The Night I Met Taylor Swift

It was right out of a Tim McGraw song:

When I saw her for the first time

She was standing there in the ticket line

And it all started right then and there

Oh, a sailer’s sky made a perfect sunset

And that’s the day I’ll never forget...

But this time it was me The Nashville Elvis, and the girl wasn't in a mini-skirt, but she was in a ticket line at the Green Hills Theater in Nashville. She may have had red lipstick, but I didn't notice. But I did notice she must have been 6" tall!

The theater had hired me to perform July 29, 2010 at the one-night-only "Elvis on Tour" movie. Hundreds of Elvis fans came out that night to see the movie.  Lots of ladies in their Elvis shirts and holding their Elvis purses took pictures with me before the show.

I would sing a few songs and poise for photos, and Buffie my wife was there because it was her birthday. What a great wife I have who was willing to share her birthday on a work night for me. As she was busy handing out flyers about me, I noticed she suddenly started making strange eye movements. I couldn't understand what she was trying to tell me.

I Just Give 'Em Away

Two things that endears me to Elvis are his spiritual roots and love of people. Elvis made a lot of mistakes in his life. But I have too. I choose, like many fans, to focus on the good things in his life and the many lives he touched and still touches through his music.

Because of Elvis' love of gospel music, he had the opportunity to sing with many popular gospel groups in his day. One of those groups was The Imperials. I had the privelege of meeting one of the group's members, Joe Moscheo.

Joe is an incredibly talented singer and author in his own right who recently wrote a book called, "The Gospel Side of Elvis". It was also made into a PBS documentary with the same title. I highly recommend the book and the movie because it shows Elvis in a whole new light and just how much he searched for the Lord and found peace in the music.

One of the funniest stories in Joe's book that I often tell at my shows is the time Elvis bought gold watches for every member of The Imperials. This wasn't just your average gold watch. Elvis never did anything average. These watches were valued at probably $5,000 a piece. And that was in 1969!

Well Joe graciouslly accepted his expensive watch and examined it closely. He couldn't help but notice it wasn't working. Everyone else's in the group worked but Joe's. Now Joe was in a dilema. Should he say anything about it to Elvis or just let it go?

An Indian Outlaw Came to My Door

Like many professional entertainers in Nashville, I had my share of part-time jobs until Elvis came along and I could work full time at a career I loved.

One of my many jobs involved being a doorman at the beautiful Opryland Hotel. It was there that I met lots of celebrities. Most were incredibly nice and only a couple were divas, thank goodness. I hate it when my bubble is burst by a famous person I admire acting like they are high falutin'. Only Jesus had that right and he didn't take it.

Anyway, as I was standing my post at the Magnolia Lobby up comes a very young Tim McGraw. This was Tim before Faith Hill, before 21 #1 hit songs, before 40+ awards, and before he became a big screen movie star.

The Tim I met was humble and a bit shy. He wasn't the confident country heart throb he is today. He had just released "Indian Outlaw" written by my buddy Tommy Barnes. It is still one of my favorite songs because of its great music and lyrics, especially the part about "In nothin' but my buffalo briefs, I got 'em standin' in line." Love that!

Love Those Red Hat Ladies

Last Fall I had the privilege of performing at the Southern Fried Festival in Columbia, TN. That is where I was introduced to the funnest group of women I have ever met.

These beautiful ladies, all over the age of 50, had one thing in common. They all had a zest for life! And the second thing they had in common was that they were all wearing red hats of all shapes, sizes and styles, along with red and purple attire.  They were flashier than Elvis! I loved those women because they were just like me.

"The Red Hat Society began as a result of a few women deciding to greet middle age with verve, humor and elan. We believe silliness is the comedy relief of life, and since we are all in it together, we might as well join red-gloved hands and go for the gusto together. Underneath the frivolity, we share a bond of affection, forged by common life experiences and a genuine enthusiasm for wherever life takes us next." - Sue Ellen Cooper, Queen Mother, Red Hat Society

They were fun and zany. But they weren't crazy.

Ray Walker & The Jordanaires - How Great Thou Art

Ray Walker of the legendary Jordainaires is one of the most generous men I know. He gives of his time whenever I've called him about Elvis trivia for my movie and enjoys setting the record straight about his good friend Elvis.

He is also a straight shooter and will tell you like it is. I think that is one of the reason Elvis liked Ray so much. Elvis was first introduced to the gospel group, The Jordainaires, when he was playing a show with Eddy Arnold in Memphis in 1955. 

After they sang "Peace In The Valley", a very young and unknown Elvis came backstage to meet them.  Elvis had just signed a deal with Sun Records at the time. His admiration for the group was so great because of listening to them for years on the Grand Ole Opry that he said, "If I ever get a recording contract with a major company, I want you guys to back me up."


True to his word, in 1956 when Elvis began recording with RCA he asked Chet Atkins to use the Jordainaires. He was the first artist to insist listing the backup singers on the labels of his records. This gave the Jordainaires a lot of notoriety.

They went on to record with Elvis for 15 years on his long string of hit records. They also appeared in some of Elvis's movies, and on many of his television appearances.

Ray Walker later joined the group in 1958. When Ray first met Elvis he put his hand out and said, "I'm Elvis Presley." Ray said, "I know who you are. I'm Ray Walker". To which Elvis replied, "And I know who you are."

The Original Dancing With the Stars

My late Uncle Jack Kenner was the original dancing with the stars professional dancer. In the 1960's when Elvis was busy in Hollywood filming movies, Priscilla Presley found herself with a lot of free time on her hands.

To help combat her boredom, she sought out my Uncle Jack to teach her how to ball room dance. Jack was very well know in the Memphis area as a terrific dance coach. Because of her natural talent and previous ballet experience as a young girl, Priscilla became a terrific dancer.

That is why when I saw her on ABC's "Dancing with the Stars", I knew she would be great. I was so proud how she overcame her nerves and showed the world that beautiful dance does not see age.

It is a personal expression in each one of us. Elvis became famous for his dance moves too. Elvis' Jailhouse Rock dance segment from the movie is legendary and considered by most to be the first music video. That was more than 20 years before anyone ever heard of MTV.

But to the Christian community, he was vulgar and a dangerous influence to teenagers. The Catholic weekly paper, "America", published "Beware Elvis Presley," an article calling his hip-shaking, "nauseating stuff ... not only suggestive, but downright obscene."

She's a Little Bit Country & I'm a Little Bit Rock-n-Roll

My big first crush after my 5th grade teacher was when I was 15 years old. Her family name was synonymous with all that was good to me. Her stage name was Marie Osmond. I say stage because her full name was Olive Marie Osmond named after her incredible mother.

Growing up just outside Detroit in Warren, Michigan I remember spending my Friday nights with Marie. That is I watched Marie religiously along with her brother Donny on the "Donny & Marie" show.


I was attracted to her sweet spirit and her sense of humor. And she met all my physical characteristics of beauty - brown hair and brown eyes. Plus she could sing! She was truly America's sweetheart at that time.

I'd spend hours in front of my bedroom mirror with a hairbrush singing "Puppy Love" or "Go Away Little Girl" as I dreamt of being Donny Osmond. Actually, I grew so in love with Marie that I wanted to marry her. So I couldn't exactly be her brother when you think about it.

As the years went by, my love for Marie continued. After I graduated from high school and went on to Michigan Christian College, I felt I strong desire to let Marie in on my plans.
In my young mind, I thought if I only could get to Utah and profess my love for her, she would want to marry me. So that is what I did, I packed up everything and moved to Provo, Utah.