By Debbie Cohen
The seats were filled, decorations hung and nothing stirred, not even a mouse until there was a shout, a rattle and gyration of his hips when Elvis filled the Esquire Diner in Ozone Park through the voice of tribute performer Gregg Peters last week during his Elvis Christmas show.
Peters opened up with “C C Rider,” Welcome to My World” and “Heartbreak Hotel,” which are some of the most popular Elvis songs. As the crowd roared, he told everyone how he has been Elvis more times than Elvis has – more than 7,000 concerts in the tri-state area and around the country.
“I started out a little over 37 years ago at the Riverboat Restaurant in the Empire State Building and it has been great,” Peters said. “During my shows I usually collect donations for the Red Cross and St. Jude’s Children’s Fund, but tonight I’m collecting for another great charity, which is the World Society for Protection of Animals, a non-profit organization. Most of Peters’ shows, as the Dec. 10 Christmas show was, are a family affair, which includes his mother, who is called Miss Marie; his son Lamar, who also performs Elvis, oldies and country tunes; and his other son J.J. Burton, who plays the guitar and recently started singing some oldies.
In addition to the Elvis songs, Lamar got the crowd reeling to some country music – “Slow Hand” by Conway Twitty and “Get Rhythm” by Johnny Cash.
But the variety of music didn’t stop there. Miss Marie sang a Petula Clark tune, “This is My Song,” and a Connie Francis tune, “Where the Boys Are.”
Peters said many years ago he met Tom Jones and Englebert Humperdinck and since that time he includes some of their songs in his repertoire.
During the Christmas show he sang a Tom Jones hit; ‘I Believe” and a Humperdinck hit, “Love Is a Many Splendored Thing.”
Before the close of the show, JoAnn DeLuca, an Ozone Park resident said that she has been following Peters’ shows for 30 years.
“It’s fantastic, I just love every show I attend,” she said.
Janice Serale, a Fresh Meadows resident, said she was never an Elvis fan, but watching this show has changed her mind.
“The whole family is very talented and I just love the way they perform and play the guitar; they truly are a talented family,” she said. “I would definitely come out to see another show.”
As the show was winding down, Peters, Miss Marie and J.J. Burton sang two Elvis songs as a trio – “If I Can Dream” and “I Can’t Help Falling In Love With You.”
As Elvis left the house, someone in the crowd said “his spirit never left the building.”
For more information about upcoming shows, go to: www.greggthekingpeters.com or call 347-932-5123.
