We finally managed to take in the Penticton Elvis Festival.
And what a hoot it was, buzzing with people and heated with the best sunshine of summer so far. Only a slight breeze off of Okanagan Lake kept us cool enough to sit there for hours.
That was not the only event in Penticton last weekend. The classic car extravaganza filled the streets with its 1950s and earlier refurbished vehicles. Most of them gleamed with polish, and later as we walked by in the dark, they glistened in the lights.
But we were there to view the would-be Elvises and listen to their versions of the “King of Rock and Roll’s” many hit songs of a bygone era. In the past, we had attended a few Elvis tributes in various locales. And so we were curious as to how the 31 performers would stack up against the Elvis image and the Elvis songs we knew.
Our Penticton friends had been to the Elvis Fest before, so they knew to take lawn chairs for the all-day sit, watch, and listen session. They also knew that hats and bottled water were necessary, and with a blazing sun in a cloudless sky, we were glad they had prepared us.
We positioned ourselves on a green lawn about 15 rows from the stage and were immersed in Elvises — an Elvis from Arkansas, an Elvis from Winnipeg, an Elvis from Seattle, and so on.
All of them had the costumes, be it the early black leather outfits or the later elegant white or pale-blue jumpsuits with the wide belt. Some of them had the full black hair swept up and back in the duck-cut of the late 1950s. A few of them had Elvis’s voice down to perfection, while others were a little off, like bad wine.
Early on, I heard the expression “the E.T.A.s”, and I wondered why we were being told about “the estimated time of arrival.” Listening more carefully, I discovered that “E.T.A.” was the abbreviation for “Elvis Tribute Artist.” It turned out that a number of them were professionals who toured performing Elvis-type routines. Others were rank amateurs who simply loved dressing up and enjoyed singing the King’s songs.
Late on Saturday afternoon, after each performer had sung two of Elvis’s songs, the judges announced who would move on to the finals on Sunday afternoon. Seven professionals and seven non-pros were selected and paraded upon the stage. Of the 31 original singers, 14 were left to carry on and try to be the number one Elvis Tribute Artist. Our choices were among those 14.
Saturday evening we had tickets to an Elvis extravaganza with two highly ranked performers from elsewhere on stage to wow us. And wow us they did. For three hours in the Penticton Auditorium, we cheered as two incredible performers took us on a musical tour from the early That’s All Right, Mama to Kentucky Rain.
The better of these two performers was 24 year old Cody Ray Slaughter from Harrison, Ark. Cody is a nearly perfect look-alike for Elvis. Along with the spitting image of the King is his nearly perfect Elvis-voice with all the highs and lows Elvis was capable of. Cody makes a good living performing as an Elvis tribute artist, and in 2011 he won the “Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist” award in Memphis.
On Sunday, after the final judging of this year’s performers, a fan favourite in the Penticton Fest for many years, one Corny Rempel from Steinbach, Man., won it all. He will proceed to the World Championship featuring Elvis tribute artists later this year in Memphis.
