Ryan Roth, a local Elvis impersonator, and Motown Sounds of Touch, a local vocal group, are bringing the dual-headlining show to the Concert Hall at Roger Glass Center for the Arts on Oct. 12.
Dubbed Elvis Meets Motown Meets Elvis, the performance will explore the catalogs of Elvis and the figureheads of Motown, like the Spinners and Four Tops. Both Roth and Sounds of Touch are seasoned acts that have traveled all over the U.S., performing at fairs, festivals, clubs and theaters for decades.
Motown Sounds of Touch exudes all the flair necessary to pull off the looks and tones of that renowned Detroit sound. Composed of four singers and six band members, the R&B group has opened up for the Temptations, the Commodores, Al Green, Ray Charles, Eddie Money and Rick Springfield, to name a few.
Members of Sounds of Touch have written songs for Michael Jackson and the Jackson 5. The group was also a Top 3 finalist on NBC’s singing competition, “The Winner Is…” with Nick Lachey.
Ryan Roth has been impersonating Elvis for 15 years. With a full band behind him, Roth gets in character as Elvis ostensibly circa the 1977 “Elvis in Concert” posthumous television special, the one with the iconic bejeweled white jumpsuit. Roth’s band, The Comeback Special, is a reference to the “‘68 Comeback Special,” the one with big red-lettered “ELVIS” behind him.
Roth has competed in Elvis lookalike competitions, most recently in Branson, MO where he ranked 7th out of 60 contestants. He is devoted to keeping the memory of Elvis Presley alive.
But what was the impetus for merging the music of the King of Rock and Roll and the soul of the Motown sound?
Simple enough, they wanted to do a Motown and rock and roll show.
“Elvis is the most impersonated performer of all time, with Michael Jackson probably a close second,” said Floyd Weatherspoon, one of the singers in Sounds of Touch. “We’ve done shows with a Beatles tribute and a Beach Boys tribute, but we’ve never done one with an Elvis Presley tribute. There’s a thousand Elvis [impersonators] in every city. But I said, I know Ryan Roth so let’s see if he’d be up to doing this. I think it’ll be a great night of music.”
Weatherspoon said that the Concert Hall at Roger Glass reminds him of some of the venues and sold-out theaters Sounds of Touch played in Buffalo, NY, and Traverse City, MI — only nicer — which is one of the reasons the group decided to put on this eclectic show locally.
“This music brings back memories,” Weatherspoon said. “We’ve been doing [Sounds of Touch] for 35 years, and it’s nostalgic. It brings us back to a time when there was no vulgarity in the lyrics, when it was just great songs and great music that people liked to dance to. It makes them think about their youth. I’m 73 years old; I’m the second oldest guy in the group. This takes us back to our good old days when we were young.”
Two tributes to two genres on one stage. Elvis Meets Motown Meets Elvis is dedicated to uplifting the soul and the spirit. You heard it through the grapevine.
Contact this contributing music writer at branberry100@gmail.com.
HOW TO GO
What: Ryan Roth (Elvis) and Motown Sounds of Touch
When: 7:30 p.m. Oct. 12
Where: Concert Hall, Roger Glass Center for the Arts, 29 Creative Way, Dayton
Tickets: Ticketmaster.com
More info: udayton.edu/artssciences/about/facilities/glass-center-arts/glass-center-events.php
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