NASHVILLE,
Tenn. (July 24, 2015) – When Sunday, August 16 arrives this year, Elvis
Presley fans around the world will pause to mark the 38 years that have
passed since the King died. As you know, singer-songwriter Ronnie
McDowell is one of the biggest Elvis fans of all time. He can trace much
of his success to his 1977 blockbuster, “The King is Gone,” which
catapulted Ronnie into the spotlight.
Early in his career, Ronnie was already a successful songwriter
scoring hits for Porter Waggoner, Webb Pierce, Faron Young, Eddy Arnold,
Tanya Tucker, Chet Atkins, George Jones and many others. He often
describes that afternoon as when he wrote his own life story. With the
huge reaction and requests made to radio stations from Elvis fans,
Ronnie received a phone call from Dick Clark and the next day performed
on American Bandstand. Since that day, multi-million copies of “The King is Gone” have been sold.
Ronnie’s Elvis connection doesn’t stop there. When Dick Clark
produced a television movie featuring a young Kurt Russell as Elvis
Presley, Clark turned to Ronnie to record 36 songs for the movie’s
extensive soundtrack. He would reprise his turn as the voice of the King
when Elvis’s wife, Priscilla, tapped him to sing for the television
movie “Elvis and Me.” Over the years, Ronnie’s vocals would be showcased
on the ABC-TV series about the early years of Elvis’ career titled
simply “Elvis,” as well as the 1997 Showtime special “Elvis Meets
Nixon.” Today, Ronnie often features Elvis Presley’s original sidemen
Scotty Moore and D.J. Fontana, along with Millie Kirkham and The
Jordanaires when he stages tributes to Elvis Presley’s music.
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