Elvis Presley would have been 89 today. We thought it would be a lot of FUN to celebrate the King’s birthday here and give Elvis a cool birthday present on behalf of a big fan!
That fan is Damian Lewis 😀
Damian was Kirsty Young’s Castaway on Desert Island Discs back in November 2014:
“Up until I was about the age of 18, I thought, I was Elvis, returned, and spent a lot of my time putting shaving foam, oddly, through my hair and relentlessly coiffing my quiff, and any opportunity getting into my skinny pair of black jeans and my winklepickers and my paisley shirt from Kensington market.”
You can hear the entire podcast here and Elvis bit is at 04:34.
Enough said!
Damian performed Elvis’ “Burning Love” LIVE at The Berkeley Square Ball, a fundraising party in aid of The Prince’s Trust, in July 2005 in London. Even though we do not have a recording of his performance, these pictures present evidence that it was no less than a show-stopper! 😀
You can visit damian-lewis.com for more pictures from the Berkeley Square Ball and, more importantly, for a video to see Damian in action as Elvis! Damian first appears at 0:50.
“This is going out to London City. Take it away…”
You are very welcome 😀
Damian made a surprise for the Jonathan Ross Show audience with his impromptu rendition of “All Shook Up” on the piano!
And he did a brilliant Karaoke to “Burning Love” complete with some fantastic dance moves on ICAP Charity Day in December 2014. I cannot think of a better birthday celebration for the King of Rock’n’Roll other than sharing that hilarious karaoke clip with you all!
So… from one king to another: “Happy Birthday!” 🙂
Well, it is a truth universally acknowledged, that if you give Damian a piano, he will play it! And the piano on stage in The Goat was no exception. This little moment with Damian and Archie Madekwe, the brilliant young actor who played Damian’s son Billy in the play, jamming to Elvis is PRICELESS. Thank you Nicole Charles for sharing it!
Look at these boys @lewis_damian @archmadekwe and their Elvis jam during tech @thegoatplay @TRH_London #skills #triplethreats #⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ pic.twitter.com/Qra5b2NrGr
— Nicole Charles (@NicolefcCharles) April 14, 2017
Well, one of the happy surprises of 2022 was Damian returning to stage, this time with a guitar in hand! And having just seen the movie Elvis, I think Damian’s outfit at his first ever gig at Omeara was inspired by what Elvis wore at one of his early gigs in the movie: a lace shirt paired with baggy pleated pants – now called 1950s Presley pants.
In his special “A Blues and Swing Special” on Jazz FM on New Year’s Day 2023, one of Damian’s selections was Elvis’ Mystery Train.
And finally, when I gave him the Elvis guitar picks that Gingersnap picked for him from the Graceland Store at his Rough Trade East gig, Damian used one of them at the gig!
Happy Birthday to the King of Rock’n’Roll!
Note to our readers: If you have or find an audio/video of Damian singing Elvis, please share it with us so we can add it to this precious collection. Thank you!
HaH!!!!! That man can do ANYTHING!!!! I LOVE IT and STILL LAUGHING!!!! That is just fantastic!!!
Isn’t he hilarious? Yes, you are right, he can do ANYTHING! 😀
Oh yes, we have long known that Damian can do everything, but really, he sings as well, a profession singer, he has a great scenic ease!
Only our Damian, who can do that, you know, we have lots of taste!
monique
No need to be humble about this, Monique, we have the BEST taste! 😀 Damian has the moves! 🙂
I saw the “All Shook Up” one, it was really awesome – did you see him doing the gangnam dance??
YES! On Jonathan Ross show – hilarious! 🙂 Great to see you here, too; and hope you keep your feedback coming!
I have watched some of this videos before except the one from the show, thank you for sharing it… I love his energy, the way he has fun and enjoys everything he does. Add up to the above comments he can do anything indeed….
Lucky Helen who can have him by her side .
Have a great day!!!
Though I’d read excerpts I don’t think I’ve heard the Desert Island Disc podcast before! Great fun! Thanks Damianista
You are very welcome! It’s a GREAT podcast!