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Josiah Miller
Josiah Miller

Elvis - If That Isn't Love [VERIFIED]



And if that isn't loveThen the ocean is dryThere's no stars in the skyAnd the little sparrows can't flyYeah if that isn't loveThen heaven's a mythThere's no feeling like thisIf that isn't love




Elvis - If That Isn't Love



And if that isn't loveThen the ocean is dryThere's no stars in the skyAnd the little sparrows can't flyYeah if that isn't loveThen heaven's a mythThere's no feeling like thisIf that isn't love It's got to be love


No one could have known it at the time, but Elvis Presley had only a handful of studio albums left ahead of him when Good Times showed up in the late winter of 1974. Recorded in the summer and fall of the previous year at Stax Studios in Memphis, this ten-song album caught the artist near his late-career peak -- he still had better, greater records left to do, but there's nothing here that mars the image or the legend. Whether trading in rock & roll or soul sounds or accompanied by a full-blown gospel choir on "If That Isn't Love," he's in great voice, and with the likes of James Burton and Norbert Putnam playing with him, it's hard to find any fault with Good Times, except perhaps its brevity. It wasn't necessarily what longtime fans or potential listeners among younger audiences were looking for, but the album has more than stood the test of time, even if it isn't his best work of this period.


His death on Aug. 16, 1977 stunned the music industry and devastated millions of fans worldwide. In the days following his funeral, speculation grew among a small group of skeptics that Elvis might not have died after all. Despite clear statements from doctors and a coroner that the 42-year-old superstar was dead, disbelievers were adamant that the gyrating beloved baritone had faked his own death to go into hiding.


"Elvis" is a sprawling, swirling, glitzy and glamorous remembrance of the King. It ends up being so fast-paced that it comes across as hollow, but that's not to say there isn't a lot to like about it. Carrying the lyrics to that aforementioned song like a motto for the film, Luhrmann infuses his story of Elvis Presley with "a little more bite and a little less bark, a little less fight and a little more spark."


Luhrmann is sure to squeeze in most details of Elvis's life, from his youth to his "fat Elvis" days headlining at the International Hotel in Las Vegas. Maybe it's symbolic that he wedges Tom Parker's story into Elvis's, as most certainly the real Parker wedged his way into Elvis's life and career. The movie flies so fast that many eras and important periods of Presley's life feel like flashes before our eyes. On more than a few occasions, the approach works: Elvis's iconic TV appearance, for example, and the sexual awakening of the many girls (and boys) that experienced his thrusting pelvis and suggestive dance moves for the very first time, is one of the best sequences of the film and underscores why Luhrmann was uniquely qualified and trusted with this movie. But things whiz by so fast, that when the movie does need to take its necessary breaths, it feels abrupt and unearned.


The Legend of Georgia McBrideMajestic Repertory TheatreReview by Mary LaFranceAlso see Mary's review of Into the WoodsThe Legend of Georgia McBride has a special resonance for Las Vegas. Who doesn't love a down-on-his-luck Elvis impersonator who reinvents himself with the help of a down-on-her-luck drag queen?From the lowest of lows to the highest of highs, Las Vegas knows how to reinvent and repurpose itself to keep the tourists rolling in. And in Matthew Lopez's charming comedy, that is what the young, married, straight, flat-broke, and expectant father Casey needs to do, since his usual routine of lip-synching and gyrating to Elvis's biggest hits isn't exactly packing them in at the local dive bar, Cleo's at the Beach.When Cleo's owner Eddie fires Casey and brings in a pair of drag queens, Tracy Mills and Anorexia Nervosa (Rexy), in hopes of drawing bigger crowds, things go awry from the start, with Rexy passing out drunk on their opening night. In the show must go on tradition, Casey is reluctantly pressed into service. Casey isn't exactly a natural, and some of the show's best comedy comes from Tracy's efforts to teach him the tricks of the trade followed by his laughably bad first performance. But, once he discovers his drag persona, a star is born.Lopez's script has plenty of laughs, even if some of them feel a bit formulaic. Tracy and Rexy get most of the punch lines, and while they deliver them well, the stereotype of the wise-cracking acid-tongued drag queen is starting to feel a bit dated.Under Troy Heard's direction, Majestic Repertory's production soars in the over-the-top scenes, starting with Tracy's drag boot camp for Casey, and continuing through a delightful montage of lip-synched country music performances by Casey, now reinvented as the exuberant hottie Georgia McBride. Tracy and Georgia's dance moves are nicely choreographed by Venus Cobb.As Casey, Randy Hample is a lithe and wiry bundle of energy, ready to spring into action at a moment's notice. His drag performances are electrifying. Even his Florida Panhandle accent rings true. Michael Sullivan also does fine work as Tracy, imbuing the older drag queen with more than a touch of class.The production's weakness, however, is in the quieter scenes. There is no chemistry between Casey and his wife Jo (played by Destiny Faith), and their acting styles are so different that it feels like they are in two different shows. The second act lacks the flashy drag sequences of the first act, and they are sorely missed. What should be a dramatic high point—Georgia's heartfelt vocal/guitar solo as Casey discovers what drag means for him—fails to pack a punch. However, all is not lost. A sobered-up Rexy gives Casey a powerful life lesson in drag as gay male empowerment, and Casey has his own heartfelt moment of self-discovery. These moments inject some much-needed vitality into the second act, but the ending still lacks a dramatic punch.The Design Ninjas set includes a perfect jewel-box stage framed by a brightly lit proscenium. The drag costumes by Ruben Permel make for great eye candy—including one colorful headpiece that looks like the love-child of a bathing cap and a blowfish that swallowed bubble gum. The costumes alone may be worth the price of admission.The Legend of Georgia McBride, through June 16, 2019, at Majestic Repertory Theatre, 1217 S. Main St., Las Vegas NV. Performances are Friday-Saturday at 8 pm, Sundays at 5 pm, and Thursday, June 6, at 8 pm. For tickets ($25 adults, $15 students) and further information, go to www.majesticrepertory.com.Cast:Casey: RandyHampleJo: Destiny FaithMiss Tracy Mills: MichaelSullivanRexy/Jason: Kyle JonesEddie: ScottCasterDresser: Kate SirlsAdditional Creative:Lighting Design: Marcus RandolphSoundDesign: Cory Covell


Rock & roll, the currency of eternal youth, queues up fashionably late by design. It can't and won't be held in check. Which is why UT's grand sitting room of classical acoustics was still half-empty at 8:02pm when Elvis Costello strode briskly onstage to introduce the already-seated Austin Symphony Orchestra. "This is just a little bit of a change from the Armadillo World Headquarters," grinned the main Attraction. So was Il Sogno, Costello's "ballet after Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream" from 2004. Conductor Alan Broadbent breezed the ASO through the piece, an airy co-mingling of Eastern European classical, Broadway, and uptown swing, and by its conclusion 30 minutes later, the Hall had filled in, a preponderance of sunglasses sitting atop nodding heads. "Wake Me Up," a song from Costello's forthcoming collaboration with New Orleans piano savant Allen Toussaint, did nothing less, with its composer abusing an acoustic guitar and sneering through verse after verse of post-millennial angst. "Thank you," he exclaimed, mopping his brow. "I feel better." Costello's workout continued on "All This Useless Beauty," which, by concert's end, ultimately distinguished itself as the epicenter of this rocker's classical dabblings. Singing like a love-drunk coyote, quivering, left leg stamping, Costello left no corner of his jester voice unexplored, reaching full range of expression as the song worked itself through his body physically. "The Birds Will Still Be Singing," which closes Costello's newly reissued concord with the Brodsky Quartet, The Juliet Letters, and ended the first set here, proved the perfect contrast next: a ramshackle tune suited neither to rock, strings, nor the meeting thereof. No further proof was needed that Costello is no supper-club act. The balance of the show's second half reiterated the point in an engaging but mild trainwreck fashion despite tributes to Charles Brown, Billy Strayhorn, and Charles Aznavour, and a stridently acoustic "Veronica" and successfully re-envisioned "Watching the Detectives." Middle encore "Alison" was Mozart for the pop-music beautiful. Not one rocker will begrudge Costello's restless reinvention, so if his aim isn't always true, God bless him for remaining one of rock & roll's most passionate marksmen.


History buffs will love touring this historically significant monument, located right in Charleston. In the wake of the 1861 election of Abraham Lincoln as president, Confederate forces fired on Fort Sumter, demanding that Union soldiers vacate the island, marking the beginning of the Civil War.


This could easily go to Brendan Fraser, but I think a Best Picture nom for Elvis and the same musical biopic love that paved the way for Rami Malek in Bohemian Rhapsody will pave the way for Austin \u201CThe Voice\u201D Butler here.


Austin Butler won BAFTA instead, and then Brendan Fraser won SAG. So it\u2019s an even split right now between those two. Almost every podcast I\u2019ve listened to post-SAG has been evenly divided amongst their hosts and guests, with half predicting Butler and the other half predicting Fraser. Here are the two sides to the argument. Fraser has the comeback narrative, and a vote for him is a feel good vote. And his performance is classic Oscars bait, with prosthetics and yelling (according to Antonio \u2013 I still haven\u2019t seen it yet!). Austin, meanwhile, has the hot young actor of the moment thing going for him. And, for better or worse, he has also a ton of press about his Elvis voice not going away during acceptance speeches and the untimely (timely if you\u2019re his PR team) death of Lisa Marie Presley, who accompanied Butler to the Golden Globes right before she died. Nominations indicate that there\u2019s a lot more love for Elvis than The Whale overall. And a vote for Butler is a vote for The King himself. We\u2019ve been here before with Rami Malek in Bohemian Rhapsody. (For the record, I think Elvis is better than Bohemian Rhapsody.) 041b061a72


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