January 10, 2012 – Imagine a birthday party where Elvis Presley’s birthday was celebrated--and Marilyn Monroe and The Beatles appeared too.
...Well they were certainly there in spirit Sunday evening, January 8, on what would have been Elvis's 77th birthday. We all gathered at the Edgewater Hotel in Seattle (where the Beatles stayed in 1964) during a beautiful sunset for Paula Pripusich’s birthday festivities—a day she shares with her “King” Elvis. A devoted Elvis, Marilyn, and Beatles fan, Paula had all the trappings of her idols around her, as well as her husband, Ringo….I mean Jim “Ringo” Martin who plays Ringo Starr for the Seattle-based Beatles tribute band British Export.
The gathering also revealed much in the way of breaking Seattle music news, so don’t turn the dial, there’s lots to share.
We arrived at the beautiful “67 Lounge” overlooking Elliott Bay to find Elvis and Marilyn standing together behind the group of party-goers. These large stand-ups added much entertainment to the festivities. They caused quite a scandal when they both fell over on top of each other and Marilyn had to be rescued from Elvis’s advances. Paula, who herself resembles Marilyn, was thrilled to see that her doppelganger, the sex goddess, was featured on her cake. (see slideshow)
In attendance were Paula’s whole family, and many friends including Gillian Gaar (Nirvana and Elvis author, and Seattle Pop Culture Examiner), fellow British Export band members, and Bryan Christiansen (No Quarter Led Zeppelin tribute) and his wife Eileen; Jack Hanan (The Cowboys) and girlfriend Diane (yes they get the John Mellencamp joke all the time), Shelley Germeaux (John Lennon Examiner and Seattle Rock Music Examiner) and husband Ron.
SEATTLE MUSIC NEWS to report
Gillian Gaar, wearing her Elvis shirt and “TCB” necklace (“Taking Care of Business”—it’s an Elvis motto) reports that she is working on a new Nirvana book! Entitled “Entertain Us: Nirvana, Bleach and the Rise of the Seattle Scene”, the book will focus on the early years of Nirvana, something that most books have skated over. Her book is not yet finished but can be pre-ordered here. She is attending the “Elvis Invitational” in Seattle this weekend at Experience Music Project. Read her report covering Elvis’s birthday news and info about the upcoming event. Gillian is an Elvis author as well, and has written for Goldmine for many years.
Bryan Christiansen (Jimmy Page in the great Led Zeppelin tribute band No Quarter) is jazzed to be in association with Jerry Miller of Moby Grape –Bryan is working on something BIG with him and we will let you know if his dream comes to pass. We’ll just say it has to do with a musical reunion of sorts. So stay tuned…(“I can say no more…”) Jerry was rated in the top 100 guitarists by Rolling Stone and was buddies with Jimi Hendrix at the Spanish Castle back in the early 60s.
Jim “Ringo” Martin to play with Tim Piper on cruise - Jim told us, “It's a Royal Carribean Cruise, that goes to Aruba and St. Lucia, departing January 19. I will be performing with Revolution (the Beatles tribute) with Jon Perry as Paul, Jimmy Pou (2010 Tulalip George), and the great Tim Piper as Lennon.
After stopping at the Edgewater gift shop where there are great Beatles trinkets for sale, featuring the “fishing” picture of the Beatles fishing out their window, (how can I resist…yes I walked out with a bag of goodies) we were treated to a spontaneous tour of the infamous Beatles Suite, room 272. (See slideshow.) The suite is very popular and pricey, ranging from $600 - $750 a night. It features a full living room and bar along with master suite, and an amazing view of Elliott Bay. This is the window they fished out of. (Ringo commented during the Seattle press conference (1964) “Some people shouted at us from the water, saying, ‘there’s no fish in there!’”-- to much laughter.) Read all about the Beatles 1964 stay here.
Happy birthday Paula and Elvis!
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