Almost Elvis
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Elvis Tribute Artist Tony Colinares (Photo courtesy of Tony Colinares)
A wig and three Memphis suits from PROELVISJUMPSUITS can’t divert suspicious minds from the Seattle native’s Asian physiognomy. “Who’s going to buy that I’m Elvis Presley? I’m Filipino American.”
Colinares exposes the main barrier between him and impersonator-hood. “A tribute artist pays tribute to the overall performer. The art involves personifying the character within the performance and having the audience relate to it.”
Relating to something is different from believing it. The distinction is the forward slash between looking like Elvis and being like Elvis in voice, attire and demeanor. In some ways, it’s a clown’s errand. “I don’t mind being a fool if it brings joy to me, my band brothers, and our audiences.”
Gracelandmanila spreads ample joy during the three Saturdays out of every month the band is typically booked for parties, restaurants, corporate conferences, and sports events (including one Seattle Seahawks game).
L-R; Dain Norm guitar, Ty Mundt lead guitar, Denise Duque vocals, Cher Espina vocals, Christian Carpio drums, Lloyd Laigo base, Micheal Iringan keyboard, Drew Sodt saxophone, Tony Colinares, lead vocals (Photo by Jeff Garfield)
When guests enter the ballroom to see the next best thing to “The Impossible Dream,” they’re primed for a good time; but Filipino seniors in the usually mixed crowd can be rigid guardians of Elvis’ legacy. Colinares, a former U.S. Marine, admits, “They tell me if I screwed up. It’s only you in the mirror. You have to take it. It’s not easy to emulate a bigger-than-life character.”
His older sister, Priscilla (of course), introduced him to Elvis Presley and is more constructive than the manongs (venerable Filipino gentlemen) in her critique. When she speaks, he says, “I take notes, go back to the lab, and write a better script.”
On stage, he says, “I like to stick to a playlist. But if someone comes up to ask me to play ‘Mama Liked the Roses’ or ‘Pocketful of Rainbows’ (as examples), I’ll tell my music director Lloyd Laigo because he knows the music. We’re able to shift from the game plan like a quarterback calling an audible.”
L-R; Lloyd Laigo; Hubert Mendoza, Tony Colinares, Dain Norm, Jim Barnes, Denise Duque (Photo by Denise Duque)
Popularity Without Recognition
“My band has been at it for over ten years, and I’m still not famous.” Colinares alludes to the split personality peculiar to an entertainer who borrows the adoration for a super celebrity for two hours a day.
Answers.com estimates there are 92,000 Elvis impersonators in the United States or one out of every 3,400 Americans. Ratios like that usually pertain to diseases. Besides the accolades corresponding to 94 platinum records and 31 feature films, he theorizes, “Elvis is a popular person to emulate because the tone of his voice is more attainable than someone like (opera singer Luciano) Pavarotti. He doesn’t have a high falsetto. I can mechanically get my voice in that tenor mode.”
Mature Elvis/Mature Tony
As with the commemorative postage stamps, the public distinguishes between the “young Elvis” with the matinee idol looks and the “mature Elvis” with flared sideburns and bellbottoms. The advantage of portraying the older version is chronologically accurate access to a record catalog that ranges from “That’s All Right Mama” to “Burning Love” (and posthumously “A Little Less Conversation”).
At age 61, Colinares is almost 20 years older than Elvis’ 42 years when he died in 1977. Yet the son of Basey, Samar, Philippines immigrants continues to shake his pelvis without symptoms of an imminent hip replacement. “I’m lucky to be a family man,” he says of his spouse, Jessica Pharr, and their two teenage daughters. “My wife takes good care of me. We go on walks, and she lectures me on keeping the weight down and not becoming a chubby Elvis.”
At home with his wife of 20 years, Jessica (Photo by Tony Colinares)
Tony and his family at home for his daughter’s high school graduation (Photo by Tony Colinares)
Elvis projected challenging attributes. “The charisma in the way he carried himself, the way he sang, the dance movements. You need stamina to play at a performance level. There’s a reciprocal energy force between me and my band. They get energized by seeing Elvis moving. When they play harder, I play better.” He predicts, “I’ll be doing this until the wheels fall off.”
At age 61, Colinares is almost 20 years older than Elvis’ 42 years when he died in 1977. Yet the son of Basey, Samar, Philippines immigrants continues to shake his pelvis without symptoms of an imminent hip replacement.
One moment, Colinares is in the limelight, the next he’s back at his day job as the Student Resource Center Supervisor in the University of Washington HUB (Husky Union Building) where he’s worked for a quarter of a century.
“No,” he maintains, “I don’t have full anonymity. The UW has me doing Elvis at spring festivals, retirement parties, and student celebrations.”
Anthony Maddela enjoys profiling alive Filipinos like Tony Colinares, who take risks and are making people happy as they shatter societal stereotypes about what Fil-Ams do best.
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