EDDIE O’ROURKE LIVE AT THE VALLEY REGENCY IN CLIFTON, NJ
by eddie on May.23, 2009, under E
"E" with Rose Lynn and Steve at Valley Regency
“ON THE ROAD WITH E”
On May 22nd I performed at The Valley Regency in Clifton, New Jersey, which is an elegant location, appointed with marble and tapestry. The occasion was a wedding reception for a cool, young couple…Steve and Rose Lynn Bedowya. Six months earlier they were married in Las Vegas, at one of those romantic wedding chapels. No, not an Elvis ceremony. However, as no family or friends were present, they felt the need to re-marry for the troops. And, since everyone assumed the original Vegas ceremony WAS performed by “The King”, Rose Lynn thought it would be a great surprise for Steve and the others if she produced “Elvis” for the reception. Enter…yours truly!
I affectionately refer to this type of gig as an “Elvis Sighting”. Not a full blown concert, but a truncated rendition. No live band, not even my usual sound people. JUST ME!! In an effort to make this sort of thing more affordable, I show up with a CD background program for the DJ on hand. I jump into the performance blind. No sound check or prep time with the audio crew.
"E" admiring the tapestry at the Valley Regency
No idea how the room is arranged or lit…BLIND!! Kinda like jumping out of a plane and wondering if the chute will open… or is even there! I schmooze the crowd, post performance, and usually spend a reasonable amount of time posing for photos with various party members. Being the control-freak I am, I’m almost never completely satisfied with the situation, but the performances are always well received despite my own reservations. In this instance, the team at The Valley Regency was very accommodating. But, I’m not always that lucky. Maybe I should have captioned this post “LIVING ON THE EDGE WITH E”.