By ALLEN ARRICK
Staff Writer (The Tyler Paper.com)
There’s an old saying that humans are biologically classified into two distinct groups: Beatles people and Elvis people.
The T.G. Field Auditorium in Longview was packed to the brim June 23 with the latter for the first-ever “Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Contest” sanctioned by the Elvis estate in Memphis.
The winner from the contest will go on to Memphis during Elvis week in the fall to compete to be the “Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist” (emphasis on “Ultimate”).
“Most of (the tribute artists) grew up listening to Elvis,” said event coordinator Carol Shahin of Jacksonville. “They love him so much that they want to pay the best tribute they know how to an icon in their eyes. They take it very seriously. They purchase high dollar replica jumpsuits. You will not see any Halloween-type costumes.”
Perhaps the contest, the only one of its kind in Texas, created more questions about Elvis’ legacy than it attempted to answer.
What compels people to spend several thousand dollars on a jumpsuit?
What is it in estrogen that makes women of all ages magnetically attracted to slick, sparkly, rhinestone-incrusted, jumpsuit-wearing, mutton-chopped men who simply look, act and sing like Elvis?
And perhaps most important: Why Elvis? Why are we here 30 years after his death watching grown men sport hair-do’s they would never wear normally, and wear clothes that would only look good on someone trying to look like Elvis?
Why don’t we have “Ultimate Johnny Cash Tribute Artists” or “Ultimate Roy Orbison Tribute Artists” complete with horn-rimmed specs?
These questions and more lead backstage at the contest, where a surreal atmosphere of multiple Elvis look-a-likes roamed around, waiting to get strapped into their jumpsuits to sing for the crowd.
Some hummed tunes to themselves to prepare, some posed for pictures with fans.
ELVI’S UP CLOSE
A young-looking Nathan Belt, a Grapevine resident, was there with his wife (his very dedicated and understanding wife).
Belt wasn’t anywhere near ready to perform. His hair was done, but he was in shorts and a gray T-shirt.
Growing up, Belt was always told he sounded like Elvis.
“There’s only one Elvis,” he said. “There’s been no one since then that had that charisma.”
Charisma, a word just about every Elvis tribute artist uses as a blanket statement to define Elvis’ character.
Charisma is too vague. Mussolini had charisma, and no one has “Ultimate Mussolini Tribute Dictator” contests.
But then Belt dropped the bomb.
“There wouldn’t be the Beatles if there wasn’t Elvis Presley,” he said.
Belt seems to be the exception to the rule about Beatles/Elvis people.
His wife, who has accompanied him on his performances since their marriage began, is very supportive of her husband’s passion.
“When I met him, he was a singer-songwriter in Nashville,” Jeanice Belt said. “He didn’t tell me until later about being an Elvis tribute artist.”
One can imagine that conversation.
His wife helped him climb into his $3,000 white rhinestone jumpsuit before taking the stage. The suit was donated by a “very generous” friend, he said.
“She believes in me,” Belt said.
He sings gospel music at his church, and said Elvis’ gospel roots are one of the many reasons he loves the king.
(For the sanctuary, Belt leaves his jumpsuit at home.)
Try telling any one of the Tribute Artists they are “Elvis impersonators,” and you get looks that could kill.
“A tribute artist is someone who really puts his heart and his money into it,” Belt said. “It’s not a parody.”
Similar convictions were shared between the Elvi’s.
Richard Cook, a Shreveport resident and longtime Elvis tribute artist, said he started “being Elvis” in front of a mirror when he was 4 years old.
“I started in front of people when I was 14,” Cook said.
Cook said he’s drawn to Elvis because “The King” never forgot where he came from.
A good friend of Cook said he’s the real deal.
“This is him all the time, the way he acts now,” Angie Lafisca said. “He’s always (Elvis) 24 hours a day ... he believes it so much he makes me believe.”
CROONIN’, GROOVIN’
When the lights dimmed and the first performer came on stage, the audience lit up with excitement.
Packs of women and girls flocked to the front of the stage to grab one of many silky scarves discarded by the artists.
On a side note, the artists were ranked according to looks, stage presence, singing ability and other things. What basketball coaches call the “intangibles,” — the stuff that doesn’t show up on a stat-sheet — the way Shaqille O’Neal intimidates when he has the ball.
The winner of this contest could dunk on anybody — at least anybody with a pompadour.
To get people to speak of the intangibles was not an easy task.
Some women focused strictly on what they described as the handsome factor.
“It takes us back to a better time in life,” Barbara Peterson said. “And don’t get us started on the looks.”
“When he sings, it feels like he’s singing to you,” an excited Diane Rose said.
But can that really sum up Elvis’ legacy — a few nice ladies contemplating Elvis’ era, as well as his other, um, attributes?
Meanwhile backstage, the second half of the performances were about to get under way while an Elvis tribute artist was belting out some vocal chords in his dressing room.
“Gotta’ get loosened up for those high notes, man.”
BIG WINNER
Some of the Elvis artists stood out. One in particular was Trent Carlini, a Vegas showman.
Carlini emigrated to the U.S. from Italy, and he quickly became a rock and roll fan.
Put aside the long biography which includes an appearance on the “Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” and you get a guy who looks identical to the king.
Carlini’s pearly whites show through his Elvis-esque smirk, complemented by perfectly dangling bangs.
He walked around backstage like a force. One imagines that people look at him as if they had seen the ghost of Elvis.
(We would hope that our ghosts would look like we did in our prime, which is what Carlini achieves: Elvis in his prime)
Backstage before the show, a strange conversation happened between one of the security officers and the tribute artists.
“Is there an Elvis back here named Trent?” the guard asked.
“Trent’s not here yet,” the emcee said.
“There’s some women out front who want to meet him.”
“None of the Elvises are available out front right now.”
Thirty years after the death of Elvis, a man who presented himself as a mere figment of “The King,” was attracting women in droves.
In 1990, Carlini was chosen by the Global Records Star Search in Dallas as “Entertainer With The Most King-Like Charisma.”
There’s that word again.
Needless to say, Carlini took the show — he won the competition and will go on to the final round in Memphis in the fall. His intangibles showed through, even if they’re hard to name.
But that’s as good as it’s going to get. Maybe “charisma” is the only word to describe Elvis.
“They have to have a little bit of it all, the charisma, the charm, the stage presence, how they deal with the crowd,” Mrs. Shahin, the event coordinator, said.
That’s how Elvis can be summed up: Charisma of a benevolent dictator, presence of Shaq and the, well, physical assets, of Elvis.
Leaving the auditorium, a lady said, “I told you the guy from Vegas was going to win.”
She said he looks a lot like young Elvis, but he’s still far from the real thing.
Maybe the ladies were referring to something Carlini was missing – something indescribable.
Perhaps the only word to describe Elvis is “Elvis.” The jailhouse rocker is his own universal language in American culture.
And that’s why he’s so broadly appealing. We just don’t need words.
Allen Arrick, a summer intern at the Tyler Courier-Times—Telegraph, offers his personal reflections on the Elvis phenomenon.
Source : tylerpaper.com
Staff Writer (The Tyler Paper.com)
There’s an old saying that humans are biologically classified into two distinct groups: Beatles people and Elvis people.
The T.G. Field Auditorium in Longview was packed to the brim June 23 with the latter for the first-ever “Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Contest” sanctioned by the Elvis estate in Memphis.
The winner from the contest will go on to Memphis during Elvis week in the fall to compete to be the “Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist” (emphasis on “Ultimate”).
“Most of (the tribute artists) grew up listening to Elvis,” said event coordinator Carol Shahin of Jacksonville. “They love him so much that they want to pay the best tribute they know how to an icon in their eyes. They take it very seriously. They purchase high dollar replica jumpsuits. You will not see any Halloween-type costumes.”
Perhaps the contest, the only one of its kind in Texas, created more questions about Elvis’ legacy than it attempted to answer.
What compels people to spend several thousand dollars on a jumpsuit?
What is it in estrogen that makes women of all ages magnetically attracted to slick, sparkly, rhinestone-incrusted, jumpsuit-wearing, mutton-chopped men who simply look, act and sing like Elvis?
And perhaps most important: Why Elvis? Why are we here 30 years after his death watching grown men sport hair-do’s they would never wear normally, and wear clothes that would only look good on someone trying to look like Elvis?
Why don’t we have “Ultimate Johnny Cash Tribute Artists” or “Ultimate Roy Orbison Tribute Artists” complete with horn-rimmed specs?
These questions and more lead backstage at the contest, where a surreal atmosphere of multiple Elvis look-a-likes roamed around, waiting to get strapped into their jumpsuits to sing for the crowd.
Some hummed tunes to themselves to prepare, some posed for pictures with fans.
ELVI’S UP CLOSE
A young-looking Nathan Belt, a Grapevine resident, was there with his wife (his very dedicated and understanding wife).
Belt wasn’t anywhere near ready to perform. His hair was done, but he was in shorts and a gray T-shirt.
Growing up, Belt was always told he sounded like Elvis.
“There’s only one Elvis,” he said. “There’s been no one since then that had that charisma.”
Charisma, a word just about every Elvis tribute artist uses as a blanket statement to define Elvis’ character.
Charisma is too vague. Mussolini had charisma, and no one has “Ultimate Mussolini Tribute Dictator” contests.
But then Belt dropped the bomb.
“There wouldn’t be the Beatles if there wasn’t Elvis Presley,” he said.
Belt seems to be the exception to the rule about Beatles/Elvis people.
His wife, who has accompanied him on his performances since their marriage began, is very supportive of her husband’s passion.
“When I met him, he was a singer-songwriter in Nashville,” Jeanice Belt said. “He didn’t tell me until later about being an Elvis tribute artist.”
One can imagine that conversation.
His wife helped him climb into his $3,000 white rhinestone jumpsuit before taking the stage. The suit was donated by a “very generous” friend, he said.
“She believes in me,” Belt said.
He sings gospel music at his church, and said Elvis’ gospel roots are one of the many reasons he loves the king.
(For the sanctuary, Belt leaves his jumpsuit at home.)
Try telling any one of the Tribute Artists they are “Elvis impersonators,” and you get looks that could kill.
“A tribute artist is someone who really puts his heart and his money into it,” Belt said. “It’s not a parody.”
Similar convictions were shared between the Elvi’s.
Richard Cook, a Shreveport resident and longtime Elvis tribute artist, said he started “being Elvis” in front of a mirror when he was 4 years old.
“I started in front of people when I was 14,” Cook said.
Cook said he’s drawn to Elvis because “The King” never forgot where he came from.
A good friend of Cook said he’s the real deal.
“This is him all the time, the way he acts now,” Angie Lafisca said. “He’s always (Elvis) 24 hours a day ... he believes it so much he makes me believe.”
CROONIN’, GROOVIN’
When the lights dimmed and the first performer came on stage, the audience lit up with excitement.
Packs of women and girls flocked to the front of the stage to grab one of many silky scarves discarded by the artists.
On a side note, the artists were ranked according to looks, stage presence, singing ability and other things. What basketball coaches call the “intangibles,” — the stuff that doesn’t show up on a stat-sheet — the way Shaqille O’Neal intimidates when he has the ball.
The winner of this contest could dunk on anybody — at least anybody with a pompadour.
To get people to speak of the intangibles was not an easy task.
Some women focused strictly on what they described as the handsome factor.
“It takes us back to a better time in life,” Barbara Peterson said. “And don’t get us started on the looks.”
“When he sings, it feels like he’s singing to you,” an excited Diane Rose said.
But can that really sum up Elvis’ legacy — a few nice ladies contemplating Elvis’ era, as well as his other, um, attributes?
Meanwhile backstage, the second half of the performances were about to get under way while an Elvis tribute artist was belting out some vocal chords in his dressing room.
“Gotta’ get loosened up for those high notes, man.”
BIG WINNER
Some of the Elvis artists stood out. One in particular was Trent Carlini, a Vegas showman.
Carlini emigrated to the U.S. from Italy, and he quickly became a rock and roll fan.
Put aside the long biography which includes an appearance on the “Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” and you get a guy who looks identical to the king.
Carlini’s pearly whites show through his Elvis-esque smirk, complemented by perfectly dangling bangs.
He walked around backstage like a force. One imagines that people look at him as if they had seen the ghost of Elvis.
(We would hope that our ghosts would look like we did in our prime, which is what Carlini achieves: Elvis in his prime)
Backstage before the show, a strange conversation happened between one of the security officers and the tribute artists.
“Is there an Elvis back here named Trent?” the guard asked.
“Trent’s not here yet,” the emcee said.
“There’s some women out front who want to meet him.”
“None of the Elvises are available out front right now.”
Thirty years after the death of Elvis, a man who presented himself as a mere figment of “The King,” was attracting women in droves.
In 1990, Carlini was chosen by the Global Records Star Search in Dallas as “Entertainer With The Most King-Like Charisma.”
There’s that word again.
Needless to say, Carlini took the show — he won the competition and will go on to the final round in Memphis in the fall. His intangibles showed through, even if they’re hard to name.
But that’s as good as it’s going to get. Maybe “charisma” is the only word to describe Elvis.
“They have to have a little bit of it all, the charisma, the charm, the stage presence, how they deal with the crowd,” Mrs. Shahin, the event coordinator, said.
That’s how Elvis can be summed up: Charisma of a benevolent dictator, presence of Shaq and the, well, physical assets, of Elvis.
Leaving the auditorium, a lady said, “I told you the guy from Vegas was going to win.”
She said he looks a lot like young Elvis, but he’s still far from the real thing.
Maybe the ladies were referring to something Carlini was missing – something indescribable.
Perhaps the only word to describe Elvis is “Elvis.” The jailhouse rocker is his own universal language in American culture.
And that’s why he’s so broadly appealing. We just don’t need words.
Allen Arrick, a summer intern at the Tyler Courier-Times—Telegraph, offers his personal reflections on the Elvis phenomenon.
Source : tylerpaper.com
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