Period: April 2012

 

35 years after his death, Elvis Presley remains one of the greatest icons in popular culture. With more than 1 billion records sold he remains the all-time best selling solo artist, and his albums still continue to sell in significant quantities. His movies and concerts have been reissued numerous times on DVD. His home Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee is visited by 600.000 tourists annually, and the new Circus Du Soleil production 'Viva Elvis' is doing brisk business in Las Vegas.

Following three wildly successful Europe tours in '09, '10 and '11, the topnotch theater production 'THE ORIGINAL ELVIS TRIBUTE' (USA) will be returning for shows in April '12. One of the things that makes this show stand out from the others is that it features several musicians and singers who actually worked with Elvis. At present this is the only touring Elvis tribute show worldwide that features his original musicians!

We are very proud to have BOBBY WOOD from the 'American Sound Studios' band with us on keyboard. Mr. Wood is one of the most accomplished keyboard players in the music industry, and he has worked with many great artists like Neil Diamond, Garth Brooks and Dusty Springfield. Wood played on Elvis' legendary Memphis '69 sessions which resulted in Presley's comeback album "From Elvis In Memphis", as well as Elvis' biggest hits like "In The Ghetto" and "Suspicious Minds". Mr. Wood is currently working on his autobiography, "From Elvis To Garth".

Elvis' bassplayer DUKE BARDWELL did 181 shows together with Elvis, and also worked in the studio with him. With his Southern charm and his skillful playing, he's a tremendous asset to our show. Duke was very popular in our previous Euro tours, and we're glad to have him back in the show. A high profile documentary on his association with Elvis is currently in production.

Another nice scoop is the fact that Elvis' backing-vocalists GINGER and MARY HOLLADAY will be joining the band in Europe for the first time ever. The Holladay sisters were amongst the leading female backing vocalists in the 60s and 70s, and their powerful voices are featured on countless hits & classics. Elvis loved their voices, and he always made sure that Felton would use the Holladays for his recording sessions. Ginger and Mary can be heard on hit-singles like 'Suspicious Minds', 'In The Ghetto', 'The Wonder Of You' and 'You Don't Have To Say You Love Me', as well as on 16 original albums like 'From Elvis In Memphis', 'That's The Way It Is', 'Elvis Country' and the Grammy award-winning 'He Touched Me'.

We're also pleased to announce that Mr. JEROME 'STUMP' MONROE will be back on drums. Stump was the drummer for The Sweet Inspirations, and therefore he was part of the Elvis Presley Show touring from the first 1969 Las Vegas concerts through to the very end in 1977. When regular drummer Ronnie Tutt was ill or absent, Stump stood in as the replacement with the TCB Band on a number of occasions over those years. Stump played the drums behind Elvis in Philadelphia in 1971, in Las Vegas in December 1975 and finally in Madison, WI on June 24th 1977. This show has just been released, and therefore there has been quite a bit of interest in Stump lately. Elvis mentions Stump several times during the concert, and even says at one point: 'Leave the driving to Stump!'.

Leadsinger for our show is one of the world's finest Elvis tribute artists, ROBERT WASHINGTON. His voice and his magnetic stage presence are uncannily close to 'the real thing', even though he does not attempt to impersonate Elvis. Washington has won numerous awards with his dynamite performances, including "The World's Greatest Elvis" in Memphis. Even Elvis' own family and friends have praised him ("When I closed my eyes, I was amazed! Robert Washington sounded the closest to Elvis I have ever heard" - Sam Thompson, Elvis' bodyguard).

On lead guitar we will have the highly talented CARL BRADYCHOK from Detroit, Michigan. Despite his very young age, he is a widely respected roots music guitarist who's regarded by many in the music industry as a remarkable talent. Carl started recording, writing, and playing around the Detroit area at the age of 10, and released his first solo album at the age of 13 ("Children At Play"). Carl is also the regular guitarist for rock & roll legend Jack Scott. With Carl now joining us, the age difference between the youngest person on stage and the oldest will be 50 years… A nice tribute to the timelessness of Elvis' music.

THE ORIGINAL ELVIS TRIBUTE 2012 is a one-of-a-kind celebration of The King's music, as
performed by those who stood next to him when he shook the world. All his greatest songs are there, including "Suspicious Minds", "All Shook Up" and "Burning Love", all performed with fire and great authenticity. This is the one Elvis show that you can't afford to miss!