Collectiblog

It's been 32 years since the passing of Elvis Presley on August 16, 1977 -- though in many ways he never left the building. The songs of Elvis are still played on the radio daily. He still sells more albums than many new artists, and people still flock to his famously decadent Memphis home, Graceland, for a glimpse of how he lived.  

There's also a lot of Elvis memorabilia out there; more than enough to write a book about. There are genuine outfits and personal effects, plus there are countless other items manufactured with the iconic image of the man still thought of as the King of Rock. Badges, wallets, gum cards, and of course, the LP collection -- which accounts for around $1 billion in sales since their original release dates.  

However, there's one item that I see as the singular stand out of all Elvis products manufactured: the TCB emblem. Elvis reportedly designed the logo and had 14k gold bracelets made for each member of his “Memphis Mafia”. He gave one to each of his band members along with his oath of “more self respect and respect for fellow man,” among other things.

I've always admired the insignia, which is essentially a Captain Marvel lightening bolt  (a symbol for “do it quick”) and initials T, C & B suspended from a gold chain. I never knew the origin until recently. I know TCB stands for Taking Care of Business, but wasn't aware that it was initially derived from a 1968 Motown TV special of the same name -- not the 1973 BTO song as many people assume. I never knew before this year that TCB is also what Elvis called his band.

There are conflicting stories of how many were originally made, but it's said that 13 insignia bracelets were crafted for the inner circle (including The King himself). Over his lifetime, it is thought that Elvis bought close to 1,000 of the gold emblems from the original jeweler who crafted them. Every now and then an original piece of TCB jewelry comes up for auction, but they're almost indistinguishable from the countless commercially available variations. Currently, the logo appears on T-shirts, necklaces, earrings, key chains and even Elvis' signature sunglasses.  

The TCB emblem was made for the men in Elvis' world, but he also made a TLC (Tender Loving Care) charm charm for the ladies in his life (and really, there were more than a few). Although I can appreciate the distinction, I personally choose to wear my own TCB necklace, and wear it proudly in memory of the greatest rock icon of all time.