Kathy Westmoreland -Alive and KICKING! #2

You weren't really a big "fan" of Elvis' prior to working with him, were you?

Well now,...I kind of just almost answered this one. In short, "No"...I was not a fan. I didn't really "get it" at all until I saw him onstage, live during that first performance I was told to watch before I would go onstage with him. I was called in quickly to replace Millie Kirkham, and was recommended by others for the position. The only pre-requisite for the job was to be able to sing in a "high-voice" range, and...most importantly...to be able to ad-lib, to join in and follow him wherever he decided he was going at the moment musically. I was told he might call up any one of five or six hundred songs, and that I needed to be ready to contribute something to any one of those, whether I was familiar with the tune or not.

It was pretty overwhelming in the beginning, and I certainly had my doubts about being able to do that. I was used to very rehearsed vocalizations, written parts, etc.---this turned out to be the most exciting aspect of singing with Elvis! The ability he had to take any one of hundreds of songs, perform that one in any number of styles, depending on his mood on that particular moment.

What was the most important contributing factor in going on tour with Elvis?

I think you may be asking me what impressed me most about going on tour with Elvis? The thing I recall the most was simply that it was not just another "concert". It was "A Happening", if you get my drift. The audience's reaction to the first few seconds prior to Elvis' appearance onstage, the incredible excitement those people were expressing as they waited to see the man whom they had adored for over twenty years. Then, as he walked on, the applause and screams that made one think to oneself, "This just could be a similar sound that would occur the day the world ends". Overwhelming sound, blinding flashbulbs that never stopped throughout the entire hour and a half, and we onstage with him could sense the feelings of the people. The closest word I can find to describe it is "electrifying". So much so that it took hours after that experience each and every time to calm oneself down.

Just so much energy exchange between the