Aurora Starchild
Lisa Marie Presley tragically passed away in January and the public is still trying to grapple with the loss. The 54-year-old Rock and Roll royalty, only daughter of Elvis Presley, had become an icon herself. So it should come as no surprise that her memorial service featured musical performances by prominent rockers like Billy Corgan, Axl Rose, and Alanis Morissette — all of who were her friends. As it turns out, Lisa Marie Presley maintained a close friendship with Alanis Morissette after they bonded over peanut butter and banana sandwiches — a favorite snack of Elvis Presley’s — over 25 years ago.
Videos by Rare
Alanis Morissette Sang “Rest” at Lisa Marie Presley’s Memorial
Alanis Morissette stood on the stage at Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee on January 22, 2023. It was only ten days after Presley had been rushed to the hospital after suffering from cardiac arrest. Presley was pronounced dead at West Hills Hospital in Los Angeles and returned to Graceland to be buried beside her family members including her son Ben and her father, Elvis. Morissette crooned out her 2021 single, “Rest,” which had originally been released in honor of Mental Health Action Day.
The lyrics to “Rest” adequately fit the tearful occasion, especially considering Lisa Marie’s history. She reportedly had lost 40-50 pounds in 6 weeks prior to the 2023 Golden Globes, where she made an appearance in honor of her father’s biopic. While the details of her death aren’t clear, opioids were found in her system during an autopsy and she’d previously opened up about struggling with drug addiction.
And God rest, God rest our souls
Lyrics From Alanis Morissette’s “Rest”
And this substance is the only comfort I know
He’s been pushing for a while
Can we cut this man some slack?
Let him lie down, let him lie down
Lisa Marie Presley Met Alanis Morissette in 1995
Beyond simply being a rock star performing at another rock star’s funeral, one thing was blatantly apparent while Morissette sang her song. She also genuinely looked brokenhearted. And the reason is that she, like the other performers that day, truly loved Lisa Marie Presley. She was singing for her friend, not for a gig.
According to Rolling Stone, Morissette and Presley met in 1995 in Malibu, California. The Canadian singer’s smash hit album, Jagged Little Pill, had shot her to fame. It started with “Ironic” and then “Hand In My Pocket,” “You Oughta Know,” “Head Over Feet,” and on and on. Nearly every song on the album topped worldwide charts and Morissette was trying to escape for a moment. Her newfound fame was a bit much to handle, and she found herself sitting on the back porch of her rented beach house and eating a peanut butter and banana sandwich.
That’s when Lisa Marie Presley and her eldest children, late son Ben and daughter Riley, came walking over. They lived a couple of houses away.
“I was a little caught off-guard,” Morissette told Rolling Stone. “And then she leaned in and said, ‘Hi, Alanis, it’s Lisa Marie.’” Lisa Marie and her kids allegedly laughed a bit when they saw what she was eating. The peanut butter and banana sandwich has long been associated with Elvis Presley.
Morissette Was Eating Some Variation of What Has Been Dubbed “The Elvis Sandwich”
According to Elvis Presley’s former personal chef at Graceland, Mary Jenkins, he was known to ask for his sandwich at any random hour of the day or night. Specifically, he liked to have his white bread toasted first. Once the peanut butter and thinly sliced banana were added, it needed to be fried to perfection in a pan with butter.
Over the years, “The Elvis Sandwich” has evolved a little as foodies and gourmands have taken some liberties. Some associate the snack with bacon, which wasn’t the norm — but he may have added a few pieces every now and then.
But as for Alanis Morissette’s sandwich that day, all we know is that it involved peanut butter and banana. The singer turned to veganism in 2009, so we can’t completely rule out the bacon. But if that were the case, it would almost be… a little too ironic. Like a séance sandwich or something: Take a bite and summon Elvis Presley’s spirit and/or kin. It sounds improbable but is it impossible? Even Mary Jenkins says Elvis Presley’s ghost wanted to keep living in her house.
Lisa Marie Helped Alanis Work Through the Stress of Sudden Stardom
After Lisa Marie and her kids had their little giggle, Alanis proceeded to vent a little about her struggle with sudden fame. Of course, if anyone could understand, it would probably be the daughter of the world’s most famous and iconic singer. Lisa Marie Presley grew up in the public eye and never truly escaped it.
“It was really striking to see how deeply empathetic she was toward me,” Morissette told Rolling Stone. “I was in the middle of the white-hot heat zeitgeist and felt pretty isolated. She could hold the complexity of what it means to be in the public eye, to navigate there. There was a quiet connection we immediately had, and I don’t have that with a lot of people.”
To think that a 25-year friendship would all start with eating a peanut butter and banana sandwich. And of course, moving a couple of doors down from Elvis Presley’s daughter.
Isn’t it peculiar?
