One last song for Charlie Hodge

"Well, you rock-a-my soul..."

They looked like they were having so much fun.

Crowded around a small piano in some long-forgotten studio, Elvis Presley, J.D. Sumner, and other members of the Stamps Quartet belted out "Bosom of Abraham" late into the night. J.D. hit the low note at the end of the song and everybody laughed.

"That's all I can do," Sumner joked.

Afterwards, Elvis said he was taking up a collection to buy some coffee. It was a moment.

Banging on the piano keys was Elvis' pal, Charlie Hodge. Singing lead, Charlie would turn around every now and then and flash Elvis a grin. He always seemed to have a grin wherever Elvis was concerned.

Charlie Hodge died Friday night. He was 71.

Charlie met Elvis in the army, back in the late 1950s, when both were headed to Germany and homesick. Charlie had sang in a gospel quartet; he knew the songs that Elvis loved best. They became fast friends, Charlie always right by Elvis' side.

There Charlie stayed for the next 19 years. He was always on stage when Elvis returned to live performing in 1969, handing him water and scarves and singing harmony. Elvis would often introduce him as "My friend, Charlie Hodge."

I met Charlie 13 years ago, when he became a fixture at the Memories Theatre Elvis tribute show in Pigeon Forge. He came out to meet the teenagers from Halls High School; all had been born after Elvis died. But that didn't matter. If you were an Elvis fan, Charlie liked you.

Backstage at Memories one night with guitarist Ross Southerland, I asked Charlie about "I'm Leavin," a haunting, lesser-known ballad Elvis recorded in the early 1970s. Charlie seemed to like the question and we sang a few lines of the song, me doing a bad job on Elvis' part, Charlie doing his familiar harmony. He didn't know which album the song was on, but he shook my hand and told me to come back and see the show.

Charlie was Elvis' most loyal friend. His book didn't talk about any of the drugs or the late night visits to morgues or any of the other stuff. Nope, Charlie only remembered the good things about his boss. He never brought him down, never invited the public into Elvis' privacy.

He was, in short, a friend.

I heard the news about Charlie late Friday night. Southerland called a few minutes later.

"It's just so sad," he said.

Charlie's body is being returned to Decatur, Ala., this week to return to the dust from which he sprang. But here's hoping his spirit is somewhere in the Hereafter this Sunday morning, singing another chorus of "Bosom of Abraham" with Elvis and J.D.

Godspeed, Charlie. You were the best friend Elvis ever had.