Your first meeting with Elvis

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verbal gymnastics
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Your first meeting with Elvis

Post by verbal gymnastics »

What was your first meeting with Elvis like?

The first time I ever shook his hand was in 1999 at the Royal Albert Hall at the front of the stage, whilst the first time I actually chatted to him was at the Virgin Megastore in 2002 at the instore for the launch of When I Was Cruel. I then chatted to him after the Astoria show and have pestered him ever since.

As my work career has progressed, I have been able to follow him a lot more on tours than I used to. 8)

There's nothing exciting I can report except for his civility.

I always wanted to say hello but tales of Jake put me off, and also the transport network wasn't as good as it is now! With bands finishing at 11pm and trains home not being great, getting home took priority.
Who’s this kid with his mumbo jumbo?
IbMePdErRoIoAmL
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Re: Your first meeting with Elvis

Post by IbMePdErRoIoAmL »

Sorry to say I was late to the game as far as meeting Elvis after listening to him for 20 years. But...
My wife bought me one (1) ticket to see EC & The Imposters in Columbus, OH on the Fabulous Singing Songbook tour as a Father's Day gift. (She agreed to provide the drop-off & pick-up while I agreed to sink as many G&T's as possible given the opportunity.) The pre-show mix included the gospel tune "Just A Little Talk With Jesus" which was one of my own father's favorite songs & one with which we'd both had a connection even before his death. Given the situation & date, I had a good feeling.
I was stationed front row (GA club show) & had several hilarious visual interactions with Pete as the show went on. (Long R-rated story.) As Elvis left the stage, I saw Pete talking to a crew member & motioning in my direction. "Oh, boy," I thought, "here we go!" Rather than pluck me from the crowd to go party with the band, the roadie came up & handed me two (2) orange Dunlop guitar picks that EC had abandoned over the course of the show. Fair enough. Pretty cool. No complaints.
I head outside, call my wife to ask for a ride, go around the side of the club & light a cigarette. (I've since quit.) As I was drunkenly leaning against the exterior wall, I failed to notice a nondescript door immediately to my right. Suddenly, the door opens & who should pop their head out but Elvis. No one else around. I quickly told my wife, "Gotta go," & hung up.
We exchanged pleasantries & spent several uninterrupted minutes chatting, to the best of my memory, about Columbus (I avoided mentioning the Holiday Inn incident) & the differences between popcorn in the US & UK. (?!) He was very cordial & I was trying my best to keep my sh!t together considering my condition & the circumstances. He signed my ticket stub just as approx. 20 autograph/photograph seekers discovered us. We bid each other goodnight & I walked around to the front of the club as my wife pulled up. "How'd it go?" she asked. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you," was my reply.
Since that night I've met Elvis at least a dozen (12) times. He's always been very gracious & accommodating, but that first (1st) experience stands out in my mind.
(Please don't ask about the first (1st) time I met Richard Thompson. That was truly strange.)
EXCELSIOR!
Last edited by IbMePdErRoIoAmL on Thu Mar 30, 2017 9:22 am, edited 1 time in total.
Mr. Getgood
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Re: Your first meeting with Elvis

Post by Mr. Getgood »

Mine was at Leicester De Montfort Hall on the same tour as VG's first handshake, where I was in possession of tickets and backstage passes courtesy of the legendary Milo Lewis. I was with three friends from college who weren't really fans and I felt a bit guilty at exposing them to two and a half hours of the Lonely World tour, so acquiesced their request to have a quick round of beers and a couple of fags before we hit backstage. I was very nervous at the prospect of meeting E.C. so I expect a couple of hits of Dutch courage were readily welcomed. When we presented ourselves outside his dressing room, one of the venue staff (an elderly lady nonetheless) was very terse with us as our refreshment break had kept Elvis waiting (I had no idea he may have been expecting us!). My stomach was already in free-fall and, coupled with the fact that we may now have inadvertently p*ssed the great man off, nerves were through the roof as we walked into his dressing room. Elvis, however, was mid way through a political 'hind leg off a donkey' conversation with a short-haired female (who on reflection may have been Angela Eagle) as I just listened in awe wondering how on earth I might think of something suitably intellectual to be able to join in. Paddy (Elvis' security) seemed to sense our (my) nerves and put us at ease with some light-hearted conversation. The, the lady Elvis was with departed and we shuffled over where I managed to mumble out a request for an autograph. He was very obliging and welcoming. Afterwards I was on cloud nine and spent the rest of the evening texting various friends the details of my momentous meeting. For some reason, it didn't seem to hold the same reverence for them...
I love you just as much as I hate your guts.
Offshoreram
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Re: Your first meeting with Elvis

Post by Offshoreram »

I can't resist adding to this.

My first time seeing Elvis was on the Stiff Tour at Leicester University in 1978. We didn't have tickets as it sold out quickly but we hatched the great idea of going to the venue early and going to the students bar and hanging out long enough to be already inside the venue when the gig started. We arrived about 4pm and, as expected, the place was open to all comers. We went up to the bar took a place quietly in the corner and watched as the place filled up. I recall seeing Elvis come in to the bar as well as Ian Dury and Nick Lowe but we didn't approach anyone to avoid drawing attention to ourselves.

Around 7.30 we thought it time to make our way down to the main hall and left the bar at the same time as Ian Dury. He really seemed to be struggling with the stairs and we asked if we could give him a hand. I can recall him saying with a smile 'I can manage quite well, thank you lads'. He clung on to the hand rail and went slowly one step at a time with us following behind. At the bottom he said to us 'not bad for a raspberry' and made his was through a side door. Unfortunately at the door to the hall we we asked for our tickets and quickly shown the exit door. We made several attempts to get back in having failed to buy any spare tickets but were thwarted by the security such as it was. We struck up a bit of relationship with them and chatted with them as the night went on. Luckily we could hear everything played on stage and see bits through the open french doors as each band went on. Just as Elvis came on as that night's headliner, one of the door men came out and said we could go in as there was a bit of space at the back but not to tell anyone. So that became my first Elvis gig.

Six years later in 1983 I had become a die hard fan and I went to see him at the De Montfort Hall in Leicester on the Punch the Clock tour. At that time it seemed quite easy to get to the back stage area of the De Montfort Hall and I had done it several times meeting quite a few bands. So after the show we made our way through the double doors at the side of the balcony and ended up outside the dressing rooms. The area was quite busy and most had gathered in a single room that had food and drink laid out. Elvis came in having changed after the gig and I approached him. I just recall he was very easy going and chatted for a few minutes, or more likely listened while I babbled on. I told him I had waited six years to meet him and he signed to programme 'To the next six'. Luckily I got a photo of the event as there was no mobile phones with cameras then and you had to wait until it was developed to see if it comes out.

I've met him many times since over the year. Sometimes you get a proper chat, other times you are just a face in the crowd. There has been some recognition on a couple of occasions which is always nice. But the constant is he has always been very generous with his time. Restrictions seem to be set by others and not Elvis

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bronxapostle
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Re: Your first meeting with Elvis

Post by bronxapostle »

my first time...October 25, 1986 at the corner of 52nd Street and Broadway, about 7:00 p.m. the last night of COSTELLO SINGS AGAIN nyc. i was just hanging on the corner before entering, when the limo pulled up and E jumped out. About 20 or so others were there alongside me, perhaps in the know five nights later that THIS was his arrival time. He blew past nearly everyone declaring "I'VE GOT TO GET RIGHT INSIDE." yet, he shook one persons hand as he did so. YES, me! i'm trying to tally how many more times we have met and chatted since that night. 7, 8, 9??? i'll try to chronicle it all with the help of my archive notebooks. :D :D
terryhurley
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Re: Your first meeting with Elvis

Post by terryhurley »

1st October 1984. I had a ticket for the show at the Hammersmith Palais. The first of 5 shows each Monday in October 1984 at this iconic venue. By a complete co-incidence, I happened to be in London earlier that day for a work meeting. By the mid-afternoon I had left the meeting and got to the Palais. There was already a fan waiting outside and we chatted. We established that Elvis wasn’t there yet and together we wondered whether Elvis would simply just stroll down the road to the venue. Shortly after, Elvis did indeed do just that! He said hello, chatted for a few minutes and went in. I didn’t have a camera, pen or anything to capture the moment so I went back the following Monday hoping to meet him again. This time, EC came by car – it was slightly later in the day - and dashed straight in. The second time wasn’t wasted, however, as I did get the autographs of Pete, Steve, Bruce and Gary Barnacle!
sulky lad
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Re: Your first meeting with Elvis

Post by sulky lad »

I'd first met Elvis walking the streets of Cardiff with Cait before the 1989 solo show in St. David's Hall, but they were very absorbed and obviously not wanting to acknowledge anyone so I just nodded and walked past. My first contact with him was at Meltdown at the Royal Festival Hall in the glorious summer of 1995 when he came and sat next to me at Steve Nieve's solo piano show. I'd brought a few LPs to get signed and after I asked him to sign and he was really kind and gracious and said he had loads to rush to, being the musical director but he'd try and see me after the evening performance. I didn't get to see him unfortunately but I did meet Steve and a few of his family and friends and got him to sign my LPs of "Playboy" and "Keyboard Jungle" and his friends were all fascinated by the covers of the LPs, especially the very Bryan Ferry looking picture of "Playboy". The next meetings were those shared with V.G at the RAH in 1999 and then being a guest at Bradford and Glasgow where Steve got me backstage passes. At Bradford Elvis was engaged for a long time talking politics with an earnest Northern woman (who might again have been one of the Eagle twins) - when I thought I might have collared him all to myself ! and then a whole host of people were waiting backstage at the Glasgow show and I only really got to thank Steve for my tickets.
I also chatted to him after the Glasgow show in 2003 and talked about the effect North had had on me and he then quoted me in the Annie Nightingale interview on Radio 2 the next night which I heard on the radio driving back from the Newcastle gig which coincided with my birthday - I almost crashed !! My longest conversation with him was as he walked from the Symphony Hall, Birmingham at the end of the 2003 concerts and he was jaunty as he was obviously heading off to get married shortly afterwards. VG and I also had a long chat with him after the 2004 show in Bournemouth where the only words he'd uttered on stage where "Steve Nieve !!" and a brief thank you but he was really chatty and friendly to us both afterwards.
Despite all the rumours of belligerence and feisty attitudes in the early days of his career, I have always found him polite, interested in what you had to say about his music and extremely generous with his time with all his fans .
FAVEHOUR
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Re: Your first meeting with Elvis

Post by FAVEHOUR »

I flew to Nashville in January 1982 to see the Almost Blue/Almost 82 show at Opryland. After having a terrible seat at the Palladium for New Years Eve (though I was still blown away by the show), I had front row center for this one. The next day, waiting for my flight back at the Nashville airport, I noticed a long haired fellow on the pay phones in the hall. (Remember pay phones?). He sure looked a lot like John Mcfee, who was along for this short tour. Then I saw Elvis on the phone next to him. I went through my bag looking for something I could have Elvis autograph. I found a medium-sized yellow notepad. Next I did something really rude and went over to Elvis while he was on the phone! He sort of motioned for me to wait a minute and finished his call, then graciously signed my piece of paper. Elvis and the band sat in the waiting area for their plane for quite a while, and were friendly to everyone who walked up and said hello or asked for autographs.

Beginning in the mid 1980's, till about 1998, I got to go backstage quite a bit with friends who were bolder and better connected than I, and got to talk to and listen to Elvis for long stretches. He was always pleasant and fascinating. Signed things, let me take photos with him, posed for a photo with my date (who later became my wife), answered questions. Not so much interaction since then, but still always patient and friendly.


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Dr. Luther
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Re: Your first meeting with Elvis

Post by Dr. Luther »

FAVEHOUR wrote:...I flew to Nashville in January 1982 to see the Almost Blue/Almost 82 show at Opryland. After having a terrible seat at the Palladium for New Years Eve (though I was still blown away by the show), I had front row center for this one...
If there was an empty seat very close to yours, it was mine.

I had the ticket, and intended to fly from San Francisco for the show. At the last minute, my family talked me out of it.
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supplydavid
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Re: Your first meeting with Elvis

Post by supplydavid »

First Elvis meeting was with a group of fans for the January Newcastle City Hall show in 1979. The band shared beer and food and my memento is a signed paper plate, Pete's signature is a bit faded. Added a few meetings since most recently in Malmo but the best was Amoeba Records chatting about my 50th birthday and Newcastle's relegation a few weeks earlier and signed my "Sugarcane" album "sorry, happy 50th"
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