July 3, 1945 Washington DC

Officical Website John Wilkinson

John’s talent surfaced early. He started playing the guitar at age 5 and the banjo at age 6. He was influenced by the folk music of the day (in fact, his “signature song” with Elvis was Early Morning Rain). Over the years he performed with Gordon Lightfoot, the Kingston Trio, Peter, Paul and Mary - in addition to many, many other well-known artists and groups, both in live performances and as a studio musician. He can be heard on hundreds of recordings.

Elvis and John first met in l954 when Elvis was l9 and John was 9....Elvis was so impressed with the young boy’s guitar playing that he never forgot him and, in l968, John, at age 23, was hand picked by Elvis to become a member of the TCB Band.

John Wilkinson is known to Elvis fans world wide as the rhythm guitar player who backed Elvis during the “concert years” from l968 to l977 - from the opening shows at the International Hotel in Las Vegas, to the Aloha Special in Hawaii, to the last concert in Indianapolis - and everything in between. In his own words, he was also “part-time bodyguard and full-time friend”.

After Elvis died in l977, John formed another band and continued to perform for a number of years - he also took a bit of break and worked outside the entertainment industry for a while - now he’s back into the music - singing, and telling his great stories!