early February, 2005
Currently in the news: Songy/BMG UK's release of Elvis Presley singles
- The Spirit is Rising ... For Elvis
(PR Web, February 7, 2005)
Elvis Presley's 70th Birthday Is Celebrated With Resurgance Of "Real Music." "Hit Making Team" Continues To Be Embraced By Fans Around The Globe. Elvis' Best Friend Joe Esposito Joins "Hit Making Team" in Los Angeles.
As Elvis Presley's 70th birthday was recently celebrated, The "Hit Making Team" has been praised by fans globally for their untiring mission of "Keeping The Music Alive!" John Krondes and The Jordanaires are nearing completion of their first CD of new material with the Elvis "Hit Making Team"; historically the first reunion of the Presley "Hit Makers" in the recording studio in over 27 years. This potent music entourage includes members of the TCB Band, Elvis' Memphis Studio Band the "Memphis Boys" and the Sweet Inspirations.
Ray Walker of the Jordanaires proclaims "This Was No Accident". Many music fans share the belief that this fateful meeting of talent was of a higher calling by Rock 'n Roll Heaven. "Hit Making Team" Singer John Krondes says "It's All About Respect". "Rodney Dangerfield spent a lifetime looking for it, our mission is to keep the music and spirit alive!"
Many radio DJs have called John Krondes and the "Hit Making Team" trend setters. Several Industry professionals have called their effort to bring back "Real Music" a welcomed change. In addition to the hardcore Elvis fans, a budding young new generation of "New Elvis" fans, tiring of the "Manufactured Music" scene are flocking to the "Hit Making Team" project, identifying with the vision of continuing the music legacy of Elvis, Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Perry Como and all the lost legendary makers of song. ...
- Elvis can entertain (and marry) you
By Lars Jacoby
(Arizona Republic, February 7, 2005)
The Rev. Larry Foote
Age: 52: "but I look and feel 25."
Family: Wife Debra; son Jaron-Michael, 8, and the family dog, Jingle Bell, a collie.
Chapel: Graceland Ministries - Weddings and Elvis Gospel Singing in Mesa. advertisement
Affiliation: Non-denominational.
Former jobs: School superintendent, teacher and football coach. Foote played high school football in Eloy with former NFL player Benny Malone.
How long have you presided over marriages? "I'm a former school administrator, coach and teacher, and I used to impersonate Elvis in bars and different places before I became a Christian in 1996. And that's when we began Graceland Ministries."
How did the Elvis serenade start? "What started all of this, if I may humbly tell you, is back in '88 or '89, I had a restaurant and a banquet room and The Arizona Republic was nice enough to come out and do a bunch of articles about me singing Elvis music in there and other states. And so, that kind of started this whole thing."
When did your discover Elvis? "Around 4 years of age, when I was growing up in Eloy. We were raised Pentecostal and we couldn't listen to Elvis music. Well, my sister brought home an Elvis record and I listened to it day and night. It just kind of turned into idolatry and when I had turned to Christianity I had to renounce that."
Valentine's weddings: "It's certainly a popular time of year, we just had quite a few calls. . . . We have same-day weddings, so you know a lot of times when people come here, the same day they decide to elope."
Popular song selections: "Its all people's preferences to what they like. Let It Be Me is a beautiful song for a wedding setting. . . . The younger generation remembers songs like Love Me Tender.
- Shelby Delegation Seeks Movie Incentives
By Stephanie Scurlock
(News Channel 3, February 6, 2005)
The spotlight is on Memphis as producers shoot the CBS mini-series "Elvis" at Graceland in Whitehaven. The cameras roll for just one day because the stars and crew head back to New Orleans to finish the 3 month long project. Memphis is glad to have one day in the spotlight but why would a movie about Memphis' most famous citizen be filmed hundreds of miles away in New Orleans. The Memphis Shelby County Film Commission says the answer is simple, money. ...
- Memories of a boy's Super City
By Michael Browning
(Palm Beach Post, February 6, 2005)
It is something, to have outlived a bridge. I was just a child in Jacksonville, the scene of today's Super Bowl, when the Fuller Warren Bridge opened across the St. Johns River. We were among the first to drive over it and pay the 15-cent toll. ... Jacksonville is such a kaleidoscope for anyone who grew up there. ... John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon both spoke in the old circular bandstand at Hemming Park in 1960, during their campaigns for president. My grandfather attended both speeches and shook hands with both of them. My father skipped Nixon, but shook hands with Kennedy. ... Elvis Presley, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones all played Jacksonville's old Gator Bowl in the '50s and '60s. The Beatles' concert was a disaster, spoiled by rain and a rickety stage. ...
- I know why Elvis shot the TV
By Lisa Monti
(Sun Herald, February 6, 2005)
This is a vulnerable time of year when many workplaces feel the effects of the flu spreading through their ranks, and the newsroom has been no exception. I spent most of last week home in the company of my own germs, recouping from the flu only to lapse into a case of cabin fever. ... If there was any good that came out of the week, it was this: I think I've figured out why Elvis shot out his television set.
... After a few days (or nights) of soaps, talk-show sob stories, morons making their cases in TV courtrooms and promises of pills that make weight just fall off, the King probably had just had enough. And that was before cable, which at least offers some refuge in Bravo, The Weather Channel and any number of human and household makeover shows. In the meantime, I will store up on Vitamin C and new batteries for the remote.
- Who's who of stars Jax trial
By MICHELLE CARUSO
(New York Daily News, February 6, 2005)
If Michael Jackson facing child-molestation charges isn't enough, the world's media could be about to feast on one of the most fame-packed witness lists in history. Hollywood celebs from Lisa Marie Presley to Macaulay Culkin and pint-sized "Webster" star Emmanuel Lewis are all reported to be on the loosely drafted - and tightly sealed - witness lists submitted by prosecution and defense lawyers, sources say.
Exactly which high-powered personalities will be called is still a mystery. Many haven't been subpoenaed yet because, in some cases, the judge hasn't determined if their testimony will be admissible. In other cases, the lawyers haven't decided if the high-profile witnesses will actually help their cases.
But both sides have their eyes on some heavy hitters. Prosecutors are mulling calling Elvis Presley's daughter, who was Jackson's first wife, to probe statements she has made about the pop star's private and very adult persona - including that he sometimes speaks in a deep voice and curses. "They want to chip away at this child-like image Michael puts out - to suggest it's all an act," said a source familiar with prosecution strategy. But Presley's testimony could be a double-edged sword, according to a source close to Jackson. "Lisa Marie believes Michael is not a pedophile and she'll give a blazing 'no' if they ask her that. But good luck getting her into court once those Elvis lawyers get involved," the source said.
So far, attempts to fight subpoenas haven't worked with Judge Rodney Melville. British journalist Martin Bashir, whose documentary "Living With Michael Jackson" is at the center of the molestation case, hired a lawyer to fight his subpoena. But Melville ordered him to show up and testify. Prosecutors have already subpoenaed Jackson's second wife, Debbie Rowe, the mother of his two oldest children, Prince Michael and Paris. She is bitterly battling the pop star for custody.
"They hope she'll dish about his wacky lifestyle. He froze the placenta from one of their babies! She knows his weirdness," said a source familiar with Jackson. "But she doesn't really know anything else ... she never lived at Neverland, she never slept in a bed with Michael, never met [the current accuser] or [the 1993 accuser.]"
Prosecutors also have considered calling Culkin, Britney Spears choreographer Wade Robson and the 3-foot-4 Lewis, all of whom spent boyhood time with the pop star. Prosecutors want to show Jackson's pattern of befriending boys and allowing them to share his bed, but all three famous sleepover guests insist Jackson never did anything wrong. ...
- Lennon leaps up music lovers' list
(itv.com, dated November 18 2004, found February 6, 2005)
"It is not an exaggeration to say that there was a world before John and the world after" - Yoko Ono
Music fans have voted former Beatle John Lennon the greatest rock and roll icon of all time. The star, who was assassinated in 1980, saw off competition from Elvis Presley and David Bowie to top the list of 100 voted for by readers of Q magazine. In a special tribute to him published in the magazine his widow Yoko Ono said he was a "driven man" who "changed people's awareness in an incredible way". She continued: "He was not afraid to tell the truth and thus give us a clearer picture of what was really going on. Indeed, it is not an exaggeration to say that there was a world before John and the world after."
The top 10 music icons as voted for by readers of Q magazine were:
1. John Lennon 2. Elvis Presley 3. David Bowie 4. Keith Richards 5. Kurt Cobain 6. Madonna 7. Bono 8. Bob Marley 9. Joe Strummer 10. Bob Dylan
- Face to face with the many guises of the pop art king: ANDY WARHOL: SELF PORTRAITS
(Yahoo! News / Reuters, February 6, 2005)
From Elvis Presley to Marilyn Monroe and Elizabeth Taylor, Andy Warhol is renowned for his celebrity portraiture. Yet for someone so obsessed with image, there has surprisingly never been an exhibition devoted to the artist's presentation and manipulation of his own likeness. Until now. In collaboration with the Sprengel Museum, Hanover, and the Kunstmuseum in St Gallen, Switzerland, Andy Warhol: Self Portraits is the only UK showing of 80 of the cultural icon's works, from his earliest paintings and drawings in the 1940s to wallpaper, film, prints and photographs, right through to the hollow-cheeked images made in 1986, shortly before his death. ... Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Edinburgh (0131-624 6200), Saturday until May 2.
- CBS Starts Filming Elvis Mini Series: Memphis Becomes Home To Hollywood, Again!
By Heather Shaneyfelt
(News 3 Channel, February 5, 2005)
If you thought you saw an Elvis sighting in Memphis, you are right. Elvis was back at his beloved Graceland for a day. Actor, Jonathan Rhys Meyers plays Elvis, because of his uncanny resemblance to the entertainer. It's a television mini series scheduled to air on CBS this May. Most of the movie is being shot in New Orleans but the scene where Elvis takes him mom and dad to see Graceland for the first time is being shot in Memphis. The movie tells the story of Elvis' humble beginnings to his rise to fame. Camryn Manheim from the practice stars as his mother, Gladys. Robert Patrick from the x-files plays Elvis' father, Vernon. The actors say shooting this scene at Graceland is powerful. We catch Manheim making a home movie for her 4 year old son. The Elvis mini-series will air right here on CBS May 8 and 11th.
- Secret of Broadway Musical Hits -- Plot or Songs?
(Yahoo! News / Reuters, February 5, 2005)
What makes a hit musical -- a play about a spelling bee competition, a Shakespeare classic moved to Texas, the story of the witches from the Wizard of Oz, "Little Women" or a Beach Boys extravaganza? All of the above are making their debuts in New York right now, begging the question: "What's the secret of success?" "Every idea is improbable until it succeeds," said Laurence Maslon, author of "Broadway: The American Musical." "People thought 'Pygmalion,' you couldn't possibly turn that into a musical. 'Cats' when it opened in London was considered a big joke," Maslon said. The stakes are high with long-running hit shows aiming to gross $1 million a week on Broadway. Most of that covers weekly running costs meaning it takes time to recover production costs that can be $15 million to $20 million for a big show. "You can no longer have a show that runs for a year and make money, it has to run for three years," Maslon said. ... Using hit songs is a tried and tested formula. ... New musicals are in the works based on the songs of Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, John Lennon and Earth, Wind and Fire. ...
- Willie always had Elvis on his mind for a song: Country singer had the clear voice of Presley in his head
By Eddie McIlwaine
(Belfast Telegraph, February 5, 2005)
JAILHOUSE Rock was all very well at No 1 - but Willie Nelson still reckons that Always on My Mind was the best song Elvis ever crooned. Especially as Willie, who is coming to Dublin in the spring, wrote the lyrics to the love ballad. "People are always telling me how well I sing Always on My Mind," declared Willie today. "But the plain truth is, it was always meant for Elvis. I only sang it myself as an afterthought and now I'm not allowed off a stage without performing it. "I sat down one afternoon with a clear sound of the Presley voice in my head and wrote that song. Mind you, I had a beautiful woman in my eye when I was putting the words down, but I'm not saying who she was. "The point is, this was always an Elvis special and didn't he do so well with it? Come on ? Elvis with that ballad stuck with you for a long while no matter how good I do it." ...
- Remembering the man who did it all
By ROGER EBERT
(Chicago Sun-Times, February 5, 2005)
Ossie Davis, an actor and activist beloved and revered for his contributions to theater, film, television and the civil rights movement, is dead at 87. The legendary figure, who combined militancy with grace and humor, was found dead Friday in a Miami Beach hotel room. He had been on location since Monday, filming "Retirement," a comedy also starring Peter Falk and Rip Torn. ... His other major film roles included "Grumpy Old Men" (1993), in which he ran the bait shop frequented by Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon; "I'm Not Rappaport" (1996), in which he and Matthau engage in a philosophical park bench conversation, and the cult comedy success "Bubba Ho-Tep" (2002), in which he and Bruce Campbell co-starred as John F. Kennedy and Elvis Presley, both still alive in a nursing home. ("But Jack," says Elvis, "you're black." JFK nods: "When my assassination was faked by Lyndon B. Johnson, they dyed me") ...
- In the Spotlight for Tales of the City, Fact and Fiction
By EMILY YELLIN
(New York Times / MEMPHIS JOURNAL, February 5, 2005)
Some people here have spent the last two weeks bragging about their city [Memphis]. Others have spent that time apologizing for it. But most have probably found themselves doing a little of both. ... Mr. Sachs, 39, director of "Forty Shades of Blue," which won Sundance's grand jury award for dramatic film, grew up here but lives in New York. He sees the city's contradictions as a source of artistic inspiration. "Memphis is a city uniquely defined by its great highs and tragic lows, with the ascent of Elvis Presley and the assassination of Martin Luther King there," Mr. Sachs said in a telephone interview. "Those inherent tensions seep into every song and film that comes out of there." ... "We've got a lot of sinners here," Mr. Brewer said. "That's what triggered the blues that came from here, when everything is all wrong or so taboo. But it is those flaws that make us fascinating."
... Mr. Wharton, who attended the screenings of both Memphis films in Utah last week, pointed out that Memphis has a tradition of fostering artistic innovation that some might initially find distasteful. The blues, soul music and Elvis Presley, he said, all had their detractors on moral grounds. He sees the films as part of that tradition. "These are not movies I would take my mother to see," Mr. Wharton said. "But if someone wants a good example of the artistic ability that comes out of Memphis, I would point to both of these movies." He also said the films have a message of hope for Memphis and the scandals it is enduring. "Both of these movies," Mr. Wharton said, "show there is always the possibility of triumph over whatever the devils in your life may be." ...
- Still craving simple song
By Tom Shone
([Melbourne] Age, February 5, 2005)
From cheeky cowgirl to lesbian chic poster girl and beyond, k.d. lang has put image and stardom aside and is recording at her best since her CD Ingenue. k.d. lang lives in one of the nicer bits of Los Angeles: up a winding, leafy road in the Hollywood Hills, tucked well away from the honking neon of Sunset Boulevard. ... She has had more than her fill of the other LA - the one that sits at the bottom of her road, where egos get built up and are then torn down to make way for someone else. In the early 1990s lang experienced Grammy-winning, platinum-record success with Ingenue, her album of country-inflected torch songs, and overnight became the poster girl for the then emergent lesbian chic. "Elvis is alive and she's beautiful," Madonna declared. ... If Elvis was alive and well and beautiful, then this was definitely [k.d. lang's] Vegas period, and she followed up Ingenue in 1995 with All You Can Eat, a record about super-stuffed stardom. ...
- Museum lassos cowboy nostalgia
By Shirley Davis
(Quad City Times, February 4, 2005)
Fans of the grand ole cowboy movies will have a terrific time at the Roy Rogers-Dale Evans Museum, which moved in 2003 from Victorville, Calif., to Branson, Mo. I wasn't sure just what I would find when I visited the museum a few months ago, but I'd heartily recommend it to anyone who ever sat through a Saturday matinee in the days when singing cowboys lit up the screen. The museum is folksy and fun, and I had the feeling it was filled with really authentic stuff - displayed quite attractively in dioramas with commentary at each exhibit, recorded by Roy Rogers Jr. Rogers Jr. explains that his dad and stepmother played a lot of fairs and rodeos, and so that they'd be seen from a distance they chose outfits with lots of sparkle. Some were created by the same designer who did stage clothes for Elvis Presley. ...
- Debra London Has New Adult Contemporary Album Produced by Legends Hall of Fame Member, Robert Metzgar
(emediawire.com / PRWeb, February 4, 2005)
"There's something exciting about finding a great singer at an audition run by the Ozark Mountain Talent industry in St. Louis, Missouri," producer Robert Metzgar said of advertising and marketing representative, Debra Sue London. London who has recently been in the studio in Nashville, with Academy Of International Recording Artists Hall Of Fame producer, Robert Metzgar and member of the prestigious Legends Hall Of Fame, has recorded her first songs as a commercial recording artist in an industry that is incredibly expensive and very difficult to break into. The new artist will be signed to Platinum Plus Universal Records for development as a recording artist for the next two years. ... Ms. London recorded her first five songs at the world famous, Chelsea Studios in Nashville where so many famous names in the music business got their start, including Alan Jackson, Shania Twain and Tom T. Hall. Her first recording session featured such famous players as Elvis Presley's keyboard player Bobby Ogdin and others from the great days of the Memphis legends with Sun Records. ...
- Satellite radio's coming of age ...
By S. Wayne Carter Jr.
(delmarvanow.com, February 4, 2005)
Why pay for something you already get for free? That's the question many people will fire back when asked their opinion on satellite radio. But with more than 4 million subscribers between XM and Sirius satellite radio services since its inception almost four years ago, it's obvious those companies are doing something right. ... Both XM and Sirius offer almost 100 channels of commercial-free music by genre plus multiple news, sports and speciality talk stations. Channels are digital quality, meaning no static or fading no matter where you are in the country. Many automotive manufacturers are offering satellite radio in new vehicles. General Motors, who has a stake in XM Radio, will offer the option in all makes and models in 2005. SoundFX and P.P. Sound both offer installation of satellite radio head units. And while satellite radio is typically listened to in the car, portable plug-and-play models that can be used in the home, office and vehicle flew off the shelves during the holidays.
So why pay for something you already get for free? ... Top 40 music stations are still the most popular among listeners, but the promise of no commercials is what turns them onto satellite radio. Others are intrigued by niche channels from heavy metal to christian music, indie-college rock to smooth jazz, salsa to classical and uncensored hip-hop to a 24-7 station dedicated to the King of Rock 'n' Roll, Elvis Presley. ...
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