Elvis Tribute Artists Radio

Elvis Tribute Artists Radio

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We grew closer and closer as time went on.  We did an 8-week stint in Memphis that ended on Saturday, August 13, 1977.  Charlie was with us many of the nights on stage clowning with us, including our closing night.  The next day, we drove to Phoenix, AZ for our next gig.  On Tuesday, my Dad called me from Memphis and told me that Elvis had died.  I was in shock - we just could not believe it.  Then it came on TV. I called Charlie first thing.  He had a private line to his area in Graceland where he lived. It took a while to get him, but when I did, he was crying and worn out from the terrible trauma of his best friend dying.  We talked for a while, and out of nowhere he asked if we'd like to attend the private funeral.  My drummer and I were on a red-eye flight the next night to Memphis.  My Dad picked us up at the airport, got us a car, we went to buy suits at Lansky's, and drove up to the house.  Charlie met us in the back in tears.  He took us in the house, right to the music room where Elvis was.  Just the three of us were in there for a few moments.  And that is something I'll never forget.  I touched Elvis' face and hands, after Charlie told me it was OK.  We stayed for the funeral, but had to go right back to the airport to get back to Phoenix, so we didn't go to the cemetery.

Shortly after Elvis died, Charlie suggested that we do an Elvis Tribute show, but he told me I should not dye my hair, act or talk like Elvis, just sing the songs, don't try to "be" him. Great advice - because, as a result of those words, I've managed to work closely for Graceland for a very long time, doing concerts that they sponsor all over the world, with people like the Jordanaires, The TCB Band, all of the background singing groups, DJ Fontana, Boots Randolph, and of course, Charlie. He was my closest friend of all the "Elvis guys.”  He taught me a lot, and seemed almost like a father to me. We got to work together off and on throughout the years, the last time being in Las Vegas on October 30, 2004. Charlie acknowledged to the crowd that night that he had taken me to Elvis' funeral, and that we had been working together for a long time, and that we were friends, and that meant so much to me.

I miss Charlie already, his friendship, his talent, and his humor.  He was one in a million, and I love him, always will.

Sing "His Hand In Mine" with Elvis for me now that you're back with him. God bless you, my friend.  

Singer, musician, Emmy-nominated songwriter, actor, and life-long Elvis fan, Terry Mike Jeffrey first met Charlie in 1969 and was a close friend  right to the end ...performing with him for Elvis fans all over the world.  Terry Mike says, “I  last spoke to Charlie in February when we talked for a long time and then again a few weeks before he died, when I called to check on him....I told him that my wife Debbie & I loved him, and to take care of himself.”

Charlie and I met for the first time in 1969 at the International Hotel, the same night I met Elvis for the first time.  Then again in '72 in Little Rock, ARK at the concert there.  At that point Charlie began to understand that I was a singer, with a band, that we played in Memphis sometimes.  I saw more Elvis concerts in '72 than any other year, so I saw Charlie a lot.  We got comfortable around each other, and one night in Memphis, in July of that year, Charlie invited my then-girlfriend (later wife) Debbie and her brother and me to the Memphian Theater.  Elvis had rented it, like always.  We went in the side entrance, sat in the back, watched a movie called "Money Talks," , but I couldn't tell you anything about it.  We were mostly keeping our eyes on Elvis. And, on this night, he was with Linda Thompson, and it seemed that this was a brand new relationship at the time. Elvis went to the concession stand (alone!), then to the restroom, and I wandered to the lobby myself, knowing he'd have to walk through to get back into the movie. So, I'm standing around, and here he comes. I spoke, he spoke, we shook hands, and I told him I was a friend of Charlie's.  "Such A Night!”

From this point on, Charlie and I were very good friends, but became much closer starting in 1975 when he finally got around to coming to see my band play in Memphis. We were not an "Elvis" group as such, but we did a lot of his music.  Charlie liked the band, and came to see us a lot, sometimes bringing Dick Grob, George Klein, just different guys.  And he would get on stage, sing with us, play guitar, piano, tell jokes.  He was a joy to work with, and we were thrilled.  Many nights after we'd get through playing we'd go to this place across from Graceland called the Hickory Log, get something to eat, play pinball, just hang out.  Charlie always went with us.

 In '76 he started inviting us up to "the house"  in the wee hours of the morning. We'd sit and sing, play music, watch old films, just hang out together.

One of the nights we went up to the house with Charlie, he asked us if we'd like to see any old Elvis films on his projector (my, how the times have changed), and of course, we said yes. I had, at that point, never seen any of the Ed Sullivan shows that Elvis was on, and that's what he showed us first. I was very excited, cause I was a huge Elvis fan since the age of 3, and had never seen this stuff. Then, he pulls out a reel of all of the Dorsey Shows, all 6 shows. We were watching them, and during the 4th show, the projector started smoking.  I don't recall what the problem was, but it BURNT the film. And this was Elvis' personal copy of the Dorsey Shows, his ONLY one.  Charlie panicked, took the film off the reel, and tried his best to repair it, we tried to help, but the only thing we could do was cut out the burnt part and scotchtape the film back together. The look on Charlie's face was absolutely priceless, I'll never forget it as long as I live. Years later I asked Charlie about that, and he said that Elvis never again watched those films, so everything was OK.  Soon after, home videotape became a common thing, and the Sullivan shows, Dorsey shows, and everything else became commonly available