SIOUX CITY — Not only is T.G. Sheppard the host of a new, weekly SiriusXM Radio show, the legendary country star is releasing his first solo album in more than two decades, which drops on Friday.

But don’t ask the 75-year-old entertainer if he considers this is a comeback.

“No way, I love trying new things and have been blessed to be given the opportunity to try new things,” Sheppard said. “I’m having a great time.”

The singer of such No. 1 hits as “I Loved “Em Every One,” “Party Time” and “Do You Wanna Go to Heaven,” Sheppard will be performing at 8 p.m. Saturday at Blackbird Bend Casino, 17214 210th St., Onawa, Iowa. 

In addition to singing many of his most-loved songs, Sheppard promised to introduce audiences to music from “Midnight in Memphis,” which is his first solo country album in 22 years.

“I wanted to do an album that included tributes to Elvis Presley,” he explained. “Like so many performers, Elvis was a huge inspiration to me.”

For Sheppard, that connection to “The King” ran much deeper.

“When I was 15 years old, I ran away from home,” he recalled. “I wanted to be a musician but my dad had different ideas.”

Sheppard first met Presley, who was already a star, the very next year.

“I met him at a Memphis skating rink, if you can believe it,” Sheppard said. “It was about midnight when I thought the place was starting to close. Instead, a couple of Cadillacs pulled including one ridden by Elvis.”

“Elvis looked at me, started talking and I was completely starstruck,” Sheppard said, continuing the story. “We skated ’til daylight and, then, he drove me to Graceland where we ate peanut butter-and-banana sandwiches.”

Indeed, he was Presley’s friend until the latter’s death in 1977. 

According to Sheppard, there was more than a little hero worship on his part.

“Man, when Elvis entered a room, you physically felt it because he had so much charisma,” he explained.  “But Elvis was also incredibly humble. Elvis was a star but he was also a very nice man.”

That was the impression Sheppard wanted to emphasize in “I Wanna Live Like Elvis,” the first single released from “Midnight in Memphis.”

“It is a lighthearted look at someone who still has a legion of fans,” he said. “I mean, who wouldn’t want to be like Elvis for a day?”

In fact, Sheppard sees many of those fans because “The T.G. Sheppard Show” — broadcast from 2 to 5 p.m., Fridays on SiriusXM’s Elvis Radio — frequently emanates from Graceland.

“We see Elvis fans from every age and every part of the world,” he said. “Everybody wants to pay their respect to ‘The King.'” 

Judging by his radio show’s star-studded guest list, plenty of A-listers also want to pay their respect to Sheppard.

Along with country music’s biggest names, Sheppard has also shared the radio mic with such unconventional collaborators as the Bee Gees’ Sir Barry Gibb and, even, Larry the Cable Guy.

“You haven’t lived until you spend time with Larry the Cable Guy,” Sheppard said. “He’s hilarious.”

Perhaps, Sheppard will share some of those memories in the autobiography he plans to write in the next few years.

“I’m blessed to have known some interesting people in my life and made some good music along the way,” he said.

But Sheppard said he isn’t slowing down. 

“As long as there’s an audience, I will still be performing,” he said. “I don’t have anything to prove. I’m just having fun.”

https://siouxcityjournal.com/entertainment/music/country-legend-t-g-sheppard-comes-to-blackbird-bend-on/article_9b51b744-c8ba-527c-9626-cf62c18acef3.html#1

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SENT TO JESSE THROUGH THIS POINT

ON FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2019

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SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2019

My friend, Jeannette H., shared the below collage of photos with me from Facebook.  Jeannette said that she knew that Jesse would love seeing these side-by- side photos of his granddaughter, Riley, with the photos of Elvis.  I believe that Jeannette is correct.  I loved seeing these photos too.

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I recently purchased and enjoyed reading the book written by the lady being interviewed in the below video.  I was so glad when I saw that the SPA GUY had done this interview with Shirley Connell.

I loved her book very much.  It is a sweet book and refreshing to read.

Below is a scan of the front and back covers of her book.  Isn’t that a wonderful photo of Elvis on the front!

To get a book email her at Shirley265@yahoo.com or look for Elvis The Man in My Backyard on Facebook.. In this video The Spa Guy introduces you to Shirley Connell who was a neighbor to Graceland at the back fence…

youtu.be/km1P9zcCVEo

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=km1P9zcCVEo&w=560&h=315%5D

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I want to share that Jesse called today.  He interrupted watching a football game to call me and I feel so honored.  Jesse told Tom that he was watching New Orleans and Seattle and he was pulling for New Orleans.  Tom was watching the Carolina Panthers & the Arizona Cardinals.  Jesse called to update me on a good report which he got from his Dr.  Jesse says he is in pretty good health for a person of his age.  I am so thankful every time that I hear that he is doing well.  As always, his call was the highlight of my day.

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WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2019

The below book sounds like an interesting read even though it is a fictional account of the reason for Elvis’ “death”.  

By Dustin CardonTuesday, September 24, 2019 12:36 p.m. CD

Author Philip Shirley, a resident of The Town of Lost Rabbit near Madison, says the inspiration for his most recent book, “The Graceland Conspiracy,” first struck in the early 2000s, when he read Gail Brewer-Giorgio’s “Is Elvis Alive?” and other books on conspiracies surrounding Elvis Presley. When he saw the famous photograph of Presley shaking hands with Richard Nixon at the White House soon after, Shirley says he began pondering the circumstances of Presley’s death himself.

“The story goes that Elvis wanted to address a national drug problem, and that he wanted to become a U.S. marshal because he thought kids would listen to him,” Shirley says. “After reading about his death, I started thinking, ‘What if he did become a marshal working on the drug issue, and it somehow led to his death, and the government was involved?’ That premise later became the initial scene for the book.”

Shirley’s book is set in 1999 and told from the point of view of a young man whose father dies under mysterious circumstances. After looking into it, he learns that his father was part of a government agency connected to Presley, and his search for answers leads to government agents pursuing him for knowing too much. Shirley, 66, initially began writing the book in 2003, but mostly put it away until 2010. He worked on the project off and on between other books until he finished it in 2017 and began working to publish it a year later.

“Even though I kept putting it down, I came back to it so many times because the idea intrigued me,” Shirley says. “Elvis never thought of himself as a drug addict, and everything he took was prescriptions from physicians. Ideas would come along, but I didn’t know how it ended. When it was time for new ideas I kept going back to the manuscript and all my questions I had in it, and I just kept coming back until I finally found those answers.”

Author’s biography continued in original article.

http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2019/sep/24/philip-shirley/#h165207-p1

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I have received photos of Elvis from good friends who wish to further substantiate that the photo of Jesse absolutely is Elvis himself.

Below are some more of these photos for everyone to compare.  Rather than creating comparisons this time, I will just display the photos of Elvis in order that everyone can compare the cheeks, the chin, the lower lip, the vertical lines from his cheeks, the bridge of his nose, the eyebrows, etc.

These are from my good friend, Jeannette, who has been so kind and supportive.

The below photos are from my good friend, Steve R.  Steve has also been very helpful to my friend Simon by sending photos for him to use in his comparison videos.  I appreciate Steve’s kindness very much.

Below are two more which I came across myself:

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2019

This is a good article to remind us how it all started…

Elvis On The Hayride

young Elvis Presley on the stage of the Louisiana Hayride in Shreveport, La. (AP Photo,file)

 

Standing on the stage at Shreveport’s legendary Municipal Auditorium, Winston Hall, a musician and tour guide with a passion for the city’s music legacy, pointed to a spot on the floor, right up front in the center. The auditorium was empty this afternoon last February, but the imagination quickly filled the seats as though it was Saturday night of yesteryear as radio station KWKH staged its weekly Louisiana Hayride broadcast.

Last week, I wrote about Ken Burns’ ongoing country music series and Louisiana’s influence on Hank Williams. The documentary also brought to mind my visit to the Shreveport auditorium and an incredible story about how the town and technology reshaped rock and roll.

Standing on stage at the spot where the performers stood, Hall played a soundtrack from Oct. 16, 1954 when the announcer introduced a young man from Mississippi named Elvis Presley. After telling the crowd that he was proud to be there, Presley launched into a song called “That’s Alright Momma.” And then, from there on that spot on the stage, the music world changed. Really.

Because the concert was being broadcast on radio, microphones had been set up throughout the audience section. As Presley began to sing, the sound technician quickly noticed that something different was happening. Teenagers, who had been dragged along by their parents to hear a country music show, suddenly seemed possessed. Turning the sound pods the technician blended the screaming, unlike anything ever heard, into the song. Through the woods and hills of north central Louisiana and into Arkansas and east Texas the airwaves were raucous, as though sending a message that a king was born.

Only two year earlier, also in October, young Hank Williams had stood on that same spot. Nobody reached hearts (whether they were, “Cheating” or “Cold, Cold”) better than him. In Louisiana his hit, “Jambalaya” would become as hot as a crawfish pie. On that October night it was announced that Williams had just been given a contract (thought modest) to regularly appear on the Hayride. It might have been a long and blissful life together except that Williams’ life ended on Jan. 1, 1953.

Presley’s and Williams’ careers never crossed, though both were boosted by Saturday nights standing at that spot on the Louisiana Hayride’s stage. The radio technicians were turning up the sound, and the music would become eternal.

https://www.myneworleans.com/elvis-on-the-hayride/

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SENT TO JESSE THROUGH THIS POINT

ON FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2019

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2019

I received some special mail from Jesse today and he phoned me tonight to wish me a happy birthday.  He certainly made my birthday very special and happy for certain.  He is well today and we enjoyed our phone visit as always.  I am so very blessed to have Jesse as my “big brother” and dear friend.  😁🎶🎼💖

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MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2019

My friend Jeannette H. called my attention to the below video.  I enjoyed hearing Elvis singing this song in a new way and I think my visitors will as well.  My thanks to Jeannette as always.

Very rare song “Her Hand In Mine” Germany ’58

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-HI1eK0QBY&w=560&h=315%5D

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I HAVE CREATED THE NEW PAGE FOR THE MONTH OF

OCTOBER, 2019

Below is the link to the new page:

https://lindahoodsigmontruthcontd.com/current-news-and-events-index/current-news-and-events-october-2019/?frame-nonce=4b3f79e7e5

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