Hugh Jarrett's distinctive bass voice imbued Elvis Presley classics with unparalleled richness.

Mr. Jarrett, a member of the famed Jordanaires quartet, sang backup for Mr. Presley on "Hound Dog," "Don't Be Cruel," "Love Me Tender," "All Shook Up," "Jailhouse Rock" and "I Want You, I Need You, I Love You."

(ENLARGE)

Among Woodstock resident Hugh Jarretts mementos are this photo of him and singer Wayne Newton (left).

Frank Niemeir/AJC (ENLARGE)

Woodstock resident Hugh Jarrett (right), sang backup to Elvis Presley (sitting) as a member of the Jordanaires, who were (from left) Gordon Stoker, Hoyt Hawkins and Neal Matthews.

Frank Niemeir/AJC (ENLARGE)

Hugh Jarrett, shown in 2007, has said his years performing with Elvis Presley were 'certainly the most happening.'

David Tulis/AJC (ENLARGE)

Jarrett, also a former radio disc jockey, tosses a few disc into the air as he remembers the recording heyday of the '50s and '60s.

Mr. Jarrett and the Jordanaires recorded 50 albums with Mr. Presley. He toured with the king of rock 'n' roll in the 1950s and in 1970 and acted in his movies. He was part of Mr. Presley's famous waist-up appearance on "The Ed Sullivan Show" in 1956. A skinny, beaming Mr. Jarrett wearing a plaid sport coat can be seen just over and behind Mr. Presley's left shoulder, hand-clapping, finger-snapping and swaying to the music.

"Only a handful of people on Earth performed with Elvis, and most of them are dead," said his friend Doc Lawrence of Stone Mountain. "Certainly in Georgia, Hugh stood alone." Mr. Jarrett's bass voice resonates in Jordanaires harmony on six of Mr. Presley's nine songs in the Billboard All Time Top 100.

"Hugh's voice was rich as Tupelo honey," Mr. Lawrence said.

Hugh Thomas Jarrett, 78, of Woodstock died at Kindred Hospital Saturday. The funeral is at 11:30 a.m. Friday at Northside Chapel Funeral Directors. He died of complications from a March automobile accident. On Thursday, his grandson Greg Jarrett, 23, of Woodstock was killed in a car wreck, and that funeral was Sunday.

Mr. Jarrett and the Jordanaires became an integral part of Mr. Presley's recordings. Mr. Jarrett sang with the quartet 1954-1958, including Mr. Presley's first appearance in Atlanta and his last tour before going into the U.S. Army. By 1970, out of the Army and ready to tour, Mr. Presley called on Mr. Jarrett again. He and his new quartet, the Hugh Jarrett Singers, joined the tour.

Mr. Presley once told the Jordanaires, Mr. Jarrett said in a 2007 Atlanta Journal-Constitution article, "Fellows, I really believe if there hadn't been a you, there wouldn't be a me."

Mr. Jarrett performed with the Jordanaires at the 1997 celebration of Mr. Presley's life in Memphis.

He was generous in sharing his Elvis memories with fans and writers. "I wouldn't say those were necessarily the best days of my life," he said, "but they were certainly the most happening."

He is ensconced in the Gospel Music Hall of Fame, Georgia Music Hall of Fame and Georgia Radio Hall of Fame. Radio disc jockey was right there on his résumé with singer and actor. His on-air persona was "Big Hugh Baby," and the AJC described him as "one of the brassiest disc jockeys ever to grace Atlanta's airwaves." Most recently he was on WWVE Victory 91.5, a Christian radio station.

Mr. Jarrett acted in the movie "Murder in Coweta County, "In the Heat of the Night" on television, the Presley films "King Creole" and "Loving You" and in commercials. He had been Lanierland Music Park's emcee and lent his bass to acts performing there.

"He loved to tell jokes," said his son, Jeff Jarrett, of Woodstock. "He was a big joker." That served him well as emcee at Lanierland and for Mr. Presley's early tours and as a disc jockey.

"That was part of his persona," said his friend Sam Hale of Johns Creek. "He thought his job was to make you feel better and laugh."

A Nashville native, Mr. Jarrett gained fame there as a radio DJ and performing at the Grand Ole Opry. His office wall looks like a music hall of fame of his time. He was friends with and sang with the greats: Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash, Dottie West, Eddie Arnold, Patsy Cline, Wayne Newton; the list goes on.

Recently Mr. Jarrett and Mr. Hale were backstage at the Opry. "I marveled at how one by one the performers came running toward him—Grandpa Jones, Jim Ed Brown, Hank Snow, Carol Lee."

Being in show business was just what his father always wanted to do, Jeff Jarrett said. He spanned the entertainment spectrum.

"He was quite an act," Mr. Hale said.

Other survivors include his wife, Jean Jarrett, a grandson and a great-granddaughter.