ELVIS & CHER: From Fernando to Walking In Memphis

The Loss of a King

The 16th August sees the anniversary of the death of Elvis Presley. I’m a lifelong fan. It started from early childhood I think because my parents had so many albums and I was a kid that listened to singers and played albums – a lot.
Just like people of a certain age remember where they were when they heard that President J.F Kennedy had died (I’m a little too young for that), I remember the sad news about Elvis. His voice was exceptional. More than a performer, he was a phenomenon.

Cher – my first impression

Just as Elvis impressed me deeply from a young age, in my teenage years I became visually and aurally acquainted with Cher. In her 80’s big curly hair phase, people said I looked like her but as my look took far less effort to create I suspect it was a little more that she looked a bit like me then. As her looks have evolved, our cheekbones and face structure become ever more disparate but I remain a devoted admirer and acoustically tuned in. She was the first impression I ever found out I could (kind of ) do.

Mama Mia! Cher sings Fernando ….

Fast forward to the last few weeks, and there has been a resurgence of Abba energy again as Mama Mia 2 was released at the cinema. When I heard that Cher sings a version of Fernando in the film, I was hooked ( the hook was assisted by the news that Cher would be playing the Meryl Streep character’s mum! What – with those plump, high cheekbones?? But everything Cher does works. She’s an amazing actress with one of the most distinctive voices ever.
In honour of Cher and Mama Mia, I present a basic recording of me singing the first two lines of ABBA’s Fernando a la Cher:

ELVIS AND CHER In MEMPHIS

I have always loved the Marc Cohn song Walking in Memphis . Two legends brought together via the grace of Cher landing on a great song..