(Submitted photo)
By Joseph Knoop
What drives a man to embody the rock ‘n’ roll spirit that the late Elvis Presley ignited, some four years before the King’s death in 1977? If you asked Roy Reynolds, a retired pipe fitter and Elvis performer of over 30 years, he’d be the first to tell you he isn’t that man, but he hopes you enjoy his tribute all the same.
Reynolds’ love of Elvis began at the same time almost everyone else’s did, with Presley’s first appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1956.
“I don’t really remember the performance as much as I remember my sister’s reaction,” Reynolds said. “It was always me coming home from school and closing my bedroom door, turning on Elvis records and letting it rock.”
Balancing song requests from his sister’s friends and schoolyard teasing, Reynolds’ first foray into personifying the King came in 1973, after witnessing performer Gary Gillespie sing an Elvis tribute in Indianapolis. Reynolds later performed for in his living room for his newly married wife Juli, who would become an integral partner in Reynold’s own shows.
Reynolds performed full time with his act Blue Freedom Band in the 1980s, and even recording with D.J. Fontana, Elvis’ drummer of 14 years. One of Reynold’s most treasured moments happened at, of all places, an assisted living home.
“There was a young man in a wheelchair,” Reynolds said. “He was sitting there with one arm on the table, and when I finished a song, his applause was just patting the table. Usually I end the performance with ‘Amazing Grace’ and ‘How Great Thou Art.’ As I’m singing I notice that he’s kind of singing along with me…(he) hadn’t spoken a word since he’d been there. There’s the blessings we get when we do this.”
Fans of the King can see Reynolds perform his Elvis tribute and other inspirational songs free of charge during “A Night of Inspiration” at Indiana Wesleyan University on May 30.
