Is it January already? Then it must be time for an Elvis contest! Some Elvis tribute artists love em and some won’t go near one, but I think they are a lot of fun whether you win or lose. It is a chance to see plenty of interpretations of Elvis and an opportunity to meet some die-hard Elvis fans.
The first time I ever put on a (borrowed) jumpsuit, it was for a contest back in January of 2003. Man, was I nervous. The contestants got to sing with a live band, which I had never done before. The contest was held in a little restaurant in Addison, Texas called the Baja Grill. I figured it would be about 50 people or so in attendance since it was a weeknight. Wrong! I arrived 2 hours before the contest started and there were already around 300 packed in there and the local news stations were setting up their communications vans in the parking lot.
When it was my turn to sing Teddy Bear and then Heartbreak Hotel, I had the highest level of nervousness I’ve ever experienced in my life. It was kind of funny because my hand was shaking so bad that I could barely keep the microphone in front of my mouth. But I got through it…and I didn’t win. That was ok, I was happy that I survived.
I tried another contest later that year, at the “old” Hard Rock Cafe in Dallas. It was a huge event with about 2 dozen contestants…yeah, I didn’t win that one either.
Eventually I got better and started getting past the first round of eliminations and finally even won a few contests here and there.
To this day, I can’t say with any certainty what the judging criteria seems to be from event to event. I have seen guys that should never be allowed to pick up a microphone do very well with the judges and others that gave knockout performances that didn’t even get past the first round. So, I usually try to go in with the attitude that we’re all just here to have fun, regardless of the outcome. I have seen a few people throw a little bit of a fit when they didn’t win, which was also entertaining now that I think of it.
The contests that I am aware of this time around are:
January 7th, 2010 at Dick’s Last Resort (Dallas)…open to anyone
January 8th, 2010 at the Glass Cactus (Grapevine)…amateur performers only
January 13th, 2010 at El Ranchito (Oak Cliff) …open to anyone
I’ll be entering the Dick’s Last Resort contest and the El Ranchito contest. The one at El Ranchito should be a real treat because one of the original Elvis impersonators, Johnny Harra, is scheduled to put on a show the night of the contest. I last saw Johnny perform in 1984, so…it’s been awhile.
Las Vegas and Memphis are hosting the national events right now during Elvis week, but I imagine just about every city has an Elvis contest or event going on over the next few days. Check one out if you get the chance, even if you don’t sing, you may have a shot at winning the jelly donut eating contest.
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