A young man, Vince Everett (Elvis Presley), is convicted of manslaughter after being drawn into a bar fight while trying to defend a woman. In prison, Everett finds salvation when his cellmate, a country singer named Hunk Houghton (Mickey Shaughnessy), hears him sing and pegs him as a future star. Once released, Everett gets a job in a night club and meets Peggy Van Alden (Judy Tyler), a young woman who works for a record company and who, like Houghton, also sees talent in Everett.