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Saturday, June 19, 2010

Power Of Elvis

Me and my wife recently spent a week in a cottage on the western coast of Denmark. Naturally I brought my faithful iPod along, because a week without Elvis.... unthinkable! But I needn't have worried, because Elvis turned up anyway. Four times to be more precise.
 
The first night we went to a local restaurant, cosily decorated with things nautical, such as boat models and paintings of sailing ships. Suddenly, through a speaker located nearby, I heard a familiar intro and then Elvis singing "We're caught in a trap..." I guess "Thanks To The Rolling Sea" or "We're Coming In Loaded" would've suited the atmosphere of the place better, but who was I to complain. It's always a great feeling to hear an Elvis song at a public place, knowing I'm not the only one listening to the greatest artist there is. And I had to smile when the waiter passed our table, hearing him humming along.

One day we went on an excursion in our car, visiting a church that is slowly migrating into the ocean due to coastal erosion. As we were approaching the parking space "Jailhouse Rock" started playing on the radio. Once again, maybe not the most appropriate "soundtrack"to fit the occasion. Looking at the church standing only a couple meters from the cliffs, I thought of something a little bit more sober, like "How Great Thou Art" or "Somebody Bigger Than You And I" but then started stamping my foot against the floor and singing "Let's rock, everybody let's rock..." It's hard to resist that kind of beat.

On June 8, 2010, Nancy Sinatra turned 70, and on the radio they played some of her songs. I immediately hoped for "Your Groovy Self" or even "There Ain't Nothing Like A Song" but wasn't that lucky. But in the paper there was a fairly long article about Nancy, mentioning among other things, that she had participated in seven movies, and that she was "best remembered for Speedway with Elvis Presley in 1968 and The Wild Angel with Peter Fonda in 1966." I wished I'd brought my DVD copy of Speedway with me, it would have been a fitting tribute to watch it that night.

The fourth and final time Elvis popped up was during a commercial for the upcoming World Cup Football Championship in South Africa. Accompanying some of the most famous players dribbling and shooting the ball was Elvis' voice belting out the lyrics to "Burning Love". The producer obviously knew his stuff!

So you see, even if I had forgotten my Ipod, Elvis would've been part of my vacation anyhow, although not as much as I'd like. Yet it's amazing how he keeps turning up, sometimes when you least expect it. Such is the power of Elvis.

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