including one in Oregon. Turns out that the Oregon case was a clever publicity stunt which worked very well. (Sort of like this whole Lindsey Lohan leaked cover of Playboy b.s. which has “forced” Playboy to release the issue early – yeah, right.) For details and background on the Elvis story click here. Here’s an excerpt:
In December 1957, Disc Jockey Al Priddy of KEX in Portland, Oregon is fired for violating the radio station’s ban against playing Elvis Presley’s rendition of “White Christmas” (Elvis’ first Christmas album is the target of many boycotts and bans due to the fact that Elvis doesn’t really reflect, “Christian values”).
(Personally, I never cared for the song regardless who sang it. Elvis’ version doesn’t sound any worse to me than any other version of it.)