It wouldn’t be Elvis Week without Ronnie McDowell.
McDowell will be back in Memphis to headline “A Tribute to the King,” which will be held at 2 p.m. on August 11th at Lafayette’s Music Room.
The show also includes special guest Amber Rae Dunn with The Royal Blues Band.
McDowell, whose songs include his chart-topping hits “Older Women” and “You’re Gonna Ruin My Bad Reputation,” says he’s going to do some of his records at Lafayette’s. One of them will be “The King Is Gone,” a 1977 song he wrote about Elvis. “Without Elvis I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing,” says McDowell, who lives in Nashville.
Growing up, McDowell used to listen to 78 rpm records that his sister brought home from the store. One of them was Elvis singing “Hound Dog” on one side and “Don’t Be Cruel” on the other.
His life changed when he heard “Don’t Be Cruel.”
“I ain’t been the same since,” McDowell says. “It was the way Elvis performed that song. He had taken his guitar and turned it over and was slapping the back of that guitar. And he was doing it on the back beat. And he was singing at the same time.
“Something in his voice was different from everybody else’s. There’s just something different. And to this day, I can’t put my finger on it other than the fact that it really touched and reached my soul.”
McDowell remembers the first time he watched Elvis on TV. He told his sister, “Wow, that guy is too pretty to be a guy.”
But he also could see the kindness in Elvis. “The camera bares your soul.”
McDowell was driving when he heard the DJ announce at 2:22 p.m. that Elvis died. McDowell wrote “The King is Gone” that afternoon. “In one week, that would sell a million records. And two weeks later I was on American Bandstand.”
He performs a duet to the Elvis hit “It’s Only Make Believe” with Dolly Parton on her Rockstar album. He’s also going to perform a version of it with the recorded voice of his buddy, the late Conway Twitty, on his upcoming album.
McDowell is a star in his own right, but, he says, “My total inspiration is Elvis Presley. Period.”
General admission tickets to “A Tribute to the King,” which will be filmed for an upcoming TV special, are $25. VIP admission is $100 and includes premium seating, a swag bag, and a meet-and-greet following the show.
Ted Torres Martin as Elvis (Photo: Club Elvis España)
Elvis hasn’t left the building, or rather Elvis hasn’t left the hearts of fans who keep his legacy alive, some even on stage where his star once shone so brightly. Ted Torres Martin is one such figure — a full-time Elvis tribute artist — and he’ll be here this week performing as Elvis in Aloha from Memphis.
Ever since an 11-year-old Martin caught a glimpse of the King in Jailhouse Rock, he has been enthralled with Elvis’ musicality and charisma. “I was just hooked,” he says, and his attraction to Elvis the musician was natural, seeing that his parents were professional musicians and he’s studied music all his life. “I became a musician first, and I learned to appreciate all kinds of music, but Elvis was always in the back of my mind. … His catalog is so extensive, more than people listen to, beyond the hits.”
Eventually, Martin began attending Elvis conventions. “I started meeting more people who knew him — family members, band members,” he says. “They heard me sing at open mics and told me I could [become an Elvis performer]. I was like, ‘No, I have long hair’ — I still kinda do. Like, ‘I’m a musician; I’m a songwriter. I’m not going to become an Elvis impersonator. There’s only one Elvis, blah blah blah.’”
But as he grew closer to the people who once knew Elvis — especially D.J. Fontana, Elvis’ longtime drummer, and Gordon Stoker from The Jordanaires who sang backup for him — Martin began to know Elvis the person. “I thought it was kinda weird how many similarities and parallels I found between his life and mine, character-wise as well, from what his friends told me,” Martin says. “Our personalities are pretty similar. By learning more about him from his friends, musicians, and family, I learned that he was such a good-hearted person. That attracted me to him even more.”
So, despite his initial resistance, Martin began his Elvis performances full-time nearly 20 years ago. “I’m like, ‘Okay, let me try to do this respectfully and as authentic as I can, at the same time keeping myself separated where I don’t get so lost where I think I’m Elvis or anything like that.’ I’m Elvis on stage, but when I step off the stage, I’m Ted.”
For Elvis Week, Martin will take over the Halloran Centre’s stage. “We’re doing a complete recreation of the Aloha from Hawaii, including what they called the insert songs that he did in montages,” Martin says. “We’re celebrating the upcoming 50th anniversary which will be in January in 2023. We’re getting ahead and going to do it during Elvis Week, which I feel is a very special thing.”
Aloha From Memphis Starring Ted Torres Martin, Halloran Centre, Friday, August 12, 3 p.m., $60-$85.
With the end of the Memphis in May celebrations and the beginning of June, summer is well and truly underway in Memphis.
Okay, the first day of summer isn’t technically for another couple of weeks, but let’s be honest — it feels like summer. It’s hot, humid, and summer thunderstorms have already begun rolling through town. So if it’s time to break out the sunscreen for the season, then we may as well party like it’s officially summer. But how to get your seasonal groove on? Worry not, dear reader, your faithful Flyer staff is here to help.
In this issue, we’ve got a list of happenings we hope will keep you cool — festivals, movie nights, Elvis Week, anniversaries, book launches, and more. Our advice? Circle everything that sounds fun, slap on some sunblock, swig a seltzer, and go out and enjoy the Memphis heat.
Summer Fest: Memphis Pride Fest Memphis Pride Fest is back, louder and prouder because it’s IRL this year after two years of online events.
The weekend of events is billed as the single largest gathering for the LGBTQ+ community and allies in Memphis and the Mid-South. Organizers expect more than 35,000 attendees “to celebrate the most colorful weekend of the year.”
Pride kicks off Thursday at the Malco Summer Drive-In. Gates open at 7 p.m. for a viewing of To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything!Julie Newmar at 8 p.m. A drag show featuring Brenda Newport, Kaiyla JonVier Dickerson, Zoey Adams, and more starts at 10 p.m. Tickets are $35 per vehicle.
On Friday, the Big Gay Dance Party returns, this time at Crosstown Theater at 8 p.m. The event features DJ A.D. “and a safe, inclusive environment to be their true selves.” Tickets range from $15-$150. After-parties start after midnight at Dru’s Bar and The Pumping Station.
Saturday will find Robert R. Church Park awash in rainbows as the festival gets under way at 10 a.m. It features two stages, more than 150 vendors, food trucks, a car show, a kids area, an adult area, a VIP lounge, free and discreet HIV testing, and more. The festival ends at 5 p.m. Tickets are $1.
“What would Pride be without a big, bold colorful parade?” ask the organizers. We won’t have to find out this year. The Memphis Pride Parade steps off at 1 p.m. from 4th and Beale and makes its way through the Beale Street Entertainment District. It will feature 100 different floats, performers, and more with more than 3,000 people participating.
Head back to Beale Sunday at 11 a.m. for the Grand Marshal’s Drag Brunch at the Jerry Lee Lewis Cafe. — Toby Sells Memphis Pride Fest, various locations, June 2nd-5th. Event tickets range from $1-$150. Check midsouthpride.org for more information.
Mike Kerr Memphis Botanic Garden
Summer Sounds: Music in the Open Air Hearing live music outside as the day cools to dusk is one of the great joys of summer in Memphis. With Covid concerns having lapsed over the past year and outdoor gatherings being among the safest anyway, there is sure to be an outdoor music event happening nearly any weekend you care to find one.
We’ve recently covered some of the ongoing series offering such delights, venerable local traditions such as the Memphis Botanic Garden’s Live at the Garden series (kicking off on June 11th with Steely Dan) and the Overton Park Shell’s Orion Free Concert Series (which launched Sunday with the Sunset Symphony concert, followed by Jackie Venson on Thursday, June 2nd). Farther east, yet with a more local flair, there’s always the Germantown Performing Arts Center’s Bluebird Concerts at The Grove. All of them offer green spaces for lounging under the trees as the summer breeze rises — not to mention food and drink vendors.
Some summer series actually began in the spring. The River Series at Harbor Town offers the prime acoustics of an amphitheater on the eastern banks of Mud Island, in full view of the Memphis skyline, and their final spring concert, featuring MouseRocket and Ibex Clone, goes down this Saturday, June 4th. Trolley Night has been livening up the last Friday of every month since March, and will carry on through October, bringing plenty of casual live music to the South Main area. And the Sunset Jazz series has already begun gracing the second Sunday of each month down in Court Square. If Thursday is more your thing, consider the Rooftop Parties atop the Peabody Hotel, which have been featuring a mix of live bands and DJs since April.
Finally, don’t forget the many private venues that specialize in outdoor shows, like Railgarten, Loflin Yard, Carolina Watershed, and Slider Inn Downtown. Thanks to them, you can find live music in the open air nearly every night of the week. — Alex Greene
Summer in the Garden: Twilight Thursdays Every week between now and October 27th, the Memphis Botanic Garden is featuring a “Twilight Thursday” from 5 till 8 p.m. What is a Twilight Thursday? Glad you asked, because there’s a lot happening at these events, not to mention the fabulous Alice in Wonderland topiary exhibit going on right now.
Hungry? Twilight Thursdays offer a rotating array of food trucks each week with a variety of culinary options so you can create your own picnic dinner. There are picnic tables in a nearby grove of trees. If you like getting your drink on, there’s also a “Curious Cocktails” cash bar, which could potentially help you better appreciate the Cheshire Cat’s looming grin. More of a beer person? MBG has got you covered with a special selection of “Alice’s Ales” from Memphis Made Brewing Company.
Memphis Botanic Garden promises there will be additional surprises each week, including vendors, performers, and other special guests, plus presentations from various community partners and groups.
And here’s another bonus: You can bring your favorite pupper to Twilight Thursdays. You know they’d like nothing more than a hike around the grounds on a summer’s eve. Just don’t forget to keep them on leash at all times.
For advance information on food and drink options and performers and other special activities, check with the garden’s Instagram and Facebook accounts. Nonmembers are required to purchase time-entry advance tickets for Twilight Thursdays. — Bruce VanWyngarden
Michael Donahue Team Mama Biondini at Italian Fest
Summer Spaghetti Gravy: Italian Fest On cross-country European railways, there’s always that one train car that sticks out. Rather than a collective of quiet, mild-mannered passengers elsewhere, this car opens its door to release a noisy deluge of yelling, partying, dancing, card-playing, drinking, general hoopla, and hand gestures, dio mio, the hand gestures. Yes, that’s right: It’s the one and only Italian car.
But fear not: The exhilarating merriment of such an encounter doesn’t have to require a transcontinental trip — Memphis’ very own Italian Fest is back in full force this summer, shedding the private, Covid-enforced subdued environments of recent years to embrace its former glory. We’re talking large cooking pots from which the red sauce endlessly floweth, throngs of jubilant festival-goers dancing the tarantella in large fields at Marquette Park, and thrilling clashes of perhaps one of the world’s most intense sports: bocce.
It’s a list of festivities that would make Chef Hector Boyardee himself proud, bringing together many fine staples of Italian-American culture into one place. The festival, running from Thursday, June 2nd, to Saturday, June 4th, is a wild three-day party; it’s a Mediterranean-style version of barbecue fest, where instead of pork there are enough noodles to make a bridge across the Mississippi. It’s fine enough to hang out, listen to some music, and peruse the festivities. But the real fun is in the cook-off, where various teams pack into their tents as they attempt to create the best spaghetti gravy on site or other Italian entrees and desserts. (Pro tip: try to link up with someone who has an invite to one of the cooking tents. The experience is far superior that way.)
If you need an extra glass of wine, toss the kids over to the carnival rides at Luigi Land before popping open another bottle. There’s fun aplenty, and while we may not be in Rome, well, … do as the Romans do anyway. — Samuel X. Cicci Learn more about Italian Fest dates and tickets at memphisitalianfestival.org.
Jesse Davis 901 Comics
Summer Reading This issue is jam-packed with ways to get out and experience hot fun in the Memphis summertime. But this one’s for the fans of air-conditioning.
There are no end of book events in the Bluff City this summer. First on our list is the 36th anniversary celebration at Comics & Collectibles Saturday, June 4th, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. General manager Donny Juengling says the store opened in 1986 and, “We’re really just thankful that we’ve been in business that long.” There is a 20 percent off sale, and illustrator Scott Kolins will be on site for the event.
Next up, 901 Comics is celebrating the store’s sixth anniversary on Saturday, June 4th. Writer and illustrator Al Milgrom will be there signing books. “You can walk back in the back room and pick up a book from the ’70s, ’80s, ’90s, and he probably worked on it,” says Shannon Merritt, who co-founded the store with Jaime Wright. “When we opened this thing, we weren’t sure if it was going to last a year,” Merritt says.
Why not make Saturday a book-stravaganza? Hit two comic shop anniversary parties, then stop by Novel at 6 p.m. for the launch of Finding Jupiter, the new novel by former Memphian Kelis Rowe. “Kelis grew up in Memphis, where she had her first big love as a teenager,” the event announcement says. “She did not see herself or her big love reflected in the pages of a YA novel at the time and now writes contemporary YA to give Black young people more reflections of themselves and their love to enjoy.”
For less time-sensitive book needs, consider going to Burke’s Book Store or DeMoir Books & Things, perhaps to scope out a new novel, short story collection, or poetry book from a local author. Jeremee DeMoir just restocked copies of Memphis by Tara M. Stringfellow — for the fourth time — and Burke’s has signed copies, as does Novel. Memphis made the list of The Bitter Southerner’s “2022 Summer Reading Roundup,” so it’s not just me begging you to read the beautiful debut.
However you get your fiction fix, there’s no better time than summer to kick back with a good book. — Jesse Davis
Courtesy Elvis Presley Enterprises Elvis Week
Summer Kisses, Winter Tears: Elvis Week Some of you out there have never been to Graceland — you know who you are. But this is as good a year as any to immerse yourself in our very own pop culture phenomenon, and get it on with Elvis. It’s now or never, baby.
The 2022 Elvis Week 45th anniversary celebration happens from August 9th through the 17th, rain or shine, with or without hound dogs. Just bring your burning love. And you’d better snap to it since some of the Elvis 45 packages and events are already sold out.
But there’s still plenty in store. There will be special guests, notably Priscilla Presley and Jerry Schilling (among the few living Memphis Mafia members). They’ll be at several events and will even lead tours of the mansion.
There will be plenty of music, much of it provided by Elvis Tribute Artists past and present. The Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Contest runs through the week with hopeful Elvii turning on the tunes and the charm. And winners of past contests will be livening things up as well. For one, the 2011 winner Cody Ray Slaughter (who portrayed Elvis in the traveling production of the Tony Award-winning musical Million Dollar Quartet) will headline a concert at the Graceland Soundstage. And for another, Dean Z (he won in 2013) will be hosting several events during the week.
Meanwhile, musicians Terry Mike Jeffrey and Andy Childs will host a tuneful reminiscence that includes TCB band members. And there’s a concert experience at Graceland Soundstage with Elvis’ image backed by live musicians. Pretty much everywhere you turn, you’ll see and hear the King of Rock-and-Roll.
For fans who need more than music and celebrity, there will be live tour guides throughout Graceland Mansion celebrating the 40th year of it being opened to the public. (And even a “Hidden Graceland Tour” to see what most mortals cannot.) Go farther afield if you want and take an excursion to Tupelo to see Elvis’ birthplace and other landmarks.
There are themed dance parties throughout, plenty of Elvis art, an Elvis karaoke for the brave, and even a bingo contest. That’s alright mama, any way you do. Not enough of a mix for ya? Keep in mind that there will be plenty of gospel music as well as Elvira: Mistress of the Dark. Not kidding.
The big draw, of course, is the Candlelight Vigil on August 15th. Get your candle and walk on the grounds of Graceland to the gravesite along with thousands of fans.
Elvis really is everywhere, so follow that dream. — Jon W. Sparks Best to get tickets sooner rather than later at graceland.com/elvis-week-tickets. For ticket questions, call Graceland Reservations at 800-238-2000 or 332-3322, or email reservations@graceland.com.
Thor: Love and Thunder with Natalie Portman
Summer at the Movies Memorial Day weekend began the summer blockbuster season with the strong pairing of Top Gun: Maverick and The Bob’s Burgers Movie.
This week, David Cronenberg’s Crimes of the Future marks the legendary Canadian auteur’s return to the body horror genre he pioneered. On June 10th, the dinosaurs are back, they’re mad, and they’re going to the mall in Jurassic World Dominion. Chris Evans provides the voice for the Toy Story astronaut in Pixar’s Lightyear, due June 17th. The next week, Memphis’ favorite son gets a blown-up biopic from Baz Luhrmann. Elvis stars Austin Butler as the man who would be king, and Tom Hanks as his Machiavellian manager Col. Tom Parker.
On July 8th, Marvel comes roaring back with Thor: Love and Thunder, with Chris Hemsworth coming out of semi-retirement to thwart the God Butcher (Christian Bale, in his Marvel debut), only to find that his ex-girlfriend Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) is now wielding the magic hammer. July 15th offers something completely different in Where the Crawdads Sing, a Southern Gothic whodunit produced by Reese Witherspoon. One of the most hotly anticipated releases of the summer is Nope, director Jordan Peele’s third sci-fi/horror outing. The trailer for this one, coming July 22nd, looks spectacular. Then on July 29th, the DC Legion of Super-Pets boasts an all-star voice cast including Dwayne Johnson as Krypto the Superdog.
August 5th weekend is crowded with new titles, including the slasher comedy Bodies Bodies Bodies, a new entry in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise, and the Brad Pitt action comedy Bullet Train. Finally, the summer season closes magically with Mad Max director George Miller’s Three Thousand Years of Longing starring Tilda Swinton as a shy professor who is offered three wishes by a djinn, played by Idris Elba. — Chris McCoy
Kim Bearden Cemetery Cinema at Elmwood
Summer Classics: Cemetery Cinema
That’s not exactly what Rick, aka Humphrey Bogart, says to Ilsa, aka Ingrid Bergman, in the 1942 classic, Casablanca, but if the plot involved Elmwood Cemetery’s “Cemetery Cinema,” everyone’s favorite nightclub owner (Rick’s Cafe, remember?) might say something like that.
“We show classics or very popular films in the cemetery on specific nights,” says Elmwood executive director Kim Bearden.
“Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into my cemetery to watch a movie.”
Casablanca will be the featured movie at 8:15ish (depends on when the sun goes down) Friday, June 3rd. Gates open at 6:30 p.m.
The movie showings are fundraisers for the cemetery, Bearden says. “Event goers bring lawn chairs and they set up on the driveway in front of the cottage.”
Elmwood provides a food truck, but moviegoers are invited to bring their own food. As for adult beverages, Bearden says, “We say coolers are allowed.”
Movies are shown on the roof of the 1866 cottage used for offices at Elmwood, she says. The circa 1886 cottage, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, is the only example of “Victorian Gothic carpenter cottage architecture” in Shelby County. “So, the roof on the cottage is in the Gothic style and has a very high pitch. Because of the high pitch we were able to project films on the roof and people can see them from the drive.”
Cemetery Cinema isn’t a scary movie series; Elmwood, which began the movie showings in 2016, recently aired the 1961 Walt Disney film, The Parent Trap, starring Hayley Mills as twin sisters. They will show the 1964 film, My Fair Lady, on June 17th.
Elmwood has shown “some of the old classic black-and-white” horror movies, including the 1931 movie, Frankenstein, starring Boris Karloff.
But there are some types of horror movies they would not show. “Probably slasher flicks,” Bearden says.
Tickets to Casablanca, which are $15, must be purchased in advance at elmwoodcemetery.org. — Michael Donahue
Summer History: A Pugilistic Milestone On Saturday, June 8, 2002, a full generation ago, the Pyramid on the Memphis riverfront was the site for the kind of spectacle it might have been created for: the heavyweight championship fight between Mike Tyson and Lennox Lewis.
The Pyramid was already on the way out as a showcase arena after the NBA’s recently arrived Grizzlies had turned it down as outmoded for their purposes and forced the city and county to go on the hook for a new facility, the soon-to-be FedExForum.
The Big Fight was a sort of Last Hurrah for the place, arranged by then Memphis Mayor Willie Herenton in an inspired act of personal diplomacy that may rank, historically, as his greatest single achievement. The fight was intended to resolve lingering doubts about the rightful ownership of boxing’s most prestigious title. And landing it in Memphis bailed out the promoters who had seen all the big traditional venues shun the opportunity to host the event after Tyson, already a pariah for biting off a chunk of a previous opponent’s ear, brawled with Lewis at the fighters’ signing.
Orphan event though it was, the fight was a genuine extravaganza. Co-produced for television by long-standing rivals HBO and Showtime, it was then, as Wikipedia notes, “the highest-grossing event in pay-per-view history, generating U.S. $106.9 million from 1.95 million buys in the U.S.”
On hand to help fill the Pyramid were such celebrities as Samuel L. Jackson, Denzel Washington, Tom Cruise, Britney Spears, Clint Eastwood, Ben Affleck, Hugh Hefner, Halle Berry, Richard Gere, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Vince McMahon, The Undertaker, LL Cool J, Tyra Banks, Wesley Snipes, Kevin Bacon, Chris Webber, Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Morgan Freeman, Alec Baldwin, and heavyweight fighter Evander Holyfield — the latter having been the victim of the aforementioned ear-biting.
And I was there, at ringside, covering the fight in what was my all-time plum assignment from Time magazine, for whom I worked as a part-time associate or “stringer.” (Curious readers may consult the magazine’s files for “Who Gets the Black Eye?” — published online on the day of the fight.)
Given the ferocity of Tyson’s style, the fight had more than its share of excitement, but the rangy Lewis was the superior boxer and outlasted Iron Mike, knocking him out in the 8th round, ending all doubt as to who was champ and closing out the Tyson era of big-time boxing. — Jackson Baker
Attend Elvis Week’s Candlelight Vigil in person or online. (Photo: Courtesy The Beckwith Company)
Every time Elvis Week rolls around, I hear an Elvis story that I’ve never heard before. My dad told me about the time he saw Elvis at a gas station in the 1950s. Elvis shared that he’d just recorded “Blue Moon of Kentucky’’ at Sun Studio and he was going to be famous. And so it happened.
“My grandmother was friends with Gladys,” said Connie Pike, a family friend offering me a new story. “Elvis would invite my friends and me to parties at Graceland. My friends went, but I never did. I’d been around him enough at his mom’s house. I sure didn’t want to see him at his house, but I sure wish I’d gone to some of those parties now.”
Avoid regrets and be a part of Elvis’ story by celebrating his life and legacy on this 44th anniversary of his death. This year, Priscilla Presley will make special appearances at select events. Join other fans on Sunday as Elvis music sets the tone for the evening during a walk to the Meditation Garden for the Candlelight Vigil. The ceremony will also be available to watch online again this year along with a Virtual Elvis Week option featuring concerts and events livestreamed.
Nightly parties include Club Elvis: Hawaiian Style, a Blue Hawaii luau celebrating the 50th anniversary of the movie.
For all scheduled events, visit graceland.com.
Elvis Week 2021, Graceland, 3717 Elvis Presley, Aug.11-17, free-$78+.
When Graceland revs up its engines for this year’s Elvis Week, one event will feature some of the greatest players to ever back up the King. Elvis or no, any show with musicians like James Burton, David Briggs, Charlie McCoy, and Norbert Putnam on one stage would be notable, for they are some of the famed Nashville Cats, hitmakers for countless stars in their day. Naturally, that’s the crew Elvis would call on when he worked in Nashville, as he did for the legendary June 1970 “marathon sessions” in RCA Studio B that yielded over three dozen tracks, spanning four albums. On Friday, fans can hear those very players recreate some of those songs live.
Luckily for us, bassist Norbert Putnam, who Elvis called “Putt,” remembers those sessions like they were yesterday. He devotes a chapter to them in his book, Music Lessons: A Musical Memoir, but, needing to hear more details, I rang him up at his hometown of Florence, Alabama.
Memphis Flyer:Those few sessions in 1970 were prolific. They must have proceeded at a whirlwind pace.
Norbert Putnam: I think we recorded 39 sides and they kept 35, in five nights. And they named it the marathon sessions, which makes it sound like we were struggling the whole time. But it was easy. It was like falling off a log to work with Elvis Presley. A lot of times, Elvis would get it on the first take. He was so sharp. He was such a quick study.
I suppose you Nashville Cats were quick studies as well.
We were all trained to grab a legal pad and start writing when the demo started playing. As it played, I would note the bass part and the chords. We would have a chart, literally, in four minutes. And Elvis might play that vocal by the demo singer, sometimes four or five times. Then he’d turn around and say, “You guys have that? Well, let’s run it down.” [Jerry] Carrigan would count it off, and this band would play it flawlessly. Elvis would say,“‘How do you do that?!”
In your book, you say publishers would pitch songs to Elvis, and if he didn’t like one, he’d wad up the lyric sheet and toss it in the trash.
Oh, he loved to do that! And he did it in jest. He’d say, “Lamar, how dare you bring me such a piece of crap?”
So he had to be really into it before you would get around to actually tracking it.
Yeah, he didn’t record any songs just to please the publishers. And he never slowly worked his way up to the keeper vocal. He started off full blast. I’d see him just before the red light came on, and he’d be breathing like a fullback, like, “Gimme the ball!”
And he was standing in front of us, holding an RE15 mic, which is what he used on stage in Las Vegas, with a 30-foot cable on it. He’s got that in his right hand, he’s got the lyric sheet in the other, and he’s looking at us, and prodding us. It would be like, “Hang on!”
These were all night sessions, weren’t they?
The only bad thing about working with Elvis Presley was, he was nocturnal. He got up at 5 in the afternoon, had breakfast at 6. At 10 p.m., when he says, “Let’s record,” I have already been working for 12 hours! By 4 a.m., it was all I could to keep my eyes open. When we did “Merry Christmas, Baby,” I was just trying to stay awake.
Elvis sang it; then he starts singing it all over again, without stopping. Now I’m dying. It’s over seven minutes. He says to James Burton, “Take it, James,” and James starts playing. Two bars later, Elvis yells, “Wake up, Putt!” He’d probably been watching me with my eyes shut all the way through the song. But he continued to hire me!
The Nashville Marathon Sessions 50th Anniversary Concert takes place Friday, August 13, 7 p.m., Soundstage at Graceland; tickets are $78, $68, $58, and $48. For more on this and other events, visit graceland.com.
Elvis Week 2020 is the 43rd year fans will be rockin’ and rollin’ with the King — and this year’s festivities offer the first virtual option.
The gates to Graceland reopened in May, and it seemed Elvis Week would be like every other year. As the Graceland family re-evaluated the health crisis, plans were made to significantly modify Elvis Week by eliminating any potential high-risk activity, including live performances, live appearances, group parties or meals, autograph signings, and meet and greets.
“We are helping Memphis and Tennessee to get back to some sense of normality,” stated Joel Weinshanker, managing partner of Graceland Holdings. “We’re doing this in a safe manner and in the best interest for our community, our employees, and our guests. Together, we will succeed.”
Facebook/Graceland
The modified schedule and virtual option will allow fans to participate in Elvis Week and celebrate the life and legacy of Elvis Presley in the way that feels right for them. Fans planning to attend will enjoy a series of daily screening events between August 8th and 16th that fully comply with recommended government protocols. The Candlelight Vigil on August 15th will be more limited than in past years and will require free advanced reservations, but the longstanding tradition will carry on with a socially distanced fan procession to the Meditation Garden.
Virtual passes are $39 and will include content in a closed Facebook group through the end of August. Fans planning to attend in person can purchase a $50 day pass that will include an Elvis Experience Tour with a mansion tour after 2 p.m., plus all-day access to Elvis Presley’s Memphis and a tour of Elvis’ airplanes. Access to two Elvis Week screenings scheduled for that day and priority access to Candlelight Vigil reservations will also be available.
Graceland, 3717 Elvis Presley, graceland.com, Visit the website for a schedule of events offered for both live and virtual options, August 8-16.
In response to the ongoing coronavirus health crisis, Elvis Presley’s Graceland announced in a press release Thursday July 17th, that they would “significantly modify” Elvis Week 2020.
Held annually in August, Elvis Week commemorates the legacy of the King of Rock-and-Roll, drawing tourists to Memphis from across the globe. The week-long celebration culminates with the Candlelight Vigil, on the anniversary of the eve of Presley’s death on August 16, 1977. “The Candlelight Vigil on August 15 will be more limited than in past years, and will require free advanced reservations, but the longstanding tradition will carry on with a socially distanced fan procession to the Meditation Garden,” the statement reads.
Other modifications to the Elvis Week itinerary include “eliminating any potential high-risk activity” such as live performances or group parties, and the introduction of the first-ever Virtual Elvis Week, with attendees able to access a closed Facebook group for livestreams of Elvis Week 2020 content as well as curated archival content from previous Elvis Weeks.
George Klein will be honored at “The George Klein Tribute Show” on August 11th at 4 p.m. at Lafayette’s Music Room.
It’s fitting that Klein will be honored during “Elvis Week.” He and The King were close friends from the 1950s until Elvis’ death in 1977.
Klein, who died February 5th at the age of 83, was a radio and TV personality. He was a deejay, had his own TV shows, made personal appearances seemingly everywhere, and was in Elvis movies, including “Jailhouse Rock.”
Jerry Williams, a friend of Klein’s for 71 years, put the show together. “He’s a Memphis icon,” Williams says. “He deserves it.”
The lineup includes Carla Thomas, Joyce Cobb, Merrilee Rush, T. G. Sheppard, Ronnie McDowell, Kelly Laing, Wendy Moten, William Bell, Royal Blues Band, and Jason D. Williams. “I didn’t get one ‘no.’ When I would call them, literally every one of them had their stories about George and what he meant to their career – from playing their first record to putting them on the TV show. No conversation was without tears.”
Williams says he could have had 100 people perform, but he stopped at 10.
He specifically picked the date for the show. “It’s on August 11th, the first Sunday of Elvis Week. And, you remember, George always had his events on the first Sunday of Elvis Week. That was sort of George’s day.”
Klein did 37 “George Klein and the Elvis Mafia” shows and 42 “George Klein Christmas Charity Shows,” Williams says.
Williams met Klein in the spring of 1948 “because of the Memphis Chicks baseball team.”
Klein was 11 and Williams was 8. “When the Chicks would start spring practice for the season, we would make 30, 35 cents a day. We would shag balls. We were batboys. We got to know all the guys.”
Their friendship continued after Williams moved to California in 1964 to manage Paul Revere & the Raiders.
And it continued after Williams returned to Memphis. “I came back in ‘69 and built Trans Maximus (TMI) Studios. And from that we had TMI Records.”
TMI was a success. “We stayed on charts at TMI for seven years without coming off. Steve Cropper was in charge of production.”
They cut records for Poco and Charlie Rich, among others. They also cut Jeff Beck’s Going Down album, which was Beck’s signature album with the title song written by Don Nix.
Klein played those albums on his radio show, Williams said. “Absolutely. He played every one of them. George was fabulous about playing anybody local. Anything recorded by local artists and by international artists who recorded in Memphis.”
He and Klein would talk daily after Williams permanently moved back to Memphis in 1971, Williams says.
“Somebody asked me, ‘What do you miss most about George Klein?’ I said, ‘George Klein.’ The reason is very simple. He was always a what-you-see-what-you-get kind of guy. No airs to George Klein.”
Klein “didn’t really know he was important to the world-wide music industry. Did you know he was the first person with a live broadcast show to put an African-American on live in Memphis? Fats Domino.”
He also invited African-American couples to dance along with the white couples on his TV show, Williams says.
“George Klein was a special guy because he did things he thought were right at the time that the world thought was wrong. And he went across the grain.”
Williams will host the “The George Klein Tribute Show,” which will be a first for him. “This is not a wailing wall kind of thing. This is entertainment.”
And, he says, “This is not a sad occasion. This is 10 acts who loved George.”
Tickets to “The George Klein Tribute Show” are $50. VIP tickets, which includes a “swag bag,” are $100. Tickets may be purchased at Lafayette’s Music Room. For more information, call (901) 207-5097 or go to lafayettes.com/mwmphs/event-tickets/
An image from last Monday’s protest outside Graceland.
The group that organized last Monday’s protest outside Graceland, which aimed to raise awareness of police violence against black citizens, is threatening to pursue legal action against the city of Memphis for what they believe to be violations of the First Amendment and the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
The Coalition of Concerned Citizens planned the protest outside the annual Elvis Week candlelight vigil, but when they arrived, they were blocked from getting close to the vigil by concrete barriers and a heavy Memphis Police Department presence. Protesters (and some media covering the protest) were barred from entering the barricaded area, which meant some who’d parked on the other side of the barricade weren’t allowed to access their vehicles. A representative from Graceland was near the protest site, helping police determine who to let through and who to keep out.
Some at the protest said police appeared to be letting white citizens inside the barrier and keeping black citizens out.
The coalition also organized the massive protest in late July that resulted in the I-40 bridge being shut down for several hours.
The coalition released the following statement today:
“On this day, the Coalition of Concerned Citizens observed and documented repeated instances of Memphis Police Department officers willfully violating the laws they were sworn to uphold. MPD further aided and abetted the continued violations of citizens’ rights as instructed by Graceland Enterprises security officials.
Never did an official of Graceland or MPD offer a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason for not allowing entrance to a public event on a public US Highway. Despite the constant inquiry by Coalition members and other concerned citizens into the grounds and criteria on which citizens, overwhelmingly people of color, were being denied access; the only responses offered were threats of arrest and force.
The Coalition of Concerned Citizens finds the conduct of The City of Memphis, Graceland Enterprises and the Memphis Police Department troubling and reprehensible. The Coalition joins State Representative G.A. Hardaway in seeking a Justice Department investigation into the pattern and practice of the Memphis Police Department. The Coalition of Concerned Citizens holds that the Constitution must be equally applied to every citizen regardless of race, creed, color, religion or sexual identity. The Coalition has overwhelming evidence that this is currently not MPD practice as was demonstrated Monday evening, August 15, 2016.
We cannot stress enough the danger the citizens of Memphis are placed in when law enforcement officials disregard the law. Any time an entity decides to violate the very laws it was created to uphold; the safety of the public is at risk and the public trust in that entity is eroded.
It is the Coalition of Concerned Citizens’ observation that the City of Memphis, Memphis Police Department and Graceland Enterprises, collectively and with collaboration chose to ignore and violate the highest law of the land and rights protected under the Civil Rights Act.
Due to the outrageous and egregious conduct of the Memphis Police Department and Graceland Enterprises, the Coalition of Concerned Citizens is pursuing any and all legal and civil means to rectify and remedy this blatant disregard and violation of the Constitution and the rights and dignity of affected citizens.”
On Monday afternoon, the city released the following statement by chief legal officer Bruce McMullen: ““We are aware of the statement released by the Coalition of Concerned Citizens and their intentions, however, the city has no comment.”
“Joel Weinshanker [managing partner of Graceland, LLC] was thinking about how a cappella and Pitch Perfect have broken into the mainstream. He thought it would be a fun way to introduce Elvis’ music to a younger generation,” says Kelsey Kirkpatrick, explaining the genesis of the Elvis A Cappella: A Tribute to the King shows.
And so, Kirkpatrick was charged with making it happen. First things first was finding the best a cappella groups. To that end, she listened to a cappella albums and checked out the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella, which she describes as the March Madness of a cappella.
In the end, she went with five groups: Kentucky’s Acoustikats, Florida State University’s All-Night Yahtzee, James Madison University’s BluesTones, the Vanderbilt Melodores, and, from Memphis, OneVoice from Briarcrest.
Each group was given five songs, and each will perform three during two different shows to be held at Graceland’s Elvis Week main stage Thursday through Saturday.
“Each song is totally different,” Kirkpatrick says. “For some of the songs, the groups are keeping it true to the original. For some of the songs, some of the groups have reinvented it in a way — throwing in styles like blues and reggae. Or, they slow it down in parts in songs that were originally fast-paced.”
The groups will come together at the end to perform “Sweet Sweet Spirit.” The song was the closer to many Elvis concerts and was performed by his quartet.
“We thought that would be a really nice way to bring everybody together and have this nice moment at the end of the show that would speak to Elvis’ biggest fans,” Kirkpatrick says.
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Bianca Phillips 