mid June 2007
- Elton John crowned karaoke king at charity event
(Yahoo! News / Dotmusic, June 22, 2007)
Sir Elton John was crowned karaoke king at a charity auction event held at Ronnie Scott's jazz club last night (June 21) in England. Singing before guests including Kate Moss and Elle MacPherson, Sir Elton raised $200,000 for the Hoping Foundation with his rendition of Elvis Presley's "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" ...
- Galveston true birthplace of rock 'n roll
By Gordon Haire
(galvestondailynews.com, June 22, 2007)
Gloucester City, N.J., declared itself the "Birthplace of Rock 'n' Roll" on Wednesday, basing its claim to the title on the mere fact that Bill Haley and his band played there for 18 months in the early '50s at Twin Bar, now Jack's Bar & Grill on Broadway. Wildwood and other Jersey burgs have made the same claim, which cannot stand up under even cursory research.
If any city deserves the birthplace title based on Haley, it would be Philadelphia, where he recorded a cover version of "Rocket 88" at Dave Miller's Holiday Records in 1951. "Rocket 88," erroneously believed by some to be the first rock 'n' roll song, was originally recorded by Jackie Brenston and His Delta Cats earlier that year in Memphis by Sam Phillips, owner of Sun Records, where Elvis Presley's first release was "That's alright mama." If "Rocket 88" is accepted as the first rock 'n' roll song, then the genre's birthplace would be the Riverside Hotel in Clarksdale, Miss., where Ike Turner wrote the song.
Galveston trumps all of these claims by about four years. "Good Rockin' Tonight," undeniably rock 'n' roll, was written, arranged, performed and recorded by Roy Brown in Galveston in 1947. One performance was broadcast live on radio station KGBC from its studios in The Commerce Building on The Strand.
In a Sept. 26, 2005, Rolling Stone article, "New Orleans' hottest musical exports," James Sullivan wrote a roundup of New Orleans artists, listing the names of their songs and the stars who made cover versions. Roy Brown topped the list:
"Good Rockin' Tonight" (Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly, Pat Boone, Jerry Lee Lewis, James Brown, Paul McCartney); "Rockin' at midnight" (Honeydrippers).
"Good Rockin' Tonight" is ranked No. 14 of the Top 100 Songs of 1954 by Digital Dream Door.com, based on its initial and lasting popularity and on its impact on the overall scope of musical history.
Of course, the best-known contender for the title of birthplace of rock 'n' roll is the home of the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame, Cleveland, Ohio. It was in that city that record-store owner Leo Mintz recommended that Alan Freed play rhythm-and-blues tunes at WJW radio in the summer of 1951. Freed, who called himself Moondog, is credited with coining the term "rock 'n' roll" and for promoting the first rock 'n' roll concert, the Moondog Coronation Ball, at the Cleveland Arena on March 21, 1952.
Galveston is undeniably The Birthplace of Rock 'n' Roll, and we should proudly proclaim it as such.
Gordon Haire is the official historian for the Galveston chapter of the Society for the Preservation of Rock & Roll. He is also a retired newspaperman and a former Galveston firefighter.
- A Pack of Elvis Tribute Artists Make Their Way To East Texas
By Tracy Watler
(kltv.com, June 21, 2007)
Elvis is coming to East Texas! In fact, there's 18 of them. This weekend, Elvis impersonators from around the world over will flock to Longview for the Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist contest. The event's coordinator who says the contest is sure to get you "all shook up."
They call themselves ETAs or Elvis Tribute Artists. And all 18 are promising to get a whole lotta shakin' goin on. "It's going to be the closest thing that anybody has ever seen of Elvis...when they're on stage, they project an image of Elvis," says event coordinator Carol Shahin.
Each of the 18 "Elvi" will get to belt out two numbers from the King, armed with pelvic gyrations, sideburns, and of course jumpsuits. "These guys pay anywhere from two grand up to eight/ten thousand dollars for these jumpsuits and they're authentic replicas of Elvis' jumpsuits...it's worth coming just to see the jumpsuits," Carol says.
This weekend's pre-lim is a pre-lude of sorts with the winner getting a shot at the championship round right in Elvis' backyard. "To be named the ultimate by Elvis Presley Enterprises, that's what it's all about...that's what these guys have been doing this for anywhere from two years to 20," says Carol.
Carol says the ETAs do it out of love for Elvis and carrying on his legacy. "It gives people that never had the opportunity to meet Elvis and to see Elvis in concert, it gives them a little bit of an idea what it felt like," she explains. And it's for a good cause because all the proceeds go to Neal McCoy's East Texas Angel Network so don't be cruel and come on out.
... The contest starts Saturday at 1:00pm at TG Field Auditorium in Longview. Tickets are 25 dollars at the door, or you can buy them for 20 dollars from Cavender's in Longview, the Neal McCoy Fan Club in Longview, Mel's Qwik Stop in Jacksonville, and Band Stand Music in Marshall.
- Elvis People to Close June 23
By Andrew Gans
(Playbill, June 19, 2007)
Elvis People, the Off-Broadway play at New World Stages/Stage 1, has announced it will close June 23 "barring a marked change in sales."
Doug Grissom's play began previews June 6 and is scheduled to officially open June 21. Should it close June 23, the production will have played four performances and 20 previews. Directed by Henry Wishcamper, Elvis People features Jordan Gelber, Jenny Maguire, David McCann, Nick Newell, Nell Page and Ed Sala. The creative team also includes Cameron Anderson (scenic design), Teresa Squire (costume design), Robert Robins (lighting design), Graham Johnson (sound design), Erin Kennedy Lunsford (wig, hair and make-up design), Maya Ciarrocchi (video and projection design) and Lorelei Esser (properties design).
"No performer before or since," read Elvis People press notes, "has had the impact of Elvis Presley: from that first groundbreaking appearance on 'The Ed Sullivan Show' to Las Vegas to Graceland; American Demographics reports that 84% of all Americans say their lives have been touched by Elvis in some way. Now, in this new play . . . you will meet some of the funny and touching cast of characters whose lives were forever changed by 'The King' as [playwright] Grissom traces the influence of Presley on our culture."
Elvis People plays Tuesday-Saturday evenings at 8 PM, with matinees Wednesdays and Saturdays at 2 PM and Sundays at 3 PM.
Tickets are available by calling (212) 239-6200.
New World Stages is located in Manhattan at 340 West 50th Street, between Eighth and Ninth Avenues.
- 'Eminem is like Elvis'
(Yahoo! Music, June 19, 2007)
Public Enemy rapper Chuck D has labelled controversial star Eminem as the new Elvis Presley. The outspoken rap star says there are a lot of similarities between the rapper and the King. He explains, "People say the same thing about Eminem that they said 40 years ago about another white kid whose name began with an 'E' and who had a lot of talent and style. Elvis was legit, and I think Eminem is legit. Eminem is accepted by the black audience."
But although Chuck D is impressed with Eminem, he admits his comparison to Elvis doesn't necessarily mean he likes him. He says, "Elvis never meant s**t to me, but still he was legit. He was a talent. He never meant s**t to me because he used a long line of black cats, like Little Richard and Chuck Berry, that, to me, had more talent than he did."
- Push for an Elvis Presley specialty license plate in Tennessee hits sour note
(Asbury Park Press / ASSOCIATED PRESS, June 19, 2007)
Organizers of a campaign to get an Elvis Presley specialty license plate may be rallying for the King, but they're taking a cue from The Beatles' "With a Little Help From My Friends." Elvis Presley Enterprises and the Regional Medical Center at Memphis in Tennessee will launch a media blitz to attract the 1,000 purchasers they need for the state to begin production of the Elvis plate. Proceeds from sales of the plate would benefit the medical center's Elvis Presley Memorial Trauma Center.
The drive kicked off in October 2005 with organizers expecting to quickly meet the 1,000 threshold. But the effort has fallen flat. After the first deadline passed last summer, The Med was given a one-year extension. Hospital spokesman Kathy Stringer said last week that 750 Elvis fans and hospital supporters have signed up, leaving 250 to go before the June 30 deadline. "We're planning a radio blitz to try to reach the goal," she said. Radio spots already have run in Memphis, and Stringer said more spots are scheduled to run in Nashville, Knoxville and Chattanooga.
If The Med fails to sign up 250 more buyers by the end of the month, it can seek a sponsor for special legislation to grant another extension when the state legislature begins its next session in January.
Specialty plates are a highly competitive business in the state with 150 groups, ranging from wildlife supporters to hospital foundations, vying for the loyalties and tax revenues generated by the plates. ...
- Bowie Baysox To Host Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Contest Satuday, June 30th
(oursportscentral.com, June 19, 2007)
The Bowie Baysox, Class "AA" Affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, in cooperation with the Old Bowie Town Grille, is partnering with Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc. to host a Preliminary Round for the first-ever International Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Contest at Prince George's County Stadium (Bowie, MD) on Saturday, June 30th. "The Promised Land - Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Contest" will feature an Elvis Tribute Artist Contest with 22 Contestants, Elvis Look-Alike Contest, Elvis Tribute Show, and much more. ...
- Demolition To Begin On Camelot Hotel
(KOTV.com, June 18, 2007)
A Tulsa landmark is coming down. Demolition work is set to begins Monday at the Camelot hotel. The first phase of demolition is asbestos removal, and the Camelot is expected to be torn down by September. The cost of taking down the Camelot is an estimated $1 million. Tulsa's eight story castle closed in the 1990's and was later condemned. In its hay day, the Camelot hotel hosted Elvis Presley, as well as Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford.
- Robert Gordon and Chris Spedding Are Back With "It's Now or Never," Set for Release on July 31st!
By: Marketwire
(sys-con.com / MARKET WIRE, June 18, 2007)
New Album Features 15 Elvis Presley Songs as Performed by Robert Gordon, Chris Spedding and the Legendary Jordanaires.
Back in the disco and arena rock era, Robert Gordon put a fist through the heart of the music industry with his first on-fire rockabilly hit, "Red Hot." Now reunited with legendary guitar ace Chris Spedding for the first time in twenty years, Robert is back to spread the gospel and shake things up again. This time they are taking it to a higher level, fortifying their sound with Elvis Presley's own mighty Jordanaires, who return to their own roots, pumping up songs by the King on the 30th anniversary of his death.
"It's Now or Never," scheduled for release on July 31st via Rykodisc, is a no-joke salvo from the heated depths of rock n' roll. Fifteen tracks, a riveting combination of favorites and lesser-known Presley tunes, and no slouching. Recorded in Nashville and produced by Gordon himself, this adult-sized dose of fun is the return to roots that the world has been waiting for. ... From rippers like "Lawdy Miss Clawdy" and "My Baby Left Me" through a stirring reading of "Peace In the Valley," "It's Now or Never" mines the depths of Elvis' oeuvre without the smack of ironic revisionism that has been the hallmark of lesser talents. ...
- Thoughts of P-Compound
By JACK METTA
(The National (PNG), June 18, 2007)
WENT down memory lane last weekend, back to the hey days of Skeeter Davies, Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Chubby Checker, Slim Dusty and Pepe and the Rarotongans and it left the sweetest of taste in my essence --- a taste that was just good to keep to one's self.
It was also the time of Waratahs Rugby League Club, Tony Ila and Boyamo Sali, Mai Wara, sawdust, Markham Point, karu-tora-sorova and the place we still call home - the brazen corner of Lae city called Papuan Compound, or in short P-Compound.
Like most journeys down this route, it only took a few people, who had origins in this part of the world to get together. The rest is history, literally. ... As the story unfolded about the meeting, so did the interjections about life as it was but most centred on the funny anecdotes during the years that where; of adventures at Mai Wara where nudity was never a problem among the kids and shell fish was there just for the taking; of Markham Point fishing for karu-tora-sorova and seagull hunting with slingshots; of the dinghy fad that gripped the compound during the holidays when the metallic dins of hammer on iron roofs flooded the compound in the mass production of dinghies from one end of the compound to the other; of rugby league grandfinals in which Waratahs was undefeated for five straight years and avid supporter Lakora Kaveapo's house overflowing with the trophies; of music from Skeeter, Elvis, Chuck, Chubby, Slim and Pepe and company doing the rounds on the air and on the pick-up --- a record player of sorts --- when the locals were in a happy mood. ...
- ELVIS GUN PAYDAY
(dailyrecord.co.uk, June 18, 2007)
A GOLD-PLATED gun once owned by Elvis Presley sold for £14,000 yesterday.
A prescription pill bottle owned by The King fetched £1335 at the auction in Beverly Hills, California, yesterday. An umbrella used by Marilyn Monroe in a famous 1949 seaside photo-shoot sold for £21,000 at the annual Julien's Summer Auction. And director Al fred Hitchcock's passport sold for just under £10,000.
- Little blue suede shoes
(Sunday Herald Sun, June 17, 2007)
KOBE White may be only eight, but he knows how to make a grown woman cry. And not just one woman -- a whole audience of them. Wearing a sequined white jump suit and black sunglasses, the Noble Park schoolboy is a pint-sized version of Elvis Presley.
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