Elvis & gospel - Stamps, tribute artist to perform
You don’t have to tell Charles Stone that coming up with a novel idea is tough. You’d be singing to the choir.
But Stone stumbled upon something different enough you may want to break out the blue suede shoes for it — a gospel concert featuring the Stamps Gospel Quartet with Elvis Presley tribute artist Kraig Parker. The Stamps sang backup vocals for The King of Rock ’n’ Roll in the 1970s.
“I learned something when I was putting it together I was talking to Dwayne (Jackson, executive producer at the Wichita Theatre) and he said the Stamps were going to be in the area and were looking for a pickup date. So I called Ed Enoch (leader of the Stamps) and said, ‘You know the guy in Wichita Falls is thinking about putting Kraig in a show with you.’
“Ed said, ‘Charles, we never ever, since Elvis died, have done a show with an Elvis tribute artist ... So I told Dwayne, ‘Let’s do it, because it’s never been done.’ ’”
And so it’ll be the first time the Stamps will star in their own show with Elvis helping them to lift spirits in the 1908 Wichita Theatre — or at least, the next best thing to Elvis, Kraig Parker.
The concert is headed to the theater 3 p.m. June 26.
“It’s the first time they (the Stamps) have done a true gospel show with the Stamps being the featured artist ... They have performed backup for him (Parker) through the years,” said Jackson.
The first set in the show will spotlight the Stamps, while Parker will join the show in the second half.
One thing about the concert fans should know is this isn’t a rock show, so “Jailhouse Rock” and “Hound Dog” won’t be on the set list.
“This one is going to be all gospel,” said Stone, a Wichita Falls High School graduate who manages Parker and was the tour producer for the real Elvis Presley in the 1970s.
Before the show, Stone said he and Enoch will go on stage and tell a few Elvis stories to the crowd, including stories of late-night gospel-singing sessions, of which there were quite few.
Stone said one fact fans might not know about Elvis is that the Grammys he won while he was alive weren’t for his rock songs but for his gospel music. He received Grammys for Best Sacred Performance in 1967 for the “How Great thou Art” album and Best Inspirational Performance in 1972 for the “He Touched Me” album.
Parker is a well-known Elvis tribute artist who is one of the few such artists to be invited to Graceland, thanks to Stone’s connections, and has performed not only in the U.S. but overseas, as well.
His last concert here was for a near sold-out show at Memorial Auditorium in January for an Elvis birthday concert.
The Stamps Quartet, meanwhile, is the oldest professional gospel quartet. The group was formed 86 years ago. Enoch, a 1997 inductee into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame, has been with the Stamps for four decades and is the one remaining member of the current Stamps lineup who actually performed with Elvis. The Stamps started performing with The King in 1971, remaining with him until his death in 1977.
Stone has high hopes for the Stamps concert with Kraig Parker. As it is now, the Wichita Theatre concert is the only one scheduled for this particular show.
“We’re going to see what kind of reaction we’re going to get,” said Stone. “... But it should be one heck of a show.”
IF YOU GO What: The Stamps Gospel Quartet in concert with special guest Elvis Presley tribute artist Kraig Parker Where: Wichita Theatre, 10th and Indiana, downtown When: 3 p.m. June 26 Tickets: $17, $19 and $22 ($2 ticket handling fee will be added) Information: 940-723-9037 or www.wichitatheatre.com
The Wichita Theatre will present a first-ever gospel concert featuring The Stamps Gospel Quartet with special guest artist Kraig Parker, an Elvis Presley tribute artist who last performed here in January at Memorial Auditorium for a near sellout Elvis birthday concert. The Stamps sang background vocals for the real Elvis from 1971 to 1977.
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Sun Jun 06, 2010 10:55 am
