Were they ever rivals?

I've always thought it was:


Dylan vs. Fred Neil, or Dylan vs. Dave Van Ronk.

and

Elvis vs. Jerry Lee Lewis (The Killer wins, hands down).

Dylan in a walk. Apart from a handful of songs Elvis makes my teeth hurt.

Dylan may have a voice like a bandsaw going through a duck, but his stuff speaks to me in a way that Elvis never has.

Elvis...as a rule I didn't listen to either of them;you couldn't pay me to listen to Bob Dylan-he gives me an ear ache...he's like fingernails on a blackboard...he's like wakin' up to Glenn Beck in the morning-it doesn't matter what he says.And I dig the idea of Elvis shooting TV sets.

Huh? That's two separate universes !

I couldn't choose between them. They are different styles. Elvis would be more in my heart.

Singing voice...Elvis. Live performer...Elvis.
Artist/ musician...Dylan.
Elvis probably had more influence on the rock era than any other performer (even to this day) but Dylan remains an underrated genius.
Also, Dylan wins in the sex appeal dept. You guys ever seen MPR or LJF at a Dylan concert?

I don't know that they would be considered rivals any more so than say Bing Crosby and Duke Ellington. I do know that Dylan has said that it was Elvis that made hime want to be a rock and roller, although he'll list Hank Williams, Leadbelly and Woody Guthrie equally high as influences.

There's several obvious differences that set them apart. Elvis was primarily a singer and ultimately a showman, Dylan was primarily a writer who always sought to confound and challenge his concert audience. Elvis embraced celebrity and success, Dylan shunned them. Elvis lived his persoanl life as an open book for fans to share, Dylan got married in secret, twice, never once discussing the state of his personal life in the media. Elvis's legacy is on his recordings, Dylan's is on his song sheets.

I'm going to go with Elvis, but only 1950s Elvis.