Return To Splendor - The King

I have to say that as a serious Elvis fan I have something of an aversion to Elvis impersonators. None have the quality of Elvis' voice. I would never buy a CD by an impersonator but at Christmas this year a family member thought I might like this CD as a present. I have listened to it this morning with some trepidation but have found that it is not all bad. All of the songs on the CD are Elvis-ised versions of songs which he never recorded, mostly because he was dead before the song was ever even written. This puts the album up on most Elvis impersonators, most of whom simply sing Elvis songs, and sing them badly. The choice of songs is interesting. I have ...

As you'd expect, 'The King' is a reference to Elvis Presley. 'The King' is the stage name of Irish singer Jim Brown who performs cover versions in the 'style' of Elvis. On paper it sounds as if it has the possibility of being the ultimate karaoke-type nightmare but surprisingly it isn't. The King is not an out and out impersonation. Brown's voice is neither forced nor over-the-top with the obvious Elvis trademark vocal styles. Initially, I heard about The King after a friend was reluctantly dragged to one of his gigs and came back full of praise. I heard one of his songs from his debut album 'Gravelands' - a cover ...